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Visiting
Our Roots By
Louis Kurkjian
In
September, Grace, my brother Robert and I traveled
to Aintab, Kilis and Marash in Turkey. It was a very
rewarding trip. We saw family related locations that
reinforced our understanding of the commitment of
our ancestors to their Christian faith. Some of the
highlights were:
- A visit to the Womenıs Seminary for Girls in Aintab.
My grandmother, Esther Barsumian, was both a student
and a teacher at this high school. Ancestors of other
members of our congregation also were students there.
It was a school that focused on Christian education.
- The locations of the two Protestant churches in
Aintab were visited. Although the structures do not
exist, they were located in the center of the Armenian
quarter. At the First Church, there had been a Kurkjian
school, founded by my great-great uncle and a girlıs
school founded by his wife after he passed away. We
did visit the St. Maryıs Armenian Catholic Church
and the Latin Rite Armenian Church. Both structures
are much as they were in the early 1900ıs but are
no longer used as churches.
- We visited the American Hospital in Aintab and had
the pleasure to speak with Dr. Barclay Shepard, the
grandson of the famous medical missionary, Dr. Fred
Douglas Shepard, who served our people both medically
and spiritually. The current Dr. Shepard is 74 years
old and has, for the past 4_ years, served as its
medical director. Without this legacy selfless service
by the missionaries, the history of our community
would be significantly different.
- An emotional visit at the Bethel Orphanage in Marash,
where my father-in-law, Rev. Apkarian, was raised.
This is now a primary school an the building stands
as it did in the early 1900ıs.
- Walking through the narrow streets in the Armenian
quarter gave us a clearer picture of the life of our
ancestors and the actions they took to defend themselves
and their religious beliefs in very difficult times.
I could add more, including my great satisfaction
with the delicious food in Aintab, but the clear message
of the trip was the commitment of our ancestors to
their Christian beliefs, and the actions they took
to demonstrate this. As you might surmise, this was
a very valuable and rewarding trip for us. We have
a rich legacy and have much to learn from and appreciate
in our heritage.
While
this visit extended our understanding of the life
and sacrifices of our predecessors, let us remember
that it is our individual commitment today, as it
was theirs many years ago, that establishes our relationship
with God. The verse we learned in Sunday school was
the foundation of the faith of our fathers and needs
to be the foundation of our faith today. John 3:16
says: "For God so loved the world that he gave his
only Son and whosoever believes in him shall not perish,
but have everlasting life." Let us appreciate our
rich and unique heritage, but remember that it is
our individual commitment to God that counts.
Note: Louis Kurkjian is the Moderator of
the United Armenian Congregational Church, Hollywood,
California.
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| Worship
updated
November 26, 2000 |
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Thankfulness:
A Key To Christian Living
By Rev. Ron Tovmassian
"Let
them give thanks to the Lord for His loving kindness, And for
His wonders to the sons of men! For He has satisfied the thirsty
soul, And the hungry soul, He has filled with what is good"
(Psalm 107:8-9).
The other day, while sifting in the kitchen, I asked my son
if he would get me a spoon. When he brought it to me, I responded
by saying, "Thank You!" As I said it, I was struck by the casual
nature of my response to him. Every day, I say thank you at
least 100 times to people around me. It is a token gesture,
but it conveys a very casual token of gratitude.
As I considered this simplest, most basic form of thankfulness,
I realized that there are many different levels which escalate
from there. The level of thankfulness we should feel or express
at a given moment is often a subject of great thought. "How
thankful should I be?" "I donıt want to appear unappreciative,
yet I donıt want to embarrass someone else by going overboard!
"Should I just call and say thank you?" "Should I write a note?"
"Should I give a gift?" Sometimes, it can be a complicated matter
to figure out the appropriate level of thankfulness. There seem
to be at least four levels of thankfulness which I can identify:
1. The Level of Convenience. Often people do things for us that
v would have gotten around ourselves sooner or later. We are
thankful, but on a very casual level. This is something I could
have done myself, but someone saved me the time and effort.
A simple thank you is all that is required here.
2. The Level of Need. At times people do things for us that
would be very difficult, or even impossible to do ourselves.
We need the help of that other person. The level of thankfulness
here is much higher, because we could not have done it without
help. We feel in debt to the person and the expression of thanks
reflects a much deeper level of gratitude.
3. The Level of Surprise. When a person is not obligated, or
even solicited in any way, it comes as a great surprise when
the person does a significant service for us which could not
have been expected, or done for ourselves. Our sense of thankfulness
is very great in such a case, because we feel we have done nothing
to deserve this unexpected kindness. Our expression of gratitude
would be well planned a appropriate for such a lovely gesture.
4. The Level of High Stakes. At this level, someone is really
bailing us out in a time of trouble when we had no other way
out. The stakes are high for us because we are facing some insurmountable
problem from which we can imagine no other escape. The stakes
are also high on the other end, because the sacrifice involved
to help us is significant. This person had no obligation, yet
faced great risk on our behalf. This is the ultimate in thankfulness.
We may owe everything, even our very lives to this person. It
is a debt that we can never really pay back. We will always
cherish and appreciate what has been of done for us. We would
do almost anything for that person out of love and gratitude
for what was done for us.
On Thanksgiving, we thank our Lord for all He has done for us.
Yet I sometimes wonder about the level of our thankfulness.
Often it seems we are stuck at level one, thanking Him as casually
as I thanked my son for getting me my spoon. In order to reach
the fourth level of thankfulness, we must fully comprehend how
much we need salvation and reconciliation with God. We must
feel the pain of knowing that Christ, who was not obligated,
sacrificed His life and died on the Cross to grant us eternal
life. When all this is real to us, our thankfulness will go
even beyond level four. We will give our whole lives to our
Savior out of love and gratitude for all He has done for us.
This Thanksgiving, let us all take some time to remember why
we are thankful. Let us fall on our knees and bless the name
of Christ. Thanksgiving is a day to celebrate the fact that
Christ has saved our lives and has given us hope for eternity.
May the level of our thankfulness this year reflect the level
of our understanding of who we are and what God has done for
us.
Note: Rev. Ron Tovmassian is the senior pastor at
the United Armenian Congregational Church, Hollywood, California.
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Thanksgiving
Thoughts
By Berjouhi Ketenjian
Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise.
Give thanks to Him, bless His name." (Psalm 100.4)
On this Thanksgiving day, let us walk by the lake of Galilee
and imagine seeing in the sands the footprints of the Lord Jesus.
Here and there were bloodstains, for His feet had been cut on
the stones, and in the distance, we see a cross on a dark hill...
Then I began to give thanks.
- I am thankful for a warm room. The Son of man had nowhere
to lay His head.
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I have clear running water always at my disposal. He asked for
a drink from a stranger at a wayside well. ˙ I am thankful for
warm clothing. They gambled for His garment at the foot of the
Cross.
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I am thankful for many faithful, loving friends. His friends
forsook Him and His companions betrayed Him.
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I am thankful for joy, good times and laughter. He was acquainted
with grief for me.
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I have the trust, love and prayers of my family. His brothers
of the lonely savior did not believe in Him.
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I am thankful for health and work to do. I am thankful for a
savior who "was wounded" and bruised.
Friends, most of all, this Thanksgiving I am thankful for the
Lord Jesus who died on the cross and saved my soul. How about
you? What are you thankful for? I hope that the answer is for
the Lord Jesus Christ.
Have
a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving.
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