Վահէ Մահշիկեանին՝ Վահէ Յ Աբէլեանէն ` Եկեղեցի, Սփիւռք, Հայաստան

Վահէ Մահշիկեանին՝ Վահէ Յ Աբէլեանէն՝ Եկեղեցի, Սփիւռք, Հայաստան

Ն.Ս.Օ.Տ.Տ. Արամ կաթողիկոսը, սփիւռքին վերակարուցման անհրաժեշտութիւնը նշած էր այս տարուան Ապրիլ 4-ին, Յունահայ գաղութին տուած հովուական այցելութեանը ընթացքին։ Զրոյցը լոյս տեսաւ «Ազատ Օր» թերթին մէջ։ Նախապէս Արամ կաթողիկոսը ակնարկած էր սփիւռքի մաշումին։ Մաշումի եւ վերակացմութեան անհրաժեշտութեան ակնարկներուն առթիւ ֆէյսպուքի էջիս վրայ ըրած տեղադրութեանս պատասխանած էր Վահէ Մահշիկեանը՝ Դամասկոսէն եւ նշած էր հետեալը՝ «Նախ Սփիւռք բառին բացատրութիւն տալը անհրաժեշտ է ... թէ . . ինչ է սփիւրքը ընդհանրապես եւ Հայութեան կեանքին մէջ յատկապես ... ... Ինչու Հայ սփիւրք գոյացած է .... Ինչէ կազմուած է ... Ինչ է Հայ սփիւռքին կապը Հայաստանի հետ ... Ինչ Դեր ունի Հայկական սփիւռքը կատարելիք աշխարհաքաղաքական գետնի վրայ յօգուտ հայոց գերագոյն շահերուն ուղղութեամբ ... ինչու աւանդական կարգ մը կուսակցութիւններ եւ այլն իրենց մենաշնորհը կը համարեն Հայ սփիւռքը եւ կը շահարկեն ըստ այնմ ... եւ այսպես շատ մը հարցերու լուսաբանութեանը անհրաժեշտութիւնը կայ ...»

Խօստացայ պատասխանել ըրած ակնարկին։ Ահաւասիկ պարազաբանուած պատասխանս։

Անկասկած է որ այդպէս է՝ սփիւռքը խրթին վիճակ մընէ եւ հետեւաբար սփիւռքի մեկնաբանութիւնը խրթին է։  Ինչպէս նշած էի Ֆէյսպուքի էջիս վրայ՝ սփիւռքը աշխարհ մըն է ինքնին եւ հետեւաբար կարելի չէ առօրեայ սփիւռքահայ մը ճանչնայ եւ անոր ընդմիջէն գնահատէ սփիւռքը։ Կիւլպէնկեան հաստատութեան Հայկական բաժինը, սփիւռքը ճանչնալու համար նիւթակամ յատկացումներ տրամադրած է եւ կարգած հայ գիտնականներ ուսումնասիրելու սփիւռքը։ Բայց ես պիտի պարզաբանեմ իմս։

Ես կը ճանչնամ սփիւռքը իր նեղ մեկնաբանութեամբ որպէս սփիւռքահայ աշխարհաձրիւ այն հատուածը որ ընդհանրապէս հաղորդ է Մեծն Տանն Կիլիկիոյ Կաթողիկոսութեան հետ։ Զանց չէմ առներ Հայ կաթողիկէ եւ աւետարանական յարանուանութիւնները որոնք ներկայ են եւ կը գործեն Կիլիկեան Թեմին աշխարհաձրեւ համայնքնին հետ եւ կամ կողքին։

Ոչ մէկ պատկերացում ունիմ այսպէս կոչուած Ներքին սփիւռքին՝ այսինքն հայեր որոնք կը բնակին եւ կը գործեմ Ռուսաստանի եւ երբեմնի Սովետական Միւթիւնը բաղկացնող 14 երկիրներուն մէջ, ինչպէս նաեւ Արեւելեան Եւրոպայի մէջ։ Աղօտ պատկերացում ունիմ Արեւտմեան Եւրովայի սփիւռքահայ գաղութին մասին։ իսկ աւելի աղօտ պատկերացում մը ունիմ Լատին Ամերիկայի երկիրներուն մէջ բնակող սփիւռքահայութեանը։ 

