The Voice Newsletter is published once a month by St. Vartan Armenian Church 650 Spruce Street, Oakland, CA. 94610, Phone (510)893-1671, Fax: (510) 893-2102 Email: stvartanoakland@aol.com Website: www.stvartanoakland.org The deadline for all articles is the fifteenth of each month.

Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Primate Rev. Fr. Hovel Ohanyan, Parish Priest and President of All Church Organizations

Parish Council Chair: Barry Toomajian Parish Assembly Chair: Don Manoogian

Choir Director: Artin Der Minassians Organist: A. Rodriguez

ACYO Chair: Sevan Jindoian and Nataleine Jindoian Sunday School Superintendent: Janet Yeghissian

Ladies Society Chair: Gail Kezerian, Caroline Arakelian and Lisa Manoogian Cultural Society Chair: Liz Ojakian

Hokejosh: Nora Hanoian Newsletter Editors: Arlene Hovsepian and Rachel Harger

Church Secretary: Rachel Harger Altar Flowers: Carole Chang

Church Custodian: Wartkes Hagopian Divine Liturgy Service—Sundays 10:30 a.m.

“But thanks be to God!

He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

(1 Corinthians 15:27)

The pinnacle of every Christian’s spirituality is the Victorious Resurrec-

tion of Christ, our Lord, an event which has revolutionized the course of history

and has woven into the fabric of society the spirit of rebirth and the breath of

new faith.

Through Christ’s Resurrection, the image of the Almighty God, which

has been stained by sin, has been rekindled in the heart of humanity. In his mes-

sage to the Corinthians, St. Paul, the Apostle, reflects on the power and glory of

God. “But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus

Christ.” The Apostle’s message delivered in the first century applies to each of

us today, for we too must nourish our souls by reliving Christ’s Victorious Res-

urrection in our hearts.

As the Great Lent concludes, let us reflect on the impact of the spiritual

journey. We prayed, fasted, and engaged in God-pleasing deeds through alms-

giving. What we gained in the process is the spiritual strength to greet our Lord

and Savior Jesus Christ in His triumphant entry into Jerusalem. From exclaim-

ing “Hosanna” to proclaiming “He is Risen,” we have become the living testi-

mony of the Resurrection of Christ, our Lord. Today, along with the myrrh-

bearing women, we proudly announce the greatest news in history:

“Christ is Risen from the Dead!

Blessed is the Resurrection of Christ!”

Christ’s Resurrection draws us closer to God, requiring from us the com-

mitment to lead a Christ-like life. In doing so, we continue to be engaged in fer-

vent prayer, we renounce the sinful life and hence, the self-alienation from God.

Those whose hearts are filled with the mystery of the Resurrection express it

purely through a God-pleasing lifestyle.

Undoubtedly, man, in essence, is sinful. However, as spiritual beings, we

are able to reignite the spark of spirituality to elevate our lives to God, thus,

transfiguring the course of our lives.

Dear Faithful,

Follow in the footsteps of Christ, our Lord and adopt the life of Christ as

your own. Empower your lives through the Living Word of God, so that you

may be renewed in Christ. The Gospel is the book of life. The source of the

Archbishop Hovnan Derderian April 2016

Primate’s Easter Message

Bible Readings

April 3 John 1:1-17

April 10 John 3:1-12

April 17 John 5:24-30

April 24 John 7:14-24

He saved us, not

because of righteous

things we had done, but

because of his mercy. He

saved us through the

washing of rebirth and

renewal by the Holy

Spirit.

—Titus 3:5

light radiating from the Gospel is the divine love of God. The Gospel of Christ our Lord inspires humanity

with the Victorious Resurrection, the sole purpose of the Christian Faith.

“Christ is Risen from the Dead!

Blessed is the Resurrection of Christ!”

On Easter Sunday, we celebrate the Feast of Victory over death. The journey of our nation is similar to

that of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, carrying His cross on the path to Golgotha. However, what seemed to

be a woeful path for the Son of God, became a sign of victory. The lives of our martyred ancestors became vic-

torious ones as well. To us as Christian Armenians, the Church, the Motherland, our Christian Land, our spir-

itual values, the school and the sanctity of the family are divine gifts of God cherished by all in the depths of

our hearts.

May the Victorious Resurrection of Christ, become the revelation of God’s power and glory in our lives.

“Christ is Risen from the Dead!

Blessed is the Resurrection of Christ!”

Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Primate

Easter 2016

A Reflection on the Lord’s Prayer The Lord's Prayer, often referred to as "The Hayr Mer" (Our Father) in the Armenian tradition, is the

prayer taught to us by Christ, our Lord, the Son of God. The prayer has been handed down to us by the Apos-

tles. The Lord's Prayer teaches us about the relationship between God and man and about all the necessary in-

gredients which we ought to know about God.

The Lord's prayer calls on us to humbly surrender ourselves to God. Through this prayer we offer our-

selves to God, in exalting God and confessing our sins, but above all, asking God's mercy upon us. Thus, when

we live a life graced with prayer, we then obviously are living a God-pleasing life, despite the fact that we are

weak in our human nature and inclined to fail and fall into temptations.

Children who recite the words of the Lord's prayer undoubtedly

feel and live in the depths of their hearts the very presence of God, and the

fear of God inspires them with wisdom. For the adults, the same prayer

calms the turbulence of our inner spiritual life and strengthens us in our

faith. It guides us to live a Christ-like life. And each time we recite the

Lord's prayer we lift up our spiritual life to a new level of faith and, come

closer to God.

Easter Yughakin It is customary in the Armenian Church to provide Yughakin, especially around the feasts of Christ-

mas and Easter. This practice dates as far back as the time of Moses in the Old Testament. Yughakin in Arme-

nian means "price of oil". Each local church community would donate money specially earmarked towards the

purchase of oil, which in turn would keep the lanterns burning and ultimately the doors of the Church open.

At this season of Christ's resurrection let us remember and continue the custom of Yughakin, so we

can keep our "oil-burning lanterns" always burning and our doors always open at St. Vartan. Please be gener-

ous to the Church in observing this ancient Armenian custom.

Home Blessing The Home Blessing Service is one of the most ancient and revered traditions of the Armenian Church.

The three necessary items to conduct this service are: water, bread, and salt. For the traditional Easter Home

Blessing, please call Der Hayr for an appointment at 510-893-1671 or email the church office at stvartanoak-

land@aol.com.

Requiem Service A requiem will be said for the souls of the departed on Merelotz Sunday, April 3. If you would like to

have the names of your departed loved ones included, please contact the church office by March 31 at stvar-

tanoakland@aol.com or 510-893-1671.

Upcoming Events Sunday, April 3 Merelotz Sunday 10:30 am

Sunday, April 3 Baghdassarian's Armenian Genocide art project After Church Services

Sunday, April 3 ACYO at Sky High Trampoline Park, Concord 2 pm

Saturday, April 9 ACYO Mt. Davidson Cross Cleanup

Sunday, April 10 Choir Rehearsal 1 pm

Saturday, April 16 The Road Home Cultural Show 7 pm

Sunday, April 17 Choir Rehearsal 1 pm

Sunday, April 24 Mt. Davidson Cross Armenian Genocide Commemoration

Saturday, April 30 Family Night 5:30 pm

Friday, May 13 Men’s Night 6 pm

Hye Camp

Camper and staff applications are available at www.hyecamp.com.

Camp dates are:

Week 1: July 10-July 16 Week 3: July 24-July 30

Week 2: July 17-July 23 Week 4: July 31-August 6

Family Day at the campgrounds is scheduled for April 30, 2016. Family Day is free to at-

tend. Hye Camp also needs adults 18 and older to apply to be counselors and program staff.

St. Vartan Church Parish Council gratefully acknowledges the following donations:

Priest Discretionary Fund—Edward and Armineh Jamgotchian

The Voice Newsletter—Howard and Rose Marie Atamian

In Memory † Nai Kang Chang

Lillian Mardikian, Harold and Bonnie Koojoolian

(The St. Vartan Voice Newsletter)

† Nazaret Berberian

Lillian Mardikian

† Tom Bardakian

Harry and Carol Dokouzian

(The St. Vartan Voice Newsletter)

ENDOWMENT FUND

In Memory

† Nai Kang Chang

Richard and Judy Sharafian

† Mildred Barsamian Shirin

Jack and Barbara Bousian

Cultural Committee Presented Dawn Anahid MacKeen’s

The Hundred Year Walk — An Armenian Odyssey On March 6, 2016, the St. Vartan Cultural Committee, UC Berkeley

Armenian Studies Program, AGBU-Silicon Valley, and the Institute of Slavic,

East European and Eurasian Studies at UC Berkeley invited Dawn Anahid

MacKeen to review her recently published book The Hundred Year Walk – An

Armenian Odyssey. The audience listened to Ms. MacKeen talk about her jour-

ney researching and writing the book. The book is based upon her grandfather

Stepan Miskjian’s first-hand account of what he ex-

perienced during the Armenian genocide, his depor-

tation into Armenian internment camps, and how he

managed to escape. Her grandfather’s journals in-

spired her to retrace his steps, and she set out alone

to Turkey and Syria, shadowing her resourceful,

resilient grandfather across a landscape still rife

with tension.

