His Beatitude Mesrob II, Armenian Patriarch of Istanbul and All Turkey,
paid
a fraternal visit to the German Evangelical Church in Aynalicheshme,
Istanbul, on 10 December, Monday, at 18:00 hours, on the occasion of
Advent
and the 150th anniversary of the foundation of the church.
A Liturgy of the Word was celebrated. The pastor of the German
Evangelical
Community, the Reverend Gerhard Duncker welcomed the Patriarch to the
parish
and spoke of the fraternal relations that exist between the two
churches.
The Patriarch delivered the homily, referring to the need to pray
fervently
that God will grant the world that which the angels sang about in
Bethlehem,
"on earth peace among men", a stable and just peace. The Patriarch once
again deplored the terrorist attack on 11 September and said that any
form
of violence should be condemned. He also expressed his concern for the
consequences of the military operations presently taking place in
Afghanistan, the West Bank and in other areas of unrest. These
incidents,
the Patriarch said, make it difficult this year for people to feel the
holiday spirit. "Let us pray with Saint Paul," Mesrob II continued,
"that
the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep our hearts
and
our minds in Christ Jesus, the Prince of Peace."
Patriarch Mesrob also congratulated the Pastor and the members of the
German
Evangelical Community for the 150th aniversary of the beautiful church.
He
said that the Armenians worldwide celebrate in 2001 the 1700th
anniversary
of the official recognition of the Church by the Armenian royal Arsacid
family in the year 301. "Atleast, for some 1200 years, German and
Armenian
Christians have had relations" the Patriarch said.
Both German and Armenian songs were sung during the liturgy. The
Armenian
hymns were sung by the Lusavoric Youth Choir of the Armenian Church in
Taksim, led by Hagop Mamigonyan.
Following the service, Pastor and Mrs Duncker held an Advent reception
for
the Armenian Patriarch and for all the members of the congregation.
Yorumlar kapatıldı.