Եղեռնի զոհերի հիշատակի օր (Genocide Remembrance Day)

Today Armenians around the world remember the slaughter of 1.5 million of their ancestors by the Ottoman Turks during the first World War.

The Genocide (Հայոց Ցեղասպանություն in Armenian) included forced marches, starvation, serial rape and other atrocities and was an effort by Muslim Turks to remove the Christian Armenian people from existence.

President Obama had made a campaign promise to identify the massacre as a "genocide" but later reneged on this pledge. He had criticized President Bush for failing to recognize the genocide as such, but, on last year's Armenian Remembrance Day 2009, he softened his language, calling it a "calamity" ("Meds Yeghern" in Armenian). The President has received criticism and condemnation for his backtracking, and some have even called for him to give up his Nobel Peace Prize until he makes good on his campaign promise to recognize the "calamity" as a genocide.

Turkey is an ally of the U.S. and recognizing the genocide as such might put that relationship in jeopardy. Armenian-Turkish relations have also improved in recent years, and the fear is that calling the mass killings a "genocide" might strain that relationship as well.

However, 43 states have officially recognized the Armenian Genocide, and in March 2009, a bill was introduced to the House of Representatives by Congressman Adam Schiff, whose congressional district, California 29th, happens to include the city of Glendale, which has the highest concentration of Armenians in the United States. Congressman Schiff's bill, H.R. 252, states that "The Armenian Genocide was conceived and carried out by the Ottoman Empire from 1915 to 1923, resulting in the deportation of nearly 2,000,000 Armenians, of whom 1,500,000 men, women, and children were killed, 500,000 survivors were expelled from their homes, and which succeeded in the elimination of the over 2,500-year presence of Armenians in their historic homeland." It compares the Armenian genocide to the Holocaust, calls for a reduction of aid to Turkey by $3 million "until the Turkish Government acknowledged the Armenian Genocide," and demands that the President "accurately characterize the systematic and deliberate annihilation of 1,500,000 Armenians as genocide."

Learn more:
t h e f o r g o t t e n
Armenian National Institute
Fact Sheet: Armenian Genocide
Armenian Genocide 1915 Recognition Struggle
Armenian Genocide (Armeniapedia)

Take action:
Armenian National Committee of America
Follow H.R. 252 here

One Nation, Under God

A couple weeks ago I wrote something to the effect that our nation was founded on Enlightenment, rather than Judeo-Christian, principles, by deists, rather than by devout Christians. Naturally, not everyone agrees with that assessment.

"[T]he nation’s Christian conservative activists...hold that the United States was founded by devout Christians and according to biblical precepts...When they proclaim that the United States is a “Christian nation,” they are not referring to the percentage of the population that ticks a certain box in a survey or census but to the country’s roots and the intent of the founders."

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"'...Christianity has had a deep impact on our system. The men who wrote the Constitution were Christians who knew the Bible. Our idea of individual rights comes from the Bible. The Western development of the free-market system owes a lot to biblical principles."

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"For [Texas state board of education member Imet Don] McLeroy, separation of church and state is a myth perpetrated by secular liberals."

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"'Many of us recognize that Judeo-Christian principles were the basis of our country and that many of our founding documents had a basis in Scripture. As we try to promote a better understanding of the Constitution, federalism, the separation of the branches of government, the basic rights guaranteed in the Bill of Rights, I think it will become evident to students that the founders had a religious motivation.'"

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"One recurring theme during the process of revising the social-studies guidelines was the desire of the board to stress the concept of American exceptionalism, and the Christian bloc has repeatedly emphasized that Christianity should be portrayed as the driving force behind what makes America great."


Read the rest here.

Church and (Head of) State

It was way back in...oh, five days ago or so that I posted an article critial of President Obama for not attending church since his inauguration. Well, the news blog GetReligion (which I highly recommend, by the way) led me to this story by ABC News. It seems the Obama family will finally start looking for a church to attend. Anyone wanna bet he'll end up at an Episcopal church?

Which is more Christian...

...the "Christian Nation" of the United States, or "Godless" Russia?

I have engaged in many (many, many...too many) discussions with people who insist that the U.S. is a Christian nation.

Sorry. I'm just not convinced. Yes, the U.S. is a nation in which the majority of people claim to be Christians. Yet, that majority is declining. And I truly do not think anyone will argue that we as a nation don't condone and celebrate some very un-Christian behavior.

Was our country, as some like to claim, "founded on Judeo-Christian principles"? Official documents seem to say otherwise.

