On Friday, April 23, 2021, in honor of the Holy Martyrs of the Armenian Genocide, Divine Liturgy was celebrated by H.G. Bishop Torkom Donoyan, Prelate, at St. Leon Cathedral in Burbank, with the participation of the four spiritual leaders of the Western United States and clergy.
During his address to the faithful, Prelate Donoyan stressed upon two major points; first, “Not to remain silent for the sake of justice” and second “To remain undivided for the sake of growth.” He further expounded by stating; “The successive generations of the Armenian people did not remain silent for decades, but also spoke incessantly and told the history about the Genocide committed by the Ottoman Empire. ‘We did not remain silent in the way of words alone, but also in our deeds, course, attitude and way of thinking. We have seen the 100th anniversary, we have seen the canonization of our Holy Martyrs, and we still continue to fight for our cause, because we don’t have the right to remain silent, and we believe just as Dante did, ‘that those who remain silent in the face of injustice are doomed to burn in the center of hell.’”
The Prelate then emphasized the imperative of unity in the lives of the Armenian people, diversity for the sake of progress, the right to think freely for the sake of constructive criticism, and quoted St. Nerses Shnorhali, “Unity is important, freedom is mutual and love is everything.” He concluded his speech by saying; “Today I would like to see the rainbow of peace and blessings from Dsidzernakapert to Etchmiadzin, from Etchmiadzin to Antelias, from Antelias to Europe, America and all the Diaspora, where all of us walk the path of our Holy Martyrs with the vision of the Resurrection in our souls as one nation.”
Thereafter, consecutively H.G. Bishop Michael Mouradian, Head of the Armenian Catholic Eparchy of US and Canada, Rev. Berdj Djambazian, Pastor of the Armenian Evangelical Union of North America and H.E. Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Primate of the Western Diocese of the United States delivered their messages, which added life towards the Divine Liturgy dedicated to the memory of our Holy Martyrs, and a rebirth of faith and love in the Risen Christ and the restoration of Christian values.
It’s worth to mention that the messages dedicated to the 106th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide by the four spiritual leaders were published in a booklet and distributed to all those who were present. Also, on April 24, 2021, the four spiritual leaders with the participation of clergy led an Intercessory Prayer service for the Holy Martyrs in front of the Armenian Genocide Monument in Montebello.