Իմ փոռձառութիւնս սահմանափակուած է Միջին Արեւելքի Արաբական երկիրներուն մէջ բնակութիւն հաստատած հայութեամբ, ինչպէս նաեւ Հիւսիսային Ամերիկայի մէջ։

Բարդացնելով արդէն իսկ բարդ ու խրթին սփիւռքահայ վիճակը՝ նշեմ որ նոյնիսկ այնքան ալ հաղորդ չեմ Հիւսիսային Ամերիկայի ոչ «աւանդական սփիւռք»-ին։ Այսինքն՝ այն սփիւռքը որ կազմաւորուեցաւ Հայաստանի Սովետական իշխանութեան փլուզումէն ետք։ Բայց կը պատկերացնեմ անոնք ընդհանրապէս, եթէ ոչ բացառձակ մեծամասնութեամբ, կ՚անդամակցին  Իջմիածնական Թեմի եկեղեցիներուն եւ ընդհանրապէս չեն մասնակցիր աւանդական սփիւռքին կառոյցներուն։ Թերեւս բացառութիւն են Լոս Անճէլոսի Քեսապի Ուսումնասիրաց Միւութեան անդամակցողները

Հետեւաբար կը պատկերացնեմ որ Արամ Կաթողիկոսի՝ սփիւռքը վերակազմելու անհրաժեշտութեան յայտարարութիւնը, աղէրս ունի Կիլիկեան Թեմին շուրջ համախմբուած սփիւռքահայութեան հետ։ Անկասկած ըսել չեմ ուզեր որ Արամ Կաթողիկոսը կ՚անգիտանայ սփիւռքը իր ընդհանրական հասկացողութեամբ։

Հիւսիսային Ամերիկայի Հայ Առաքելական եկեղեցին հիմնուեցաւ Խրիմեան Հայրիկին կաթողիկսսական կոնդակով, եւ կազմուեցաւ Ամերիկայի Ուսթըր (Worcester) քաղաքին մէջ 1898-ին, ուր ես բնակութիւն հաստատած եմ 2018-էն ի վեր։ Ամերիկահայ գաղութին արմատները խոր են։ Սկսած են արմատանալ ընդհանրապէս Համիտեան ջարդերուն որպէս հետեւանք, ինչպէս նաեւ Ամերիկայի միսիոնարական շարժումին պատճառով։ Այդ արմատները նախ հող գտած են Ուսթըր քաղաքին մէջ եւ անկէ ճիւղաւորուած են։ Այդ քաղաքակին մէջ է որ կառուցուած է Ամերիկայի առաջին Հայ Առաքելական եկեղեցին, 1891-ին, ինչպէս նաեւ առաջին Հայ Աւետարանական Եկեղիցին, 1900-ին։ Հիւսիսային Ամերիկայի առաջին Հայ Առաքելական եկեղից կը կոչուի Սուրբ Փրկիչ (Saint Savior), իսկ Հայ Աւետարանական առաջին եկեղեցին կը կոչուի Հայ Մարտիրոսաց Եկեղեցի (Armenian Church of the Martyrs)` յիշատագրուած Համիտեան ջարդերու նահատակներուն։ 

Կիլիկեան Կաթողիկոսութեան Միջին Արեւելքի Արաբական երկիրներուն մէջ հաստատուիլը բնական ընթացքը եղաւ Մեծ Եղեռնէն փրկուածներուն համար։ իսկ Հիւսիսային Ամերիկայի մէջ, Կիլիկեան Թեմին ծնունդը քաղաքական եղաւ, ոչ թէ պատմասիրական՝ ունենալու համար պատմական Կիլիկիոյ միակ կենդանի հաստատութիւնէն ներկայացուցիչ Հիւսիսային Ամերիկայի մէջ։

