All of us who are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses… let us run with perseverance in the career that is open to us. -Hebrews 12:1
At the time of writing, new parliamentary elections have just taken place in Armenia. Nikol Pashinyan’s party has won the majority of seats in the National Assembly. We congratulate him and pray that God will grant him the wisdom to govern the country. In recent months, our people have gone through a lot of difficulties. They were forced to an unjust peace, to the abandonment of part of their lands in Artsakh, despite the heroic resistance of our army. Many lost their lives, others were injured for life. We must honor these heroes and pray for them and their families. We must pray also for a just solution so that our people can live in peace on their land. The history of mankind is made up of a succession of glorious pages, and others more painful. But we believe that our people will know other glorious pages.
If this is the case with the history of men, it is not so with the history of God. The history of God is certainly inscribed in this time, but also and above all in eternity. It has no end. Heroes of faith, women and men of faith, have been writing the pages of it for thousands of years (cf. Hebrews 11).
For more than 17 centuries, the Armenian Church, with all its heroes of faith, has entered this history. It has enriched it with its faith and piety, together with many other churches.
The Armenian Evangelical Church became part of this history 175 years ago. She was born in Constantinople (today’s Istanbul) on July 1, 1846, following a desire for reform within the Armenian Apostolic Church. Since that date, it has not ceased to develop and to contribute to the good of our people, through its piety, its educational and social works. After the Genocide of 1915, she has spread and developed all over the world, without forgetting its Armenian roots. Today she is present in Armenia, Artsakh and in several countries of the world. She is an integral part of the great Church of Jesus Christ.
“All of us who are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses… let us run with perseverance in the career that is open to us.”
Today we want to continue to write this history, together with all the other Churches, in the great history of God, for the good and salvation of our people and for all peoples.
May God bless our churches and our people!
Happy Birthday to the Armenian Evangelical Church!
Rev. Joël Mikaélian
President of the Armenian Evangelical World Council
Issy-les-Moulineaux
June 24, 2021
