Bibliothèque de l'Eglise apostolique arménienne - Paris

L'auteur

Father Vazken MOVSESIAN --- Cliquer pour agrandir

Fr. Vazken Movsesian is a priest of the Armenian Church. For the past four decades he has melded the most ancient traditions and practices of Armenian Orthodoxy with contemporary themes to bring about the promise of peace. He is the child of Genocide survivors and understands the importance of transformation to facilitate the healing process. His work has taken him to Rwanda and Armenia to study the processes of survival via the implementation of the very basic human precepts of faith, hope and love.

Fr. Vazken is an innovator. His first parish was in the dawning Silicon Valley (1982-1996). There he pastored and established the St. Andrew Armenian Church in Cupertino, California, next to the blossoming Apple Computer campus. Fr. Vazken established the first electronic bulletin board system (BBS) SAIN (1988) dedicated to the free flow of information about Armenians, the Armenian Church, Orthodoxy and Genocide studies. Since that time he has pioneered the use of modern technology to bring the message of hope and love to the world, via videos and electronic sermons. In 2000, while he was the Parish Priest at the St. Gregory Armenian Church in Pasadena, he received a grant from Japonica Partners to broadcast the Divine Liturgy on the Internet. Since that inaugural broadcast he has produced a steady stream of lessons, open forums and electronic classroom sessions designed to promote social change via patterns of love and non-violence.

In 2003 Fr. Vazken established the In His Shoes organization as a response to Genocide. He teaches that those who have suffered evil have a unique responsibility to take action against injustice to others. Based on Christ’s principles of love, compassion and repaying evil with good In His Shoes challenges people to find the terms which define us as a human race. This is a language of understanding and compassion, a language he is developing into what he has coined as Armodoxy.

From 2003 to 2016 he was the parish priest at the St. Peter Armenian Church & Youth Ministries’ Center in Glendale, California, where he worked with immigrant families from war-torn countries, adjusting to the difficulties of resettlement. It was there that along with Suzie Shatarevyan he began broadcasting weekly videos and podcasts with a message of hope to a world-wide audience on the Epostle.net site. The flagship “Next Step with Fr. Vazken” is currently heard and followed on six continents, eliciting a growing response for social responsibility by practicing love, compassion, forgiveness and working for peace. His videos – Armenian Christianity Today, In Step with Christ, and AC101 were produced by the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church and provide a clear description of the Christian Church acting in modern times. All of these series are available on the Armodoxy channel on Youtube.

Fr. Vazken continues to serve out his ministry as a priest of the Armenian Church in the Western Diocese.

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The Armenian genocide and the problems of Evil: A survey of Armenian clergy

Titre :	The Armenian genocide and the problems of Evil: A survey of Armenian clergy / auteur(s) : Father Vazken MOVSESIAN -
Editeur :
Année :	2015
Imprimeur/Fabricant :
Description :	15 x 23 cm, 104 pages, couverture illustrée en couleurs
Collection :
Notes :	Written in partial requirements, Master of Arts in Social Ethics, School of rekigion, Unvesity of Southern California, Los Angeles (1982)
Autres auteurs :
Sujets :
ISBN :
Lecture On-line :	non disponible

Commentaire :

Primate’s Message

Rev. Fr. Vazken Movsesian's "The Armenian Genocide and the Problem of Evil: A Survey of Armenian Clergy," originally written thirty-three years ago for USC's School of Religion as a partial requirement for MA degree in Social Ethics, explores in depth the problem of evil from the orthodox perspective of the Armenian Apostolic Church.

Theodicy, in its true sense of the word, often times is deliberately shunned by contemporary orthodox theologians, for questioning the omnipotence of God is tantamount to committing a sin. Hence, the problem of evil is shifted onto the human free will. On the other hand, the Western theologians and bereavement psychotherapists discern theodicy as a normal stage in the grieving process, which does not necessarily defy our Christian faith.
Rev. Fr. Movsesian approaches this sensitive issue from a pastoral point of view as he studies the trauma of the Armenian Genocide and its impact on the survivors and their descendants. In his case study, which includes the interviews of 18 clergymen of the Armenian Church, the common thread is quite noteworthy. When trying to explain the problem of evil in the context of the Armenian Genocide, the clergymen make frequent references to the mystery of the Resurrection of Christ.

And indeed, 100 years after the Armenian Genocide, we should find healing, peace, and closure for our grief in the Passion of Christ, and especially the mystery of His glorious Resurrection, thus reconstructing our lives in the newness of the risen Christ.
As the Chair of the Diocesan Centennial Commemorative events, and as a pastor, Rev. Fr. Movsesian made the metaphor of Resurrection a theme of jubilant celebration, which focuses on the spiritual rebirth and collective achievements of the Armenian nation. In the words of the author, "Evil has never succeeded whether it manifested itself by the Turkish sword or in the form of in opponent of the Armenian people. Perhaps that will be the fate of the Problem of the Evil as well. Evil has been defeated in Armenian communities, and it will be defeated in the future, if the Armenian people continue to retain their consistent and unshakable faith in God and the Armenian Church."

We wholeheartedly thank Rev. Fr. Vazken Movsesian for his arduous and conscientious work as the Chair of the Armenian Genocide Centennial Commemorative events of the Western Diocese and congratulate him on this valuable publication.

Prayerfully,
Achbishop Hovnan Derderian
Primate

Table des matières

PRIMATE'S MESSAGE 6

PREFACE 8

INTRODUCTION 10

Chapter 1 - THE PROBLEM OF EVIL 24

Chapter 2 - APPLIED THEODICY 48

Chapter 3 - THE ARMENAN CHURCH'S ROLE IN ANSWERING THE COLLECTIVE PROBLEM OF EVIL 67

Chapter 4 - CONCLUSION 87

SOURCES CONSULTED 99

Presentations 102

Clergy Interviewed 103

Father Vazken MOVSESIAN