Դժբախտ իրողութիւնը այն էր որ Աւեւտմտահայ Խրիմեան Հայրիկին կոնդակով հիմնուած Հայ Առաքելական Եկեղեցին Հիւսիսային Ամերիկայի մէջ զլացաւ եկեղեցական կարգ ու սարգը՝ հայ այն հատուածի անդամներուն որոնք վեր կը պահէին եռագոյնը, կ՚երգէին «Մեր Հայրենիքը» իրենց  հաւաքոյթներուն ընթացքին եւ վար կը պահէին Ազատ եւ Անկախ Հայաստանի մեծ երազը։ Նախքին քաղաքական բաժանումը թէեւ վերացած է ներկայիս, բայց այդ օրերու բաժանումին հետեւանքով ամրապնդուած են Էջմիածնի եւ Անթիլեասի Հայ Առաքելկան Եկեղեցիին երկու թեմերը Հիւսիսային Ամերիկայի մէջ` էջմիածնին թեմը հիմնուած է, ինչպէս նշեցի, 1898-ին իսկ Կիլիկեան թեմը հիմնուած է շուրջ 75 տարիներ ետք՝ 1973-ին Նիւ Եորք քաղաքին մէջ։

Ընդհանրացած երեւոյթ է որ երբ հանդիպիս Ամերիկահայու մը որուն նախապէս հանդիպած չես եղած, ձեր  առաջին ծանոթակցութիւնը ըլլայ հարցնելով ո՞ր եկեղեցին կը յաճախեն. ոչ թէ, կրօնական հաստաուտում մը ընելու համար, այլ ընկերային, չեմ ուզեր ըսել քաղաքական, քանի որ ինչպէս նշեցի, նախքին քաղաքական բաժանումը վերացած է եւ անսովոր չէ որ երկու թեմերուն եկեղեցիները միատեղուին տօնակատարութեան համար, ինչպէս  պիտի ըլլայ այս տարուան Ապրիլեան յիշատակութիւնը Worcester քաղաքին մէջ, ինչպէս եղած է նաեւ անցեալ տարիներուն։

Ազատ եւ Անկախ Հայաստանի տեսլականը խթանը եղաւ պատմական Կիլիկիոյ Սիսի կամ Անթիլեասի կաթողիկոսութեան հաստատումին Հիւսիսային Ամերիկայի մէջ։ Իսկ այժմ ազատագրուած եւ անկախացած Հայաստանին ժողովրավարական կարգով ընտրուած իշխանութեան հանդէպ ներ Հայաստանեան քաղաքական դիրքաւորոշումը սփիւռքի մէջ կը ջլատէ եւ պիտի ջլատէ Կիկիլիոյ Սիսի կամ Անթիլեասի կաթողիկոսութեան հօտը եւ թեմը։

Հետեւաբար՝ ինչպէս տեղադրած էի ֆէյսպուքի էջիս վրայ՝ 

 « Կիլիկիոյ Սիսի եւ ներկայիս Անթիլիասի սփիւռքին անյետաձգելի վերակազմակեպումը կարելի պիտի չըլլայ եթէ անոր ազգային ողնածուծը եղողը կազմակերպութիւնը՝ ՀՅԴ-ը տակաւին շարունակէ մխրճուիլ ներ Հայաստանեան քաղաքականութեան մէջ եւ այդ քաղաքականութեանբ եւ անկէ փխած ղեկաւարութեամբ ձեւաւորէ եւ հիմնաւորէ ինքզինքը սփիւռքի մէջ եւ սփիւռքէն իր յարաբերութիւնը Ազատ եւ Անկախ Հայաստանի Հանրապետութեան ազգընտիր իշախանութիւններուն հանդէպ՝ աջակցելով մէկուն եւ ընդիմանալով միւսին։

