Catholicos of the East H.H.Beselios Paulose II Fasting at Kolenchery

Kolencherry, Kerala (India): The oldest churches in India, the Syrian Orthodox Church of the East in central Kerala is in the grip of an intense feud. The fight between rival factions of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church is now spilling onto the streets. The bone of contention is the ancient church in Kolencherry, which both warring Orthodox and Rebel Jacobite factions claim as theirs. The trouble has become worse, after a recent court order, which handed over control of the church to the Orthodox Church headed by Catholicos of the East H.H.Beselios Paulose II.

Trouble began when the Orthodox Church decided not to share ownership of the church with the rivals, preventing them from entering the premises. The Orthodox faction demanded that the Rebel Jacobite faction abide by the district court order.

The dispute over the right to worship further led the head the Orthodox Church, HH Baselios Marthoma Paulose II to launch a hunger strike on Sunday.

Not budging from its stand, the Jacobite faction under Catholicos H B Baselios Thomas I as well began a prayer strike programme near the shrine.

The Orthodox Church wants the government to implement the court order immediately. Father Dr K M George from the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church says, "There is a clear court verdict. If the government implements the order, the matter will be solved." But the Jacobite faction say they cannot be ousted from the church. Geevarghese Mor Coorilos from the Rebel Jacobite Syrian Christian Church says, "We have been worshiping here for ages. We cannot be suddenly told that you have no right here and you should go away and build a new church."

The church is believed to be the shrine of St Peter dating back to the 7th century. It is considered holy to both factions of the Malanakara Church. But after the skirmishes between the two groups, it has now been closed for worship. There are concerns that if a settlement is not reached soon, the tension between two groups will flare up. Since there have been violent clashes between the two factions in the past, police have been deployed in large numbers to prevent any violence.

With tensions rising believers say it now time to end the hostility. Joseph Zachariah a devotee of the Orthodox Church says, "I think this is disgraceful for the entire Christian community. What we need is an amicable settlement. We should end all this."

A curfew was Sunday declared at the tension-gripped Kolenchery.The district collector meanwhile has sought the intervention of the mediation cell of the High Court to resolve the dispute. District Collector P I Sheik Pareeth told the court that the dispute had become a law and order issue and would worsen with more people joining the protests.

Egypt's Pope back home

CAIRO, September 9, 2011: Pope Shenouda III, the head of Egypt's Coptic Orthodox Church, returned home Thursday 6th September 2011 from a trip to the US and Hungary, where he received treatment and opened a new church, the official Middle East News Agency (MENA) reported.
MENA added that the Pontiff was in good health after some check-ups in the US, followed by his trip to Hungary, where he was awarded an honorary doctorate and inaugurated the Virgin Mary and Archangel Michael Church in Budapest.

A ceremony was held to welcome Pope Shenouda, as he arrived at his headquarters at Saint Mark’s Cathedral in el-Abbasiya (Abbasseya) neighborhood of Cairo after his 19-day trip. He told those present at the ceremony that he was in good health.
A police officer tried to ban journalists from entering the Church's headquarters but eventually withdrew when the reporters threatened to stage a sit-in, Emad Khalil Of almasryalyoum.com reported.
In related news, Sherif Doss, president of the Coptic General Authority, called on all Coptic candidates in upcoming parliamentary elections to coordinate with the authority regarding their electoral campaigns.

THE LETTER OF HIS HOLINESS ARAM I TO THE PRIME MINISTER R.T. ERDOGAN OF TURKEY

This is the text of the letter that His Holiness Aram I Catholicos of Cilicia sent to H.E. Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Prime Minister of Turkey.

His Excellency
Recep Tayyip Erdogan
Prime Minister of Turkey
Ankara

Mr. Prime Minister,

We read in the press of your government's decision to return properties seized from religious minorities in Turkey since 1936. Undoubtedly, this deci¬sion was an attempt to respond to recent developments at the European Court of Human Rights and to the US Congressional scrutiny of Turkey's repression of its Christian minority.

As the spiritual and legal Head of the Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia, uprooted from its centuries-old seat and established in Antelias, Lebanon, and as the representative of the faithful of the Armenian Orthodox Church, also ex¬iled from Turkey and dispersed all over the world, we find your decree of Saturday 27 August 2011 partial and unjust. The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia still holds the titles of ownership of several churches, hospitals, schools, orphanages, cemeteries and other church properties that were confiscated by Turkish authorities during the Armenian Genocide of 1915. The Armenian peo¬ple still keep the titles of ownership of the homes, businesses and lands they in¬herited from their grandparents who were victims of the Genocide planned and executed by the Ottoman-Turkish government of the time.

