Armenian Church of Atlanta

Transcription

1 May 2007 In This Issue Mother s Day Picnic Easter Divine Liturgy Cooking Class Recipe for Choreg Get Well Wishes April 24 Memorial Service Raffle for Building Fund ACYOA 8 th Annual conference ACYOA Sports Weekend Summer Camp AACCA Summer Scholarships Next Month s Events Pilgrimage to Armenia Koko & Alex s trip to Armenia Ode to My Mother Armenian Church of Atlanta Solemn Divine Liturgy Sixth Sunday of Eastertide Acts 20: John 3:2-6 John 9:39-10:10 Sunday May 13, :00 am at Hye Doon Celebrant Very Rev. Fr. Haigazoun Najarian 9820 Coleman Road Roswell, GA Contact Us Armenian Church of Atlanta 9820 Coleman Rd. Roswell, GA mgavedissian@comcast.net We re on the Web! ArmenianChurchofAtlanta.org

2 Easter Divine Liturgy and Luncheon Thank you to the Very Rev. Fr. Haigazoun Najarian for being the celebrant this Easter Liturgy as well as everyone in attending the Easter Service. There are certainly plenty of Armenians that are part of our community so we hope you join us again (on a monthly basis). The Ladies Guild had out done themselves again by serving us a wide variety of delicious food and desserts. Below is a message from the Ladies Guild Chairperson, Talar Torossian, acknowledging certain individuals for their hard work during Easter Badarak. Dear Fellow Armenians, I would like to extend my gratitude and thanks to everyone in making our Easter celebration wonderful and filled with good food and activities for the kids. Thanks to everyone who donated food, helped set up Hye Doon and prepared food. I certainly appreciate everyone in attending and supporting our efforts but I would like to recognize special individuals that worked extra hard in devoting their time and effort during Easter. Thanks to Mari Avedissian, Anita Karapetian, Ophelia Karapetian, Ani and Maral Tasciyan, Tara Torossian, Janet Mirzoyan, Nairi Bournazian, Ara Keyfer, and Eric & Murat Corluyan for helping setup. Thanks to the Khodaverdian Family, Nadine Kassabian, Adelina Gourdikian, Sevtap Corluoglu, Joyce Keyfer, Jilda Kilbacak, Filyan Dido, Ophelia Karapetian and Vera Nercessian for the delicious Armenian food prepared. Thanks to Ani Tasciyan and Anush Mirzoyan for the delicious Choreg that they made. Thank you to Mari Avedissian for preparing the Easter Egg hunt and the prizes which along with the clown and face painting were a big hit with the children. Also thanks to Ani Tasciyan for preparing little purses for the girls. The kids certainly appreciated all the activities since it was a cold and rainy day. Once again, thanks to everyone for a wonderful Easter and I look forward to seeing you at the upcoming Mother s Day picnic on May 6 th at East Roswell park. Sincerely yours, Talar Torossian ACOA Ladies Guild Chairperson Talar & Tara Torossian & Vera Nercessian prepare Lunch at Hye Doon s kitchen Ladies Guild Board members at the ACOA Easter Luncheon