՚իմ պատկերցումովս եւ զանց ընելով տեղադրել այլ հատուածներէ հնչած նման մտահոգութիւն՝ Կիլիկեան Թեմի կարգ մը եկեղեցիներուն գոյութիւնը վտանգուած է Արեւելեան Ամերիկայի Ափին վրայ։ Ոչ թէ միայն բնական մաշումին համար, այլ նաեւ պառակտումին որ հօտը եւ թեմը կը մաշեցնէ։ »

 

The Unsung Hero of "The Lions of Marash": Antranig Chalabian

The first sentence of Dr. Stanley Kerr's acknowledgment in his book "The Lions of Marash" reads as follows: "Access to documents prepared nearly fifty years ago has enriched this volume. For cooperation in locating such material I wish to thank Mr. Antranig Chelebian.........I am indebted to Mr. Antranig Chelebian for translating into English practically all of the Armenian documents which appear in the text."

Antranig volunteering his cooperation to Dr. Stanley Kerr's endeavor,  culminated into friendship. When Antranig and his wife visited the United States, the Kerrs invited them as their two days overnight guests in their house in Princeton, NJ. All those who are interested as to how the discovery of those documents, young Stanley Kerr had prepared as a volunteer in the American Near East Relief, came about may read the link attached below.

It was indeed a historically serendipitous event.  I was a student in AUB then and I accompanied my uncle Antranig many times in search of references to supplement Dr. Stanley Kerr's research. I distinctly remember visiting Movses DerKaloustian in Anjar. I drove our family VW Beetle. Antranig did not own a car yet. I also remember us visiting Vahe Setian's extensive private library. Setian's office was not far from Hotel Lux, the inn my father ran on Allenby Street in down town Beirut.  Antranig Chalabian is indeed an unsung hero.

Only those who know the meticulous and fastidious Antranig Chelebian, whose daily washing his hands was akin to a surgeon cleansing his hands prior to surgery, and whose pursuit of Armenian history I find unmatched, may have an appreciation of the discovery that would result in the famous book and cement a lasting relations between the estimable Kerr family and the Armenian nation as a whole. 

Antranig Chalabian (Chelebian) was born in Keurkune, Kessab on March 11, 1922. As his name indicates, he was the firstborn son of Khatcher Chelebian and Karoun Apelian who were married in late 1918 in their makeshift camp in Deir Attiyeh, Syria on their way to their ancestral village having survived the horrid ordeals of the 1915 Armenian Genocide.

He and his siblings, Zvart, my mother, Hovhannes, and Anna were orphaned at their tender ages having lost their father on February 2, 1930, at the age of 38. Antranig was a brilliant student and remained so until the twilight of his later years. After graduating from the Armenian Evangelical School of Keurkune he was awarded a scholarship to continue his education at Aleppo College. He graduated with distinction and won the coveted Altounian Prize. After graduation, he taught in his former school in Kessab for one year then returned to Aleppo College where he taught English and mathematics to the middle school classes from 1945 to 1949.

In 1949 Antranig moved to Beirut where his family had settled four years earlier. He taught English for one year at the AGBU Hovagimian-Manouginan High School. He then took a position in the Physiology Department of the American University of Beirut (AUB), where he remained for twenty-seven years as a research assistant and physiology laboratory instructor to the medicine, pharmacy, and nursing students. During the last fourteen years in the American University of Beirut, he worked as a free-lance medical illustrator and calligrapher. He single-handedly illustrated three medical textbooks, countless research papers, and theses and calligraphed many medical school graduation diplomas. Meanwhile, he contributed articles to the Armenian Evangelical community’s periodical “Djanaser,” Simon Simonian’s weeklly “Spurk”, and Antranig Zarougian’s weekly “Nayiri”. 

In 1977 Antranig immigrated to the United States with his family and settled in Detroit where his paternal uncle Garabed (Charlie) had settled in the early 1920s having survived the Genocide. He assumed the position of Public Relations Director of the AGBU Alex Manougian School and continued to contribute articles to various Armenian periodicals. In 1984 he published his first bi-lingual book "General Antranik and the Armenian Revolutionary Movement". The book became an instant best seller and was printed in 75,000 copies in Armenia. He donated the proceeds from that print to the Karabagh freedom fighters. In 1989 the History Department of the University of Armenia invited him to defend his exhaustive historical study. Upon a successful defense, he was awarded a doctorate degree in history.  The book was later translated into Turkish and Spanish.

