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1 OCTOBER-NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2017 YEAR IX/ISSUE LXXI DER (REV. FR.) KRIKOR ZAKARYAN, PARISH PRIEST PUBLICATION OF ST. GARABED ARMENIAN APOSTOLIC CHURCH OF THE DESERT PHYSICAL ADDRESS: MONTEREY AVE RANCHO MIRAGE CA PHONE (760) FAX (760) SEASON OF THE CROSS In the Armenian liturgical calendar, autumn is the Season of the Holy Cross. The months of September and October are punctuated with celebrations and fasts dedicated to the Cross of Jesus Christ, and its mysterious power. Each of the feasts of the cross has its own historical significance, and each is linked to the others. The season begins with a five-day Fast of the Holy Cross in preparation for the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. Two weeks after the Exaltation in a feast unique to the Armenians the church celebrates the Feast of the Holy Cross of Varak (Varaka khatch) commemorating the placement and discovery of an authentic relic of the cross in Armenian soil at Varakavank (the Monastery of Varak). Finally, on the Sunday closest to October 26 (this year October 29), the Armenian Church celebrates the Discovery of the Holy Cross (kiwd khatch), commemorating the finding of the True Cross in the Holy Land by St. Helena (A.D. 327). According to early accounts, the public adoration of the Cross of Christ when it was ceremoniously elevated before the faithful for veneration took place on three significant occasions. The first occasion was by the apostle James in Jerusalem. While zealously preaching to a crowd, he boldly raised a cross and cried out, We kiss the ground before your Cross, O Christ. Lord, you who were nailed to the Cross and shed your blood in sacrifice, we bow down before your Cross. In the early days of Christianity, the cross was viewed as an instrument of infamy and punishment used by the Romans. Jesus crucifixion was intended to stand (by the executors) as a warning that those who followed his teachings would incur severe punishment. One could not openly declare one s Christian faith without serious consequences. Thus, in James public adoration of the Cross of Christ and acknowledgment of Christ s sacrifice, the cross was transformed from a symbol of death to one of new life and victory. The second occasion on which the Holy Cross was ceremoniously elevated before the faithful was when it was discovered by Queen Helena, mother of the Emperor Constantine, in 326 A.D. in Jerusalem. The true cross (the one on which Christ was crucified) was authenticated when a deceased man came alive after being placed on Christ s cross. At that time Bishop Cyril, the Patriarch of Jerusalem, elevated the Holy Cross before the faithful crowd, who witnessed the miracle and were inspired with awe. The third auspicious occasion on which the Holy Cross was elevated and venerated was upon its return from captivity from the Persians. In the year 629 A.D. the Emperor Heraclitus, leading a coalition of forces, including Armenians, recaptured the cross from the Persians and personally led his troops to return the Cross to Jerusalem. The king led the troops through Armenian lands, a long journey from Constantinople to Jerusalem. We can only imagine the stirring and deeply emotional experience for those Christian people of the East witnessing these events, but especially the Armenians who had played a substantial role in the rescue of the precious cross. The celebration of the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross in the Armenian Church takes place at the end of the Divine Liturgy. With great ceremony, the clergy, deacons, and acolytes process around the church holding high the gleaming gold cross, which is adorned with sprigs of fresh basil (a symbol of royalty), after which an antasdan service takes place. In the antasdan service, the four corners of the church are blessed as a sign of the sanctification of the world. Similar to the Feast of the Assumption, the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross is also related to the blessing of the harvest of fruits and their preservation: a time to give thanks for God s blessings. Following the ceremony, parishioners customarily take home a sprig of the sweet basil and use it for its healing properties. As Christians living in the 21st century, hearing these rich historical accounts deepen our appreciation of the perseverance of those early Christians who recovered the Holy Cross, the most precious and central symbol of our faith. They connect us to our religious past. However, this year, as we celebrate the feast day and watch the beautiful ceremony unfold, we might ponder not only past events, but focus on the meaning of the Cross itself in our present lives. Is it only a symbol, something we observe perfunctorily in crossing ourselves at a meal, or during church services? How do we integrate the true meaning of the Cross Christ s suffering, crucifixion, death, and resurrection into the fabric of our lives? In other words, how do we lift up or take up our own cross in the example of Our Lord? EDACNA

