Der Vasken’s Sermon on September 29, 2024

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Earlier today, in the complex of Holy Etchmiadzin, thousands of pilgrims and tourists from around the world gathered to witness two historic events—one of which will never occur again in our lifetime. Yesterday, the Armenian Bishops of the world gathered around the Pontiff of the Armenian Church to create and bless new Holy Muron—new Holy Chrism or oil—to be used for church sacraments around the world.

With them, these bishops carried saintly relics and venerated objects that originate at the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ. To give us all a deeper understanding of what I am talking about, let me list a few of the relics with which Holy Muron is blessed. With prayers, Bible readings and psalms, Holy Muron is blessed, but it is also blessed with a fragment of the Cross upon which Jesus was crucified; the spearhead (or in Armenian – Gheghard) which pierced the side of Jesus while He hung on the Cross. Holy Muron is also blessed with reliquary containing the relics of eighteen saints including the Apostles Peter, Paul, Thaddeus and Bartholomew, St. John the Baptist, St. Gregory the Illuminator and many other Church Fathers including St. John Chrysostom. The relic of St. Stephen, the first martyr of the Christian Church, the relic of the gentle and faithful St. Hripseme, the relic of Catholicos St. Sahak Parthev brought to the Mother See from Lake Van in the 17th century, the Princess St. Sandukht, the first Armenian martyr of the Christian faith, St. Sarkis the Warrior, St. Kevork the Warrior and perhaps the deepest spiritual Armenian saint of all, St. Gregory of Narek. With these holy relics and objects, Muron is blessed.

Later this week we will receive our portion of that Holy Oil and next Sunday, October 6th, we will bless water into which is poured droplets of the newly blessed Muron for distribution to all who attend church on that day. Think about that blessing entering into your homes through that blessed water.

The historic events in Holy Etchmiadzin continued from yesterday into this morning where our Mother Cathedral was blessed and re-dedicated with the Cross of Christ and the Holy Muron. Now, for the first time in twelve years, those cathedral doors have re-opened for everyone to enter and pray. All of this took place today because today is the Feast of the Holy Cross of Varak.

I mentioned some of the story of this feast day last Sunday. How appropriate it is that on the day that a fragment of the Cross of Christ was re-discovered in the land of Armenia, we now, some fifteen centuries later, bless Muron, bless our Mother Cathedral and will bless water in every Armenian Church across the world.

No symbol is more associated with Christianity than the cross. During the days of Jesus and His disciples, it signified rejection and execution and death but after His Resurrection, it signified life and triumph! Life and triumph are what we see in the cross. Out of what began in hatred comes the power of the Resurrection and the triumph of good over evil, but the cross has practical implications for us as well. In a world fractured by division, the cross welcomes everyone. In a world where people fear death, the cross promises life. In a world filled with doubt, the cross offers faith. In a “me-centered” world, the cross tells us to help others. The cross is the place of Christ’s healing and love for everyone who seeks it. It is the place where everybody can find hope.

Today is the Feast of the Holy Cross of Varak. We venerate the cross not because it is a relic that belonged to another time but because it is our “North Star” and it will forever point us towards God. The cross is what ties this world to the world of Heaven.

So, think about this. We wear it around our neck. We place it above our churches. We baptize, wed and bury our loved ones by it, but how often do we find the time during the day to venerate the cross in our heart? Do we see it as a guiding presence in our life and in the life of our families? We venereate it because it is our “North Star” that leads us toward God. When we venerate it, we “meet” our God.

Something we should all take time to think about.

Amen.

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