3 Cooking Class Offered How to make Easter Choreg Ani Tasciyan shared her wonderful recipe for Easter Choreg with the members of the ACOA Women s Guild on April 5 th. Attendees enjoyed a wonderful evening together and took delicious Choreg home for Easter. Thank you Ani. Please see recipe below: This recipe makes Choreg s each about 10 inches long. Step 1 3 pouches of yeast 1 cup of warm water 1 tbsp sugar Mix well in a medium size bowl. The mix is going to rise to about 4 cups size so the bowl has to be large enough to accommodate. Mix until it is a beige color smooth mix. Cover with a towel, leave in room temperature and let it rise - at least 20 minutes. Step cups of sugar = 700 grams 5 lbs of flour 2 tbsp Mahleb (can be found in Persian stores or maybe Whole Foods in a glass jar - has to be grinded by you) 1 tbsp Masdik (equal to 10 or 12 pea size solid pieces before they are grinded- can be purchased from Middle Eastern stores) 10 large eggs Grind enough Mahleb in a coffee grinder to obtain 2 tbsp. Can store the remaining powder for later use. Grind Masdik with 1 tbsp of flour together to keep masdik from sticking to the grinder. This should produce one tbsp of powdered Masdik. In a large container make the dough. The dough will rise to twice this size so the container needs to be large. A large plastic container with a top is recommended. Mix 2.5 cups of sugar, 5 lbs of flour. Mix in grinded Mahleb and Masdik in this mix well. Add 10 eggs and mix it with your hand. Quickly execute the next step. Step 3 4 sticks of butter melted 3 cups of lukewarm milk Melt the butter and add 3 cups of lukewarm milk Step 4 Add the mixture from Step 3 to the mixture from Step 2. Mix with your hand until the mixture is smooth with no lumps and is not sticky. If sticky add a little flour (not too much or it will become lumpy). Flatten the dough and draw a large cross + in the dough for blessings it will bring. Cover with a blanket and let sit in a warm place - inside of your oven (don t turn the oven on), on a counter top that is exposed to sunshine, etc., for 5 hours and let the dough rise. Step 5 When the dough is ready, break off three equal pieces of the dough, roll it into a ball the size of a small orange, and then roll it on a flat surface in a cigar shape of equal length and thickness. Connect the tops of the sticks and braid them (see image attached) together. Cover your baking sheet with Aluminum foil and place the braded Choregs on it 3 inches apart and let sit in room temperature for an hour to rise more. Step 6 Take 3 eggs and separate yolks from egg white. Discard the yolks. Brush the egg white on the Choreg. Sprinkle with black caraway seeds, or sesame seeds. They are available in grocery stores that sell Middle Eastern or Greek foods. Bake at 350 degree for minutes or until the top is a nice golden brown color and enjoy.

4 Look how beautiful our future is..doesn t it make you want to keep smiling.. Face Painting was one of the favorite activities once again during the Easter Sunday Get Well Wishes. To Levon Messerlian who was also recently injured in a freak accident. We wish Levon a quick and complete recovery and our thoughts and prayers are with him. Levon, is a long time member of the Armenian Church of Atlanta Choir and at times carries on the duties of the Sub-Deacon. We cannot imagine having a Badarak without him. To Narine Gourdikian who was recently injured in an accident. We send our well wishes and love to Narine. We hope that she is back to complete health and we will be able to see her beautiful glowing smile in our midst soon.

5 In 2007, Tuesday, April 24th marked the 92nd anniversary of the commemoration of the Armenian Genocide by the Ottoman Empire between 1915 and On this day, we paused in remembrance of more than 1.5 million Armenians who died during this period. During , the Young Turk Government systematically forced 1.5 million Armenians out of their ancestral homeland in present-day Turkey and annihilated them. April 24, 1915 marked the beginning of the Armenian Genocide in Constantinople (present day Istanbul) with the arrest, torture and execution of 300 Armenian intellectuals, writers, poets, political and civic leaders by the Young Turk Government of the Ottoman Empire. Also on that day, 5,000 of the poorest Armenians were butchered in the streets and in their homes. In May 1915, after mass deportations had already begun, Turkish Minister of the Interior Talaat Pasha ordered the Armenian population s deportation into the Syrian desert. Adult and teenage males were separated from the deportation caravans and killed under the direction of Young Turk functionaries. Women and children were driven for months over mountains and desert, often raped, tortured, and mutilated. Deprived of food and water and often stripped of clothing, they fell by the hundreds and thousands along the routes to the desert. Ultimately, more than half the Armenian population, 1,500,000 people, was annihilated. In this manner the Armenian people were eliminated from their homeland of several millennia. It is important to increase public awareness of the Armenian Genocide and there are a lot of resolutions that are being passed in the U.S. that need your vote to recognize the Armenian Genocide as the first Genocide of the 20 th Century. It is time for the Turks and the rest of the world to recognize the Armenian Genocide. A special thanks to Father George and the Greek Orthodox Church for allowing us to use their ballroom in observing this day.

