The Blessing of the Third Muron (Holy Chrism) of the 21st century was held in the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin on September 27, the Feast of the Holy Cross of Varak. The historic ceremonial rite was presided by His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians.
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Attending the sacred ceremony of the Blessing of the Holy Muron were the Republic of Armenia President Serzh Sargsyan; Republic of Armenia National Assembly President Galust Sahakyan; Republic of Armenia Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan; Gagik Harutyunyan, Constitutional Court Chairman; representatives of the Hierarchical Sees of the Armenian Church; Diocesan Primates and Diocesan delegations; members of the Supreme Spiritual Council; Republic of Armenia National Assembly deputies; Republic of Armenia Government members; national benefactors; culture and science figures and thousands of pilgrims from the communities of Armenia and Diaspora.
On this important historic event of the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church, the Coptic Orthodox Church; Syrian Orthodox Church; Syrian Orthodox Church; Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church; Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East; Greek Orthodox Church of Alexandria; Russian Orthodox Church; Serbian Orthodox Church; Romanian Orthodox Church; Orthodox Church of Cyprus; Czech Orthodox Church; Albanian Orthodox Church; Roman Catholic Church; Greek Catholic Church; Syrian Catholic Church; Armenian Catholic Church; Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland; Community of Sant’Egidio and Delegates and representatives of the World Council of Churches were prayerful to the clergy of the Armenian Church and the Armenian nation.
The ceremony began at 17:00 in the evening. Following the Lord’s Prayer and the incense blessing, the Pontifical procession walked from the Mother Cathedral to the St. Trdat Outdoor Altar. Under the singing of the “Khorhurd Khorin” and “Urakh Ler” hymns, and the precursor calling of the Mother Cathedral bells, led by crosses and banners, and accompanied by the applause of the pilgrims His Holiness blessed the faithful and was accompanied to the Open Altar.
His Holiness was assisted by Archbishop Nourhan Manougian, Armenian Patriarch of Jerusalem and Archbishop Moushegh Mardirossian, representative of Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia.
The Procession carried historical relics, the reqliquary of Skevra and the reliquary of the Holy Martyrs of the Armenian Genocide, and other blessed relics to be used in the Blessing of the Holy Muron. His Eminence Archbishop Aram Ateshyan, General Vicar of the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople carried the piece of the True Cross; His Eminence Archbishop Pargev Martirosyan, Primate of the Diocese of Artsakh, carried the Holy Lance; His Eminence Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the Eastern Diocese of the Armenian Church of North America carried the Holy Right Hand of St. Gregory the Illuminator; His Eminence Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Primate of the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church of North America carried a jar with Floral essence; His Eminence Archbishop Navasard Kchoyan, Vicar General of the Araratian Pontifical Diocese carried a vessel of balsam; His Eminence Archbishop Sepouh Chuljian, Primate of the Diocese of Gougark, carried the Catholicos Gospel, which was brought from the Matenadaran on this occasion; His Eminence Archbishop Paren Avetikian carried the relics of the Holy Right Hand of the Apostle St. Andreas; His Eminence Archbisop Nathan Hovhannisyan, Director of the External Relations and Protocol Department of Mother See carried the Right Hand of St. Luke the Evangelist; His Eminence Archbishop Yezras Nersisyan, Primate of the Armenian Diocese of New Nakhijevan and Russia carried the great dove with the old Muron; His Grace Bishop Movses Movsisyan, Primate of the Armenian Diocese of South Russia carried the Holy Right Hand of Apostle St. Thaddeus.
Benefactor of the Mother See Mr. Haik Didizian, who was serving as Godfather of the Holy Muron and dressed in ecclesiastical robe, was accompanied by Rev. Fr. Narek Avagyan and Rev. Fr. Ruben Zargaryan who were censing the procession.
The Mother See choir, welcomed the Pontifical Procession to the Open Altar with the singing of the solemn hymn “Hrashapar”, then the mysterious ceremony of the Blessing of the Holy Muron began with the Lord’s Prayer.
Under the singing of the hymns of “Vor zshnorhs” the Rev. Fathers censed the altar and the Holy Cauldron, and the Bishops, led by the Catholicos of All Armenians, read passages from the Old and New Testaments and as well as read prayers from the Holy Bible, dedicated to the Holy Muron.
After the reading of the Gospel, the hymn “Lord, open to us” was sung, during which Mr. Haik Didizian, the Godfather of the Holy Muron, was invited to the Open Altar, who along with His Grace Bishop Hovnan Hakobyan, Grand Sacristan of the Mother See, opened the Holy Muron cauldron.