The current decree of your government may comply with European Union standards, but is not an act of justice. Mr. Prime Minister, selective acts of justice deny history and negate democratic values and principles. International instruments such as the European Court of Human Rights and Congressional and parliamentary bodies are implementers of democratic values and principles, and the people are their conscience. As Fridjof Nansen, the High Commissioner of the League of Nations (1921) and Nobel Prize winner, wrote in his well-known book, Armenia and the Near East (London, 1928), "The Armenian people have never abandoned hope; they have gone on bravely working, and waiting. They are waiting still…" (p. 324). And I would add that they will never stop demanding justice from Turkey for the Armenian Genocide; and they will never stop de¬manding the restoration of their human rights.

Mr. Prime Minister, your claim for justice and human rights will be credible only if you recognize the Armenian Genocide.

ARAM I

CATHOLICOS OF CILICIA

31 August 2011
Antelias, Lebanon








Dear fellow Armenians,
Human resources is the indicator of a nation's or community's inner power and creative mind and a guarantor of its bright future. The Armenian Diaspora is rich with human resources. It is vitally important that we get a clear, accurate and comprehensive information about our human resources in the Diaspora. Indeed, "Information is power; and the power of knowledge and information becomes a source of deeper self-understanding and self-affirmation" according to His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of Cilicia.
The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia has initiated a program aimed at gathering information about our human resources in the Diaspora. By human resources we basically mean: community leaders, clergy, economists, people of media, writers, politicians, artists, public figures, medical doctors, teachers, university lecturers, businessmen, and generally specialists in the area of science and technology, etc. This initiative has the full support of His Holiness.
Thus, we kindly ask you to fill in the Form and submit it to the Catholicosate, Antelias, Lebanon. We also ask you to forward this e-mail (with the link http://www.armeniancatholicosate.org) to your friends.

Chancellery

ARMENIAN CATHOLICOSATE OF CILICIA

http://www.armenianorthodoxchurch.org

Christians face unrest in Syria

Syriac Christians, faced with the current unrest in Syria and violent opposition to the régime of President Bashir Al-Assad are torn between desiring a return to stability and a horror at the violence which has ensued. It is a fact that under President Assad and his father, Christians, who comprise about 10% (1.7 million) of the population, have enjoyed considerable freedom to practice their faith in a stable society.

The principal Christian church is the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East with large communities of Syrian Orthodox, Armenian and various Eastern Catholic Churches in communion with Rome. Christians tend to be urbanized, and most live in Damascus, Aleppo, Hama, and Lattakia, although significant numbers live in the Hasaka governorate in the northeast.

There is a strict de facto separation of church and state. Religious groups tend to avoid any involvement in internal political affairs. All religions and orders must register with the Government, which monitors fundraising and requires permits for all religious and nonreligious group meetings, except for worship. Recognized religious groups receive free utilities and are exempt from real estate taxes and personal property taxes on official vehicles. Orthodox and Western Easter, as well as three Muslim religious holidays are official national holidays.

The Government generally refrains from becoming involved in strictly religious issues but its policies tend to support the practice and study of moderate forms of Islam and the Government selects moderate Muslims for religious leadership positions and is intolerant of and suppresses extremist forms of Islam. It encourages the genuinely good relations which have existed between all the recognised religious communities for many years.

It is hardly, surprising, therefore, that the churches are generally pro-government and fearful that any régime change will result in the dominance of Islamic extremists. Many of these same ancient Christian communities in Iraq have suffered appalling violence since the fall of Saddam Hussein and their co-religionists in Syria have good reason to fear that they will be possible victims of violence. For this reason they are largely silent in the midst of the anti-government protests.

In April H.H. Catholicos Aram I of Cilicia wrote to President Al-Assad supporting the reforms he initially promised and re-affirmed the commitment of the Armenian community in Syria to their country.

