PASCHAL GREETING TO H.B. NOURHAN MANOUGIAN, ARMENIAN PATRIARCH OF JERUSALEM

Holy City of Jerusalem, 8 May 2013

 

Your Beatitude,

Your Eminences,

Reverend Fathers,

Dear Members of the Brotherhood of Saint James,

 

“It is the day of the Resurrection.

Let us shine brightly for the festival, and also embrace one another-And thus let us cry aloud,

Christ  is risen from the dead; by death he has trampled death,

and to those in the tombs he has granted life”,  (Anastaseos imera).

We greet you, Your Beatitude, in the light and the grace of this Joyful Feast of Feasts, when the Church rejoices in the victory of our Lord Jesus Christ over the power of death. This day of resurrection is. therefore, a day of new birth for humanity and the world, for the gate of heaven is now open to all.

We are especially glad to share in this celebration with you, Your Beatitude, on this first Easter after your election. We have worked together in the past, and with your election we look, forward to a deeper and stronger relationship between our two Brotherhoods as we move in to the future.

We have been greatly encouraged during this Holy Week and Easter celebration that all has gone smoothly and well In the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and in the Hoiy places, and we Cannot emphasize too strongly the importance of the message to the world of our peaceful co existence. The eyes of all look to Jerusalem in hope, and we are the servants and guardians of those places that are signs to them of this hope: Our privilege comes with a great responsibility.

We know of Your Beatitude’s commitment to this mission- In this time of challenge and uncertainty in our region, our mission is of even greater importance than at any period the past. The  future well-being of the Christian presence in the Holy Land, and the future assurance of the Christian character of Jerusalem, rest on our work together for the sake of these fundamental objectives.

So we are encouraged, and we wish to express to Your Beatitude our commitment to do all in our power to show a united Christian witness at this delicate time in our history, so that the world may see Jerusalem to be a city of genuine coexistence and enduring peace-”

May Christ, our true God, who is risen from the dead, prosper this work by his grace, and may His glorious resurrection from the dead give us courage and confidence in our mission.

We assure you, Your Beatitude, of our prayers for you and for the swift confirmation of your election. And we pray for God’s grace on the Brotherhood of Saint James and the entire Armenian community of the Holy Land.

Christ is risen! He is risen Indeed!

Thank you.

His Beatitude

THEOPHILOS III

Patriarch of Jerusalem

 

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