In 1991 Dr. Antranig Chalabian published his second book in Armenian titled, "Revolutionary Figures". Dr. Ara Avakian translated the book in English. In 1999 he published his third book, "Armenia After the Coming of Islam" in English. The book became a very popular reading and had two printings. In 2003 he published his fourth book in Armenian titled "Dro". The book traces the feats of the legendary Armenian freedom fighter, Trasdamat Ganayan. In a February 2006 letter, Dro's son Martin M. Kanayan of Spring TX, wrote to Antranig noting "Our entire family and our non-ideologue friends believe that your work on Dro has been the best and most accurate to date", and provided unpublished family stories. His son, Jack Chelebian M.D. included them in his translation of the book into English. In 2009 Indo-European Publishers printed the book. 

Dr. Antranig Chalabian was also an invited contributor to the internationally acclaimed "Military History Magazine" where he published articles dealing with Armenian history. Without any assistance, he prepared the print ready manuscripts of his books by typing them both in Armenian or in English, proofread them without resorting to spelling check, painstakingly prepared the indices and drew the maps that appear in his books. 

Before writing and publishing his books, Dr. Antranig Chalabian collaborated with Dr.Stanley Kerr after discovering Dr. Kerr’s personal notes in the attic of the Physiology Department. Dr. Stanley Kerr had moved to New Jersey after retiring in 1965 from his distinguished career as the Chairman of the Biochemistry Department of the American University of Beirut. However, he had left his notes behind assuming that the notes were long lost through the years. Stanley Kerr had kept his notes and taken hitherto unpublished pictures while serving in Near East Relief. In 1919 Stanley was transferred to Marash, in central Anatolia, where he headed the American relief operations. The outcome of their collaborative work was the publication of Dr. Stanley Kerr’s "The Lions of Marash" in 1973. The Kerrs hosted the Chalabians as their overnight houseguests during the latter visiting America in 1971.

While collaborating with Dr. Kerr, Henry Wilfrid Glockler, a one-time controller at AUB and a neighbor of the Kerrs in Princeton, entrusted Antranig Chalabian his personal memoirs. Chalabian edited the memoirs and had it published in Beirut in 1969 by Sevan Press. The book is titled "Interned in Turkey".  In private conversation, Antranig Chalabian noted that he heeded to Kersam Aharonian’s call in 1965 urging Armenians to encourage non-Armenian authors to publish about the Armenian Genocide. Kersam Aharonian is the late eminent editor of Zartonak Daily in Beirut.

Dr. Chalabian received numerous accolades and recognition. Armenian organizations in various states invited him to lecture. The mayor of Southfield designated in 2005 a day as Dr. Antranig Chelebian Day in recognition of his goodwill ambassadorship of the city through his readers worldwide. He continued to live in Southfield, MI with his wife Seran (Tootikian) who preceded him in death in 2010. In 1995, his compatriots, the Kessabtsis, honored him as a noted professional and dedicated the 2003 Edition of the Kessab Educational Association’s yearbook and directory in his honor.

My earliest childhood impression of my maternal uncle Antranig is vividly embedded in me when he interrupted an ongoing traditional Kessab circle dance during a festivity in Keurkune and took the guns away from two dancers who had joined the dance with their hunting guns dangling from their shoulders. I realize now that my very first childhood recollection of him was a reflection of his innate total aversion of guns and anything remotely violent and by the same token his instinctive appreciation of those who, as a last resort, resorted to the gun as Armenian freedom fighters. He made the preservation of their legacy his cause. Years earlier he prepared the graphical presentation of my first Master of Science thesis.