Then the Council of Bishops of the Christian Churches of Damascus, Syria, met on 16 June 2011 at the Syrian Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East to discuss the current sad situation which is sweeping over Syria – ‘the country of civilizations and the cradle of heavenly religions’ they issued the following declaration:
“The Council of Bishops condemned the foreign interference in Syria, and asked the Syrian citizens to be united. They asked Almighty God to enlighten the minds of the people, feed love in their hearts, and spread security and peace all over the country. The Bishops continued their statement by saying: Today and more than ever before, we refer to prayer and fasting for the sake of the safety of Syria, the country of tolerance and coexistence. Our hope is that Syria will overcome this crisis to find itself in a better shape which may protect it from any danger that might threaten its existence, or divide it, or lead its citizens to seek refuge into other countries. Every drop of blood that is shed from any Syrian citizen, it is shed from the entire Syrian body. St. Paul refers to the body of Christ our Saviour when saying: ‘If one part of the body suffers, all the other parts suffer with it’ [1 Cor. 12:26]. At a time when our beloved country Syria is living in vigorous days, the Holy Church is living the time of ‘Pentecost’, which is the time of the coming of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles, and the time of the foundation of the Church and launching the process of evangelization all over the universe in a spirit of love, peace, tolerance and acceptance of other. These spiritual and ethical values are an integral part of human principles. The event of Pentecost is not a historical moment of the past; rather it is a renewed occurrence. From it, we acquire our strength and faith, and in it we live, moves, and exist. Therefore, we call on all Christians in Syria and all other Syrian citizens who wish to join us, for a ‘day of fasting’ on Thursday 23 June 2011, where we will gather at 6:30 pm on that day at the Holy Cross Church in Kassa`a area, Damascus, to pray for peace which is a human, religious, and national responsibility. By this we deserve the blessing of being peacemakers which Our Lord Jesus Christ gave us in His saying: ‘Blessed are those who work for peace, God will call them his children’(Matt. 5:9)”


Glastonbury Review Issue: 120, July 2011

Tensions in Armenian-Georgian Church relations

H.H. Catholicos Karekin II of Etchmiadzin paid an official visit to the Georgian Orthodox Church in June 2011, the first visit of an Armenian Catholicos to Georgia since 1894. His visit was intended to improve relations between the Churches of the neighbouring Caucasus Republics, both Orthodox but one belonging to the Eastern Orthodox family and the other to the Oriental. There are some 171,00 Armenians living in Georgia, notably the province of Samtskhe‐Javakheti, which borders on Armenia and the old Armenian provinces of Turkey. Catholicios Karekin also sought the return of several ancient Armenian churches, which were closed in the 1930s under the Soviets but not returned after independence. Notable among these are the Soorp Narashan Church, built in the mid eleventh century, which is being used by the Georgia Orthodox Church as part of a policy of “Georgianisation” of Armenian Churches. Other churches (like the Karmir Anetaran Church, with its 40 metre high spire) have either been destroyed or allowed to fall into disrepair.

Despite attempts to appear cordial, Catholicos Karekin was unable to obtain any agreement or even the signing of the usual joint declaration with H.H. Catholicos-Patriarch Ilya II, who insisted that any agreement over the return of churches would need to have a quid pro quo for the buildings in Armenia which the Georgian Church claimed as theirs. The situation was not improved by Catholicos Ilya saying “Karekin is young and apparently lacks experience,” and observing, “He is intelligent but wants to do things quickly, which will not work. I told him that I have a 30-year experience and that staying calm is the best thing.” A few months earlier the Deputy Minister of Reintegration, Yelena Tevdoradze, had told an Armenian audience that the Armenian Apostolic Church “will never be granted an official status” and “will only be a so-called branch in Georgia …I repeat, we will not recognize the Church of Echmiadzin,”
However, less than a month later, on 5 July 2011 the Georgian parliament approved amendmentsto Georgia’s Civil Code granting legal status to “those faiths that are considered legal religions by member countries of the European Council” enabling them to register as full-fledged religious organizations. Previously, such groups were only able to register as charities or non-government organizations. The five religious minorities covered by these amendments were the Roman Catholic Church (0.8%), the Evangelical Baptists (0.1%), the Muslims (9.9%), the Jews (0.1%) and the Armenian Apostolic Church (3.9%).

Unfortunately this eirenic measure by the government was not well-received by some members of the Georgian Orthodox Church (83.9%), who are hostile to Armenians, both on religious and ethnic grounds. Thousands of people took to the streets of Tbilisi carrying Georgian icons and flags, to protest at the parliamentary resolution, which they viewed as pro-Armenian and complaining against “anti-Orthodox forces”. Catholicos Ilya II urged President Mikheil Saakashvili to veto the law and to organize additional discussions.