Most of the Founding Fathers were not Christians, but were deists (i.e. they believed in a God of the universe, the "Divine Author," "Providence," though not necessarily the Christian God). And some of them had some less-than-flattering things to say about Christianity.

No, our nation was not founded on Judeo-Christian principles (compare the 1st Amendment to the Consititution, which prohibits the official recognition of any one religion, with the First Commandment, which requires it), but rather on the principles of the Enlightenment, to which our founders were firmly committed.

It is not unpatriotic or anti-American to say that the U.S. is not a Christian nation...it's just being honest.

The following is part of an article from MinistryValues.com:

Is Russian leadership more Christian than the United States? Is the Russian Government more Christian than George Bush ever hoped the United States to be? The answer is yes, and not only is it true, but thanks to born again Christians, Dmitry Medvedev and Vladimir Putin, Christian influence in matters of State is rapidly on the rise. Let's look at the facts.

A couple of weeks ago Barack Obama skipped Church on Christmas Day while the President of Russia, Dimitry Medvedev, on January 6, 2010, attended mid-night mass services celebrating the Russian Orthodox Christmas in grand splendor in the traditional Vigil liturgy in Saint Christ the Saviour Cathedral in the presence of 4,000 people, including Patriarch Kirill. The Russian Orthodox Church celebrates Christmas following the old Julian calendar, which is 13 days "behind" the Gregorian calendar.

While Russian leaders were attending Church services, half way around the world in America, Chicago Tribune, writing about Obama's troubles finding a Church for his family, said "But as his (Obama) fellow Christians around the world attended Christmas services on Wednesday and Thursday, the president-elect and his family remained sequestered at their vacation compound on the windward coast of Oahu. His lack of attendance at formal religious services showcased a dilemma faced by Obama, who is between churches and often expresses concern about bringing the disruption of his security detail into the lives of others." According to the same report President Barack Obama has not attended a public church service since before being elected.

So what you say? Well, today Russia is investing $100 million to rebuild Christian churches throughout the country. Money to rebuild theses churches is coming from Russian tax payers. This would be impossible in the US of course. Imagine the US Media's reaction if President Obama decided to invest $100 million dollars of US tax payer dollars to rebuild Catholic Churches. In the US there would be outrage yet Russia citizens are supportive of the investment.

[...]

Russia's turn to Christianity is a virtually unknown phenomenon in the United States. Most Christian leaders are oblivious to what is happening in Russia. Pastor Robertson or Pastor Hagee still believe Russia is an atheist and communist country and these prominent End-Times Christian pastors are rasing [sic] money and rattling their sabers to go to war against the Godless state.

[...]

Vladimir Putin and Dmitry Medvedeve go to Church frequently, kiss precious icons of the Virgin Mary and seek political and moral counsel from the Russian Orthodox Clergy. Furthermore, to the surprise of many Americans, particularly Evangelical Christians, Vladimir Putin wears a Christian cross with him at all times.

[...]

Funding to restore Christian sites and the return of properties seized from the Church in Soviet times are but the latest gift of the Kremlin to the Patriarchate. This year, the Russia Justice Ministry will present plans to amend the laws on "Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organisations", which, if approved, would severely restrict the activities of certain religious communities, like Evangelical Christians. In addition, the authorities plan to add religious education in public schools as well as chaplains paid by the state to the armed forces. It also appears possible that the Orthodox Patriarchate of Moscow will be granted the right to vet parliamentary bills before they go to the Duma.

Is the Russian Government building a more Christian society? Perhaps. But try telling that to your buddies at Church this Sunday.


Read the rest here

Meeting between US President Barack Obama and Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia KIRILL

On July 7, 2009, in the Grand Kremlin Palace, His Holiness, Patriarch KIRILL of Moscow and All Russia met with visiting US President Barack Obama.

In greeting the Most Holy Patriarch KIRILL, the President of the United States of America stated his pleasure in meeting with the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, inasmuch as religious institutions, and in particular, the Russian Orthodox Church, have great importance in the Russian society.

In turn, His Holiness, Patriarch KIRILL stated that he also highly regards the possibility of a meeting with the President of the United States. According to the words of His Holiness, not only political contacts between their two leaders are important for the development of relations between two countries, but also sincere relationships between the peoples of the nations.
His Holiness stated that “there is great potential for removing anti-American feelings in Russia and anti-Russian sentiments in America, and that is to include the feelings of the heart. The Russian Orthodox Church brought Orthodoxy to the American continent, and now there are good relations between our Orthodox American brothers. Even in the most difficult years of the Cold War we tried to maintain these good relations.”