6 ACOA Building Fundraising Drive Raffle Sales Armenian Church of Atlanta is having a fundraising drive for our building fund. Raffle tickets are sold at $100 and only 200 tickets will be sold. Each ticket has 1 out of 200 chance of winning and if all 200 tickets are sold at $100 each, the $20,000 proceeds will be divided equally between the Building Fund and the three winners. If less than 200 tickets are sold, the prize money will be adjusted to reflect the total sales of the raffle tickets sold. The prizes are as follows: Grand Prize: 25% of the raffle sales proceeds (up to $5,000) Second Prize: 15% of the raffle sales proceeds (up to $3,000) Third Prize: 10% of the raffle sales proceeds (up to $2,000) Please see any of the Parish Council members for tickets. We look forward to everyone s support and participation. ACYOA 8th Annual Young Adult leadership conference ACYOA breaks records at its 8th annual young adult leadership conference March 2-4 in NY with 75 young people attending. The conference was held at the Don Bosco Retreat Center in Stony Point, New York and our very own Violet Mirzoyan attended this conference. The conference was a critical success. The 75 young people, ranging in age from 17 to 29, represented 24 parishes. Guided by 13 clergy and Diocesan staff, the young participants explored their personal faith, talked about ways to strengthen the bonds between young Armenians and the church, and gained insights into how to be leaders of their local communities. This weekend had a very special effect on me, said Violet Mirzoyan of the Armenian Church of Atlanta, GA. I met a lot of new Armenians, and I m going home with great, new ideas. I hope I can bring young Armenians together in my parish. Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern), visited with the participants. The Archbishop was pleased to see the young Armenians chose to spend their weekend at the conference worshipping, learning, and making friends. You are the engine that will drive our church and our local communities for years to come, he told the youth. And it is encouraging to see you making the choice to come here, to equip yourself with knowledge and a deeper understanding of your faith. It shows that the next generation is preparing for the challenge to lead. Before the Primate left, he greeted each of the participants and presented them with a wooden cross from Armenia and a copy of A Dictionary of the Armenian Church, by Archbishop Malachia Ormanian.

7 ACYOA Sports Weekend There is still time to book for this event, which will start on Thursday, May 24, 2007 in Detroit. For more in formation, please visit Summer Camp Summer is fast approaching and if you are trying to figure out what to do with the kids, how about summer camp!! The Diocese offers two summer camps, St. Vartan Camp is held in upstate New York and Hye Camp is held in Illinois. This is a great opportunity for all young Armenians to meet and learn about religion, language, culture, history, dance, music as well as participate in full sports programs including soccer, basketball, softball, volleyball, tennis and swimming. Campers range in age from 8 to 15 at St. Vartan Camp and from 9 to 15 at Hye Camp. For 2007 St. Vartan Camp has three two-week sessions. The first session runs June 24 to July 7 (Session A); the second runs July 8 to 21 (Session B); and the third session runs July 22 to August 4 (Session C). There is also staff training from June 20 to 24. For more information, please visit Next Month s Events Divine Liturgy June 17 (Father s Day- Coffee by PC)

