Alexandria is a city almost synonymous with learning. The Library of Alexandria was the foremost repository of the written word in the ancient world. It was most likely established by Ptolemy II, ruler of Ptolemaic Egypt between 308 and 246 …
“One of those edifying and very beautiful traditions was our ancestral pilgrimages. I hope for the moment when every person from the provinces who reads these lines will arise and draw near spiritually to their native province and that they …
Last year, on the occasion of the new year, Back to the Sources discussed the complex interplay between tradition and renewal, arguing that a well-functioning tradition offers tools and content for constantly renewing contemporary times. Tradition is not static, but …
Right before St. Stephen is stoned to death, the Book of Acts tells us that “he knelt down and cried with a loud voice, ‘Lord, do not hold this against them.’” (Acts 7:60). This prayer, moments before his martyrdom, should …
O blessed Saint Ephrem, intercede with Christ on behalf of those who celebrate your feast-day, you who have drunk the flowing waters of grace from the heavenly spiritual streams, just as the ranks of the Apostles in the upper room …
Tomorrow, December 11, 2019, delegates from the Armenian Apostolic churches in Turkey will elect the 85th Patriarch of Istanbul (Constantinople), the head of the Armenian Apostolic Church in Turkey. This past Sunday, all eligible members of the Armenian Apostolic Church …
Every Armenian is familiar with ԿոմիտասՎարդապետ, Komitas/Gomidas Vartabed, revered musicologist and priest of the Armenian Church, whose 150th anniversary of birth we celebrate this year. While his collection and transcription of folk songs are perhaps his most important legacy, he …
Christian Doctors of the Church—the ultimate vartabeds—are a rare breed of scholar, theologian, and champion of the faith in Jesus Christ. The Catholic Church, which is the most systematic about this designation, reserves the title for those who made a …
Our title this week mimics that of an essay by the cultural critic Walter Benjamin. In that essay, Benjamin suggests that translating a text from one language into another is not simply reproduction, but is productive: the translator, making not …
And when the Apostles of Christ were preparing to leave the world, they chose God-fearing and wise men from the believers, appointed them in their place at the head of the people in the cities and in the country and …