Dearly beloved Armenian people in the Homeland and the Diaspora,
Today we pay our tribute to the Holy Martyrs of the Armenian Genocide, who gave their lives for the sake of faith and the Homeland.
During the Genocide, our people witnessed the slaughter of one and a half million of its children, the destruction of its national-spiritual values, our sanctuaries, monasteries, and churches, our villages, cities, and it lost most of its historical homeland.
Our Martyrs, having gone through terrible sufferings, “took part in the sufferings of Christ, becoming conformed unto his death and co-heir of the Resurrection” (Philippians 3.10), and being steadfast in their faith, they were invincible in spirit and moved from death to eternal life, deserving the unfading crown of the Saints.
Dear faithful, this year, because of the pandemic, we do not have the opportunity to visit the Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex, to get together in our churches and at the memorials to commemorate the memory of our holy martyrs. In this situation, in our homes and in the presence of immortal memory of our martyrs, with spiritual solidarity let us pray with a united spirit to fulfill our cherished national visions of freedom and independence of our homeland, progress and prosperity, further development of the Diaspora, universal recognition and condemnation of the Armenian Genocide, victory of our just cause, of our claims. We can realize these dreams with the awareness of the debt and responsibility towards the nation and the homeland, by national unity and by uniting our efforts for the sake of the Homeland and the bright future of the Armenians.
Dear pious people, we invite you to ask for the intercession of our holy martyrs to God on this sacred day with a heartfelt prayer, may our lives go on in peace and solidarity under the blessings and grace of the Risen Christ, may we overcome the trials that lie ahead of us, may the Lord’s blessings and care protect our homeland and our people all over the world, today and forever. Amen.