The Hundred Year Walk – An Armenian Odyssey is an epic tale of one

man’s courage in the face of genocide and his granddaughter’s quest to tell his

story. We were honored to have Ms. MacKeen with us to share this amazing

journey.

Dawn MacKeen is an award-

winning journalist who spent nearly

a decade researching and writing her

grandfather’s story. Previously, she

covered health and social issues for

Salon, SmartMoney, and Newsday,

where her investigative series on

assisted living facilities’ poor care

helped prompt legislative reform.

Her work has appeared in the New

York Times Magazine, Elle, the

Sunday Times Magazine (London),

the Los Angeles Times, and else-

where. She lives in Southern Cali-

fornia.

St. Vartan Church had the inaugural event for the new Men’s

Group on Thursday, February 25. The men met in the John Ma-

rukain Hall and enjoyed tavloo, and pizza. The next Men’s

Group event on May 13, features barbecued hamburgers.

On March 16, the new St. Vartan Parish Council was installed during Divine Liturgy. The council in-

cludes: Vartkes Avakian, Marlene Tolegian, Nazaret Jindoian, Edward Jamgotchian, Fr. Hovel Ohanyan, Barry

Toomajian, Hagop Hakimian, Dicko Shahvekilian, Arto Jagjian, Liz Ojakian, and Nellie Azizian. Not pictured:

Stuart Arakelian, Harout Hagopian.

Fr. Hovel, Evelyn Boyd, Barbara Mor-

jig and Adrienne Baker represented St.

Vartan Church Ladies Society at the

World Day of Prayer on Saturday, March

5 at Calvary Armenian Church.

The Best Advice

Prayer: God answers knee-mailers. Insomnia Cure: If you can’t sleep, try counting your blessings.

Cosmetic Surgery: Come in and have your faith lifted. Nutrition: The best vitamin for a Christian is B1.

ACYO Update On February 27 the

St.Vartan ACYO wel-

comed the ACYO-WD

Central Council and Bay

Area Churches as we host-

ed the Northern Regional

Meeting. We discussed

upcoming diocesan-wide

events, strengths and

growth opportunities for

our chapter, and enjoyed a

cheeseburger lunch.

The St. Vartan ACYO is a

very active youth organiza-

tion for young people age

12 and over.

Bay Area Armenian clergy welcomed Very Rev. Fr. Barouyr

Shernezian, the new priest at St. Gregory Armenian Church in SF.

All Men are Invited to Men’s Night

Hamburger Barbecue

Friday, May 13

6 pm

John Marukian

Church Hall

Fun, Games,

Fellowship

Spring Family

Night Saturday, April 30, 5:30

John Marukian Church Hall

Bring your own Tavloo board or

favorite board game.

Catch up with old friends;

meet new people.

Bring a Dish to Share:

A-G: Appetizer/Side Dish

H-P: Main Dish

R-Z Dessert

You Are Invited to Participate in Art Event at St. Vartan on April 3

Be part of UC Berkeley artist Tara Baghdassarian's Armenian Genocide art project on April 3 at

St. Vartan church after church services. Baghdassarian will be casting the faces of fellow Armeni-

ans—the descendants of genocide survivors. She will also document the stories passed

down of people’s ancestors who survived the atrocities.

Baghdassarian encourages as many people as possible

to participate, so to truly capture stories and faces across

many generations. Her piece will be on exhibition at UC

Berkeley's Worth Ryder Gallery from April 27-May 17. If you

have any inquiries, contact her at:

tbaghdassarian@berkeley.edu.

Have old purses you don’t know what to do with?? Bought too much soap or lotion last month and ran out of storage space??

St. Vartan ACYO has the perfect solution for you,

which combines philanthropy with helping you

clean out your closets!

Please bring donations of gently used purses and

handbags to our collection box in the hall entrance.

In addition, we are collecting feminine hygiene products, other (compact) toiletries, and non-perishable snack items!

We will be creating care packages in each purse and distributing them to homeless and disadvantaged women around the Bay Area.

We thank you for all your help!

For additional information please contact StVartanACYO@gmail.com.