2 Page 2 Dear Parishioners and Friends, I hope you all had a good summer! With the cooler weather, comes the energy needed to plan the many exciting Church events for the Fall and Winter seasons ahead. We are all now in full swing with working and planning for our yearly Armenian Cultural Festival, set for November 4th and 5th. The Festival is our biggest event of the year. We depend on the profits from this event to keep our beautiful Church successful and our doors open. We have sent out our Festival packet with information, flyers and raffle tickets. Please do your part in purchasing and returning back raffle stubs with your check ASAP. ARMENIAN CULTURAL FESTIVAL 2017 Our annual St. Garabed Armenian Cultural Festival is just around the corner! Hopefully, you are all planning on attending this year s Festival on the weekend of November 4th and 5th, The Armenian Cultural Festival has grown in attendance each year, as many locals and visitors come to enjoy our delicious Armenian food, music, entertainment and our rich Armenian culture. The Festival Committee has already started to prepare for another wonderful event. We are reaching out into the community for Festival Sponsors and volunteers to help during the Festival weekend. We hope that you will consider becoming a Sponsor this year. Volunteers are also very Important to our success and we will appreciate your help during this two-day event. The Ladies Society will be planning several cooking days to start preparing the delicious baked goods to be sold at the Festival. Please contact the Church office at (760) to participate as a Sponsor, volunteer or baking assistant. Each year, our Armenian Cultural Festival helps to raise PARISH COUNCIL NEWS We are planning for a special event and with out you it would not be possible. Of course, we need your help on the Festival weekend and hope that those of you who can volunteer will do so. It is greatly appreciated! Please consider becoming a Sponsor and/or Volunteer this year. We are doing the planning of this special event, but without your help and support, it would not be possible. We are a small community here in the Desert, but we are strong in faith. We look forward to seeing you all on November 4th and 5th. Tell your family and friends to attend also, and come to enjoy the good food, entertainment, several interesting vendors, and the fun and games for the children. awareness of our Armenian heritage here in the desert. We are able to share some of our traditions, music, dance, artwork, and of course, our delicious specialty foods, with the community. We are especially excited to announce that we are adding more live entertainment this year. In addition to the all-day Armenian DJ music and two shows of Armenian Dancers each day, we have added one show each day that features live entertainment by musicians and the famous singer, Harut Hagopian. Raffle tickets are also available for our two Festival Raffles. There are some wonderful prizes The holidays will come soon after our Festival. Thanksgiving is a time when we can pause to give thanks for the many blessings in our lives. We hope you will join us for the annual Christmas Pot Luck Lunch on December 17th that is organized by our Ladies Society, and we wish you all a wonderful Holiday season as we near the end of the year Please feel free to contact me or any other Parish Council member if you have questions or concerns. We are always here to help. Thank you. Respectfully Mary Vartanian, Parish Council Chairman this year from some beautiful fine jewelry, a computer, a smart TV, electric scooters for the children, the new echo dot with Alexis, and a cash prize! Please contact the Church office to purchase your Raffle tickets and Good Luck! We are expecting record attendance this year and hope that you will become a part of the excitement by attending this year s Armenian Festival. Thank you for your help and support.

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4 Page 4 LADIES SOCIETY NEWS Dear Parishioners and Friends, The Ladies Society of St. Garabed Armenian Church of the Desert hopes you had a lovely Summer. With the sudden departure of our chairwoman Alice Keshishian and her move to Los Angeles, Sophia Miller took over as the new chairwoman and conducted her first meeting for the season with a wonderful group of ladies. Many plans are in store and we are busy with up coming baking for the Festival. The Ladies Society will be planning several cooking days to start preparing the delicious baked goods to be sold at the Festival. We need your help. Please call Sophia or Alice S. for dates. After the meeting Ladies and Der Hayr were treated to a fabulous lunch hosted by the new chairwoman. Please contact the Church office at (760) to participate as a Sponsor, volunteer or baking assistant. Sophia Miller, Chairwoman 18 SUBSCRIBE CHECK OUT

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6 Page 4 THANK YOU FOR YOUR DONATIONS GENERAL FUND DONATIONS $100 or more Jim & Debbie Avakian George & Tammy Kirkjan GENERAL FUND DONATIONS $500 or more Mary Swajian IN MEMORY OF ARMEN YARIJIAN Inger Yarijian Susan Piponniau Nazli Arslanoglu Anahid Azzouni Mary Swajian Vic & Zenda Saraydarian IN MEMORY OF ARMEN YARIJIAN Lori Marcarian Greg & Seta Tcherkoyan Jacci Tutunjian Virginia Matossian Alice Safoyan George & Tammy Kirkjan

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8 SAINT GARABED ARMENIAN APOSTOLIC CHURCH OF THE DESERT VISTA DUNES ROAD RANCHO MIRAGE, CA NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION U. S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT No. 27 PALM DESERT, CA THIS COPY GOES TO: OR CURRENT RESIDENT The / newsletter is a publication of St. Garabed Armenian Apostolic Church of the Desert PHYSICAL ADDRESS: MONTEREY AVENUE RANCHO MIRAGE CA MAILING ADDRESS: VISTA DUNES RD RANCHO MIRAGE CA PHONE (760) FAX (760) AACOD@LIVE.COM WWW. AACOD.ORG Editor Der (Rev. Fr.) Krikor Zakaryan Primate of the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church, Archbishop Hovnan Derderian Parish Priest/President of all Parish Organizations Der (Rev. Fr.) Krikor Zakaryan Parish Council Chair, Mary Vartanian Vice-Chair, Ani Markarian Treasurer, Carolon Nigosian Assistant Treasurer, Gary Funtas Recording Secretary, Dianne Couvillion Corresponding Secretary, Ginny Kelekian Advisor, Alice Safoyan