8 Summer Camp Scholarship Offered by AACCA The Central Council of the Association of Armenian Church Choirs of America (Eastern Diocese) is pleased to announce its scholarship program for These offerings are as follows: Two $250 scholarships for St. Nersess Armenian Seminary Summer Conference One $250 scholarship for a session of the St. Vartan Camp. One $250 scholarship for the Hye Camp One $500 scholarship for music study made possible by the M.E. Hagopian Scholarship Fund Please contact Greg Avedissian immediately to request an application form mgavedissian@comcast.net. St. Nersess Armenian Seminary offers a wide range of opportunities: Post High School A: June 11-16, 2007 Deacons' Training Program: June 25 - July 3, 2007 High School A: July 6-14, 2007 High School B: July 17-25, 2007 High School C: July 28 - August 5, 2007 Junior High School: August 7-11, 2007 Post High School B: August 13-19, 2007 Visit for pictures of the past sessions. The Deacons Training Program is for young men and women who would like to participate more actively and meaningfully in the worship services of the Armenian Church. Practical workshops and interactive classes teach the participants deacons parts of Divine Liturgy and take the mystery out of the rituals, the music, the symbols and the chants. St. Vartan Camp offers three two-week session this year: A June 24- July 7 B July 8-21 C July 22 Aug. 4 (See full article on page 7 of this newsletter) The Hye Camp, in Ingleside, Il, offers a one-week session from July 30 to Aug 4. Pilgrimage to Armenia

9 If you are wondering where to travel this summer, how about visiting Armenia? A pilgrimage to Armenia will certainly be a moving experience which will change your life forever. You will be able to connect with the motherland, interact with local Armenians and be part of the efforts that are being made to modernize the country. Below are just a few of the ways you can travel to Armenia: Fund for Armenian Relief (FAR) Young Professionals Trip : From June 9 to 22, 2007, this program affords young Armenian-American professionals between the ages of 23 and 40 the opportunity to travel to Armenia as a group. Cost is $2,650, and includes roundtrip airfare to and from Armenia (departing from New York, NY), double-occupancy hotel accommodations (Golden Tulip in Yerevan, superior accommodations outside of Yerevan), all taxes, two meals per day in Yerevan, three meals per day outside of Yerevan, entrance fees, and guided daily sightseeing. His Holiness Catholicos Karekin II Building Project: You are also invited to join the "His Holiness Karekin II Work Project," a joint effort by Habitat for Humanity and Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin. This year's trip, led by Archbishop Vicken Aykazian and Rev. Dr. Ken Bensen, runs from August 11 to 21, Along with touring the nation, participants will work for five days on a Habitat site located near Yerevan. The cost is $2,150, based on double occupancy) and does not include airfare, visa, or exit fee. Accommodations will be at the Ararat Hotel. Habitat for Humanity : The St. Mary Church of Washington, D.C. is organizing a Habitat for Humanity trip to Armenia from June 28 to July 13, 2007, for young Armenians to travel to Armenia and help build the nation's future. Anyone over 18 is invited and the cost is approximately $2,800 and will be lowered by fund-raising. For more details on any of these trips, please visit Koko and Alex Avedissian s Trip to Armenia Koko and Alex Avedissian had a very successful and fulfilling trip to Armenia with Habitat for Humanity. They visited Etchmiazin and had a productive time building a home in Khor Virab region. Below are some pictures from their wonderful trip of the families that the houses were being built for and as a tradition, pigeons are flown for peace to be brought to the home. Alex has sent the following message to his young counterparts: I will be more then happy to tell you about my adventures in Armenia, even if we aren t that close. Send me an to pariah17@comcast.net if you want. Also, anyone interested in a trip there with Habitat for Humanity next year should me. I would like to get a group together and lead the team to Armenia. YOU WILL LOVE IT.

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11 [Portrait of poet by Saryan] Ode to my Mother by Yeghishe Charents (Translated from Armenian by Shant Norashkharian ) I remember your old face, mother so sweet and precious, Luminous lines and wrinkles, mother so sweet and precious. There you have sat by the house and the greened tree of berry Has cast shadow on your face, mother so sweet and precious. You've sat down sad and silent, remembering those old days, Which have come and then have passed, mother so sweet and precious. You remember now your son, who has left so long ago, - You wonder where he has gone, mother so sweet and precious. You wonder where is he now, is he alive, is he dead? And what doors has he beaten, mother so sweet and precious? And when he was so weary, when of love he was deceived - On whose lap was he sobbing, mother so sweet and precious? You're pondering so sadly, the berry tree is rocking Your sorrow so limitless, mother so sweet and precious. And tears bitter and salty are now falling one by one All over your olden hands, mother so sweet and precious...!