Protests were halted only after a strict order was given by the mayor of Tbilisi and, most importantly, certain revisions had been made by Georgian lawmakers in the Civil Code that essentially reduced the former broad powers granted to religious organizations. The Georgian Holy Synod, which met on 12 July, called for calm and urged parliament in future to discuss with the Patriarchate draft legislation related to religion so as “to avoid any possible complications.” President Mikheil Saakashvili attended a liturgy conducted by Catholicos Ilya II at Svetitskhoveli Cathedral the following day, publicly showing that church-state relations had improved.

Of the estimated more than 300 Armenian churches situated in the territory of Georgia only 40 of these are functioning churches. In the capital Tbilisi only two of six Armenian churches function, while two are in ruins and the other have been taken over by the Georgians. The Armenians, however, demands that they be returned. By having the status of a legal entity in public law it is feared that the Armenians will possess greater opportunities for settling property demands.

Vide: UN Country of Origin Report, Religious Minorities in Georgia (December 2006).



Glastonbury Review Issue: 120, July 2011

Syrian Orthodox Patriarch visits Turkish Premier

H. H. Ignatius Zakka I Iwas in talks with Prime Minister of
Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Ankara on
the Mar Gabriel Monastery Land Dispute.
Photo-http://new.alepposuryoye.com

Aleppo - His Holiness Ignatius Zakka, Syrian Orthodox Patriarch concluded his official visit to the Turkish government in Ankara on 31 March 2011.

During his three-day visit, His Holiness met with the Prime Minister of Turkey Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on 30 March . Accompanied the Patriarch of the Syrian Orthodox Church of the Metropolitan Mor Gregorios Hanna Ibrahim of Aleppo, Mor Philoxenos Mattias Nayis, Secretary of the Patriarch of Syria, Mor Philoxenos Yusuf Cetin of Istanbul and Ankara and Mor Timotheos Samuel Aktas of Tur Abdin, together with the Diocesan Council Presidents of the two dioceses in Turkey, and the chairman of the foundation of the monastery Mor Gabriel monastery Kuryakus Ergün and attorneys Rudi Sümer.

They had gone to discuss the disputes over the land belonging to Mor Gabriel Monastery in Tur Abdin. The monastery’s bishop, Mor Timotheos Samuel Aktas was among the delegation, which also included the presidents of the diocesan councils of Tur Abdin and Istanbul and the lawyers acting for Mor Gabriel monastery. Representing the Turkish Forestry Commission, which is in dispute with the monastery, was the Turkish Secretary for the Environment.
The Prime Minister said that he had been following the case and would do his utmost to find a proper outcome to settle the dispute after the court had issued its verdict, when he would be happy to meet again with the Patriarch.


Apostolic visit to Turkish Republic started

Easter Papal Message for 2011

Easter Message

His Holiness Pope Shenouda III

Pope of Alexandria & Patriarch of the See of St. Mark

April 2011

My beloved children in the lands of immigration, both clergy and laity.

I congratulate you for the Glorious Feast of the Resurrection, wishing you all that the Lord returns it upon you with all goodness and blessing.

The resurrection of the Lord Christ was distinguished with an amazing power. He is the only One who was victorious over death by Himself. In His resurrection, He crushed death, and arose with the power of His Divinity. Also, by His power, He came out of the closed tomb which had a great stone upon it, without anyone seeing Him. Also with the same power, He entered the upper room where the disciples were, while its doors were shut. After He spent forty days with them speaking to them about matters pertaining to the Kingdom of God, He ascended to the heavens with a great power, which is against all the laws of gravitational force. Of course, it is the power of His Divinity.
Therefore, St. Paul the Apostle said about Him, in the Epistle to the Philippians 3:10 “that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings...” This is why we also praised Him throughout the Holy Week, confessing His power and saying to Him: “To You is the power ... Thok te tee gom.”

Our Lord Jesus Christ, who arose with power, and ascended with power, also grants us power. The Church started its history with power, when the Holy Spirit descended upon the pure disciples. The Bible says: “And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all.”
This power remained in the life of the Church. With great power, St. George was able to tear the decree of the emperor. Even all the martyrs received death with power, and they did not fear it. Instead, they reiterated the expression “...having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better.” (Philippians 1:23)

Therefore, my beloved children and brethren, always be powerful. I mean, that you have spiritual power by which you defeat Satan, all the power of the enemy, all the wars of the ego, and all evil desires.
And in your victory, do not attribute this to your own personal power, but to the power of God which works in you, now and always.

Lastly, be well and absolved from the Holy Spirit; and pray for me.

(Signed)

His Holiness Pope Shenouda III
Glorious Feast of Resurrection
April 2011

Easter Papal Message for 2011 in English


Read the Easter Papal Message for 2011 in Arabic