The Patriarch continued, “It is very important that the Peoples of America and Russia preserve the system of Christian ethics. We are the most religious of nations and it is very important for us to have constant dialogue between the Christians of our countries and that our two nations must be friends.

In his response, Mr. B. Obama noted the labors of Patriarch KIRILL in strengthening Christian Unity and stated his willingness to cooperate with the Russian Orthodox Church.

In prayerful memory of the meeting, the Most Holy Patriarch KIRILL presented the US President with an icon of the Most Holy Virgin Theotokos.


Courtesy of St Catherine the Great Orthodox Church

Ναός τῆς Ἁγίας τοῦ Θεοῦ Σοφίας

For nearly one thousand years, the Hagia Sophia (Ἁγία Σοφία, which means "Holy Wisdom") was the largest Christian cathedral in the world. Construction began in 532 by order of Emperor Justinian and completed five years later. The church included a silver iconostasis fifty feet tall, and was filled with jeweled mosaics and columns of granite and marble, beneath a dome more than one hundred feet wide, and 182 feet high. It was an architectural wonder, filled with arcades, frescoes, marble tiled floors, rich colors and treasures beyond price. When the cathedral was complete, the emperor declared "Νενίκηκά σε Σολομών!" ("Solomon, I have outdone thee!")

For more than a millennium, spanning the reigns of over one hundred Byzantine emperors, Constantinople was the center of the Christian world. That all ended on this date (May 29 by the Church calendar) 556 years ago.

On that Tuesday morning in 1453, the siege of Constantinople by the Ottoman Turks ended and the city was sacked, ravaged, looted, desecrated, pillaged, burnt, violated, and brought under control of the Muslims where she remains to this day.

According to the diary of Nicolo Barbaro, who was present during the invasion,

The Turks made eagerly for the piazza, five miles from the point where they made their entrance at San Romano, and when they reached it, at once some of them climbed up a tower where the flags of Saint Mark and the Most Serene Emperor were flying, and they cut down the flag of Saint Mark and took away the flag of the Most Serene Emperor, and then on the same tower they raised the flag of the Sultan. When they had taken away these two flags, those of Saint Mark and of the Emperor, and raised the flag of the Turkish dog, then all we Christians who were in the city were full of sorrow because it had been captured by the Turks. When their flag was raised and ours cut down, we saw that the whole city was taken, and that there was no further hope of recovering from this.

For the rest of the day these flags were kept flying on the houses, and all through the day the Turks made a great slaugh­ter of Christians through the city. The blood flowed in the city like rainwater in the gutters after a sudden storm, and the corpses of Turks and Christians were thrown into the Dardanelles, where they floated out to sea like melons along a canal.

The cross which topped the dome of the Hagia Sophia was torn down and replaced by a crescent. Minarets were erected, and what was for centuries the largest, most imported and most beloved Christian church in the world became a mosque. The mosaics and frescoes were plastered over or chiseled away. The iconostasis was looted and the relics of saints and other treasures disappeared. The Hagia Sophia served as a mosque until 1932 when the Turkish president, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, had it made into a museum. At that time, work began to uncover the mosaics that had long been hidden behind plaster.

Two worthwhile blog posts concerning this tragic event can be found here and here. And there is, I was surprised to learn, a movement underway to restore the Hagia Sophia to use as a Christian church. The organization behind this effort is called the Free Agia Sophia Council of America.

See also: Paintings and photos of Hagia Sophia

From Russia with Scorn

You have to know, when the Russians are scolding the U.S. for being "Marxist," that something is dreadfully wrong.
Ouch!

"...their faith in God was destroyed, until their churches, all tens of thousands of different "branches and denominations" were for the most part little more then [sic] Sunday circuses and their televangelists and top protestant mega preachers were more then happy to sell out their souls and flocks to be on the "winning" side of one pseudo Marxist politician or another. Their flocks may complain, but when explained that they would be on the "winning" side, their flocks were ever so quick to reject Christ in hopes for earthly power. Even our Holy Orthodox churches are scandalously liberalized in America."

(Read the rest here)

This is not a political blog. It never has been, and I have no intention of making it one. But this story is important because it demonstrate why the "myth" (as I've heard some Christians call it) of the Separation of Church and State is not only NOT at myth, but why it is a blessing that we in the U.S. are so fortunate to enjoy, and why it is so important that the "wall of separation" that our Nation's Founders built between its civil and religious realms remains strong and thick:

"Connecticut considers bill that sidelines bishops, dictates Church financial oversight"