His Holiness poured the floral essence and the balsam into the Holy Muron cauldron, after which His Holiness added the newly blessed Muron made in Antelias, which was brought to His Holiness by His Eminence Archbishop Shahan Sarkissian, representative of Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia.
According to the sacred Tradition, under the singing of the “Arakeloy aghavnoy” hymns, His Holiness poured the old Muron into the cauldron, conveying the power of the Holy Muron blessed by St. Gregory the Illuminator to the new one.
His Holiness blessed the Holy Muron, then stirred it with the piece of the True Cross, the Holy Lance, and the Holy Right Hand of St. Gregory the Illuminator. Then, the Catholicos of All Armenians conveyed his message to the attendees and the Armenians around the world.
At the conclusion of the Blessing of the Holy Muron, under the singing of the Pontifical hymn, the Procession walked back to the Mother Cathedral. The attendees, under the presidence of the President of Armenia, the Godfather of the Holy Muron, and the representatives of the Christian Churches, were given the opportunity to touch the Holy Muron cauldron and receive the blessing of the new Holy Muron.
The Message of His Holiness Karekin II
Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians
On the Occasion of the Blessing of the Holy Chrism
Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, September 27, 2015
In the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
“Through the strength of Your All-Holy Spirit, let this oil be:
The oil of joy and garment of light… holiness of body and soul…,
the seal of justice, the weapon of faith, and the martyr
triumphant against all the works of the intriguer.”
Prayer for the Blessing of the Holy Chrism
Beloved and pious faithful,
By the providence of our merciful God, in this year of the 100th anniversary commemorating the Armenian Genocide, a new joy flows in our lives through the Blessing of the Holy Chrism. Today is a great feast. It is the Feast of the Holy Cross of Varag, the cherished commemoration of the miraculous revelation of the relic of our Lord’s cross, brought to Armenia. On this glorious day and with boundless spiritual joy, we offered the Blessing of the Holy Chrism in the spiritual center of all Armenians – the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin.
We offered our prayers up to our heavenly Father, appealing for Him to transform this material oil through the grace of His Holy Spirit into holiness and grace-bestowing strength. Through the prayers of our forefathers, we asked that it be “an oil of joy and garment of light… holiness of body and soul… the seal of justice, the weapon of faith, and the martyr triumphant against all the works of the intriguer.” We appealed that through its sacred anointment, the flow of divine gifts will continue to the souls of our faithful, on our land of Armenia, and the lives of all our people.
The Holy Chrism is the visible sign of sealing with Christ, which we accept through the sacrament of Baptism and Christening, as an inheritor of the Savior. Through the Holy Chrism, we are clothed with the holiness of Christ, we are cleansed of sin, so that we may live with the justice of God. The Chrism is an awakening and springtime for souls; a blossoming of faith, virtuous life, and pious good works; a shield against evil, and the victory, glory and luminous crown of the faithful; since our heavenly Father – through his Only Begotten Son – called us from death to life, from the servitude of sin to the freedom of grace, and to the inheritance of the heavenly kingdom.
Today through the mercy of God, the sons and daughters of our nation have converged from all corners of the world as pilgrims in Holy Etchmiadzin, to bring their prayerful participation in the Blessing Service of the Holy Chrism. The presence of thousands of our faithful sons and daughters testify to the importance and value of the Holy Chrism in our lives, which is the seal of our Christian identity and the mortar of our national unity. Within the Chrism we also see the care and nurture that God has for our people, Who distributed the grace of His salvation throughout the lands and people of Armenia surrounding Mount Ararat. In the Chrism, we see the holy mountain of Ararat, on which the ark of salvation of the patriarch Noah came to rest, and the olive branch brought by the dove became the symbol of God’s peace. And the oil of the olive tree, became the blessed ingredient of the Holy Chrism. In every drop of the Chrism, we behold our Lord’s oil of anointing, brought to Armenia by the very hand of Saint Thaddeus the Apostle. We see the baptism of the King of Armenia Tiridates, his royal house, and all the people, by the hand of Saint Gregory the Illuminator in the Arsanias River, in the waters of the Eastern Euphrates, under the luminous Cross of the Lord which appeared in the heavens. In the Chrism is the image of our God-granted Holy Etchmiadzin; the reflection of our Chrism-consecrated monasteries and churches, cross-stones and manuscripts; and the portraits of our saints who disbursed the light of the Chrism through their lives. The Chrism unifies and blends our past and present, and yes, we believe for all of the coming centuries, since our people kept unshaken the seal of the Chrism when faced with all tribulations, with unquestionable confidence, that it is the “oil of joy and garment of light… holiness of body and soul… the seal of justice, the weapon of faith, and the martyr triumphant against all the works of the intriguer.”
Dear ones, let us value our Chrism as the Chrism of a holy life, the Chrism of renaissance, so that through spiritual renewal, and with our righteous life and works of mercy, we continue our path of ascent. Let us regard the Chrism as the mortar and cement of national unity, so that we may overcome the difficulties of our life, to dispel the worries and challenges. Today, when the world is full of crises, conflicts that take human life – specifically in the Middle East – where unspeakable suffering and losses are borne by our people as well, when tranquility is shattered on the borders of our homeland, and the recognition of the rights our people has yet to receive its just verdict, it is imperative for us to strengthen our homeland through solid unanimity, so that it becomes the refuge for the peaceful and secure life for all of our people, for the victory of our righteous cause, and the inspiring force for national revival. The Holy Chrism, through its spiritual strength, became a weapon of faith as well 100 years ago for our people who were the victims of the Genocide of the Armenians, who became victorious Martyrs, keeping their loyalty to God and their patrimony. Our people afflicted by genocide, survived and defeated death with their Chrism-sealed faith. Our path for the next 100 years was a path of rebirth; and today, under the canopy of our independent statehood, new horizons of national awakening are dawning. This Chrism prepared with confidence and hope in our newly ordained life, blessed in this revered year commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, and with the intercessory prayers of our sanctified Martyrs, is hereby proclaimed to be the CHRISM OF VICTORY, with the belief that it shall seal the souls of our faithful with the courageous and undefeatable spirit of our Holy Martyrs, all of the Lord’s witnesses and our forebears who defended our patrimony.
May the Holy Chrism being dispersed from Holy Etchmiadzin dispense holiness and the sweet scent of spiritual virtues throughout the world and in the life of every Armenian, in blessed national-ecclesiastical fields, in Armenian families, on the borders of our homeland, throughout our armed forces defending our nation, and in the hearts of all sons and daughters of our Holy Church; turning into the power of victories and new achievements of good works. One of our patriarchs of blessed memory, Simeon of Yerevan, says of the Chrism that is dispensed from Etchmiadzin, “Just as the rays of the sun announce the beauty and benefit of the sun, as a result of which the earth is administered and remains green; so too does the Holy Chrism always proclaim the beauty and benefit of Holy Etchmiadzin, which illuminates your souls and bodies.” May the eternal light of the Chrism of Holy Etchmiadzin always be sealed within the souls of our people, so that they may always renew their oath to God, their oath to our Apostolic Holy Church and cherished homeland. May the peace of God proclaimed by the olive branch brought by the dove from the slopes of Ararat, strengthen the spirit of justice and humanitarianism in the world, and reinforce the solidarity and cooperation among men and nations.
On this blessed and soul-renewing day, we offer our thanks up to Almighty God, for granting us once more the grace to offer the sacred service of Blessing the Holy Chrism, with the participation and prayers of the president of the Republic of Armenia, His Excellency Serzh Sargsian; Archbishops Mushegh and Shahan, representing our spiritual brother Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia; His Beatitude Archbishop Nourhan Manougian, the Armenian Patriarch of Jerusalem; His Eminence Archbishop Aram Ateshian, Vicar General of the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople; the honorable heads and honored representatives of the sister Churches; our oath-bound clergy; high ranking state leaders of the Armenians; heads and representatives of diplomatic missions accredited in Armenia; and the manifold pious faithful of our Church from within Armenia and who have traveled from the Diaspora. We extend our fraternal greeting with spiritual joy to His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia; to His Beatitude Mesrob Mutafian, Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople; and to the spiritual heads of our sister Churches, with the prayer and wish that the Lord always keep His Holy Church unshaken and vibrant, with the life-giving message of the Gospel, to illuminate the life of mankind and the mission of leading humanity to salvation.
We pray for our All-Merciful Lord to grant peace and security to the world, our homeland and our native land of Armenia and Artsakh. May the lives of our people and all mankind be abundantly blessed by the graces of the Lord’s Holy Spirit.
May the grace, love and mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you and with all. Amen.
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