Antranig passed away on April 12, 2011. The Good Lord had bestowed upon him unusual talents, which he put in good use as an accomplished medical illustrator, calligrapher, cartographer, and historian, and foremost as a devout Armenian. He leaves behind a void and a legacy of extraordinary accomplishments. He exemplified the indomitable spirit of the first post Genocide generation who were mostly born to parents orphaned during the Genocide.

Courtesy Mike Apelian who said.  "I came accross  this picture  while visiting  
Haykaz Khederian and his wife Sirvart" Haykaz and Antranig were classmates
in Aleppo College. 

Link: https://vhapelian.blogspot.com/2021/07/antranig-chalabian-big-books-little.html

The Great Armenian Dispossession

Vahe H. Apelian

Depiction courtesy Garo Konyalian

April 24, the Armenian Remembrance Day, is three weeks away.  On that day the president, Joe Biden will issue a proclamation or a statement as he did since he took office. We all know that in on April 24, 2021, president Joe Biden proclaimed the following: “Each year on this day, we remember the lives of all those who died in the Ottoman-era ARMENIAN GENOCIDE and recommit ourselves to preventing such an atrocity from ever again occurring. Beginning on April 24, 1915, with the arrest of Armenian intellectuals and community leaders in Constantinople by Ottoman authorities, one and a half million Armenians were deported, massacred, or marched to their deaths in a campaign of extermination. We honor the victims of the MEDS YEGHERN so that the horrors of what happened are never lost to history. And we remember so that we remain ever-vigilant against the corrosive influence of hate in all its forms.” (Capitalization is mine)

Joe Biden is not the first president to use the G word. President Reagan had used the word genocide before. But president Joe Biden’s use of the G word had altogether different contextual meaning. He also was not the first to use our term, Meds Yeghern. It was president George W. Bush who used it first. President Joe Biden was the first president who referenced to Armenian Genocide and Meds Yeghern in the same context. He did the same last year, during his April 24, 2022 statement. He will most likely do the same on upcoming April 24, 2023, Armenian Remembrance Day.

Raffi K. Hovannisian, the American born and raised Armenia's first foreign minister, summed what happened in that period as follows: “ (It was) the premeditated deprivation of a people of its ancestral heartland.  And that's precisely what happened. In what amounted to the GREAT ARMENIAN DISPOSSESSION, a nation living for more than three millennia upon its historic patrimony-- at times amid its own sovereign Kingdoms and more frequently as a subject of occupying empires-- was in a matter of months brutally, literally, and completely eradicated from its land.  Unprecedented in human history, this expropriation of homes and lands, churches and monasteries, schools and colleges, libraries and hospitals, properties and infrastructures constitute to this day a murder, not only of a people but also of a civilization, a culture, and a time-earned way of life." This is where the debate about calling it genocide or not becomes absurd, trivial, and tertiary".

It is high time that we uniquely term our GREAT ARMENIAN DISPOSSESSION of lives, property, culture. It is time we disassociated the Armenian experience from the narrow definition of genocide, which is defined as “a crime committed with the INTENT TO DESTROY a national, ethnic, racial or religious group, IN WHOLE OR IN PART.”  Tell me, which warring party can be absolved from not intending to destroy the national, racial, or religious group, it is fighting, if not in whole, but in part? Do not Russians INTEND to wipe out of Ukrainians, if not in whole but in part? 

Let us face it, the term genocide has lost the significance we Armenians attribute to the word. Wikipedia has a long list of genocides. Nowadays we also condemn Azeris atrocities and their intention for ethnically cleansing Artsakh of its native Armenians as intending to commit 2^nd Armenian genocide. An Armenian genocide scholar claimed that, in fact it is the 3^rd Armenian genocide. Did not Sultan Abdul Hamid intend to destroy, if not in whole but in part, the Armenians? Wikipedia lists what we called as Hamidian massacres, in its list of genocides.

Let me repeat. The term genocide has lost the significance we Armenians attribute to the G word. 

It is time that we introduce the term MEDS YEGHERN (tHE GREAt Crime) in the English lexicon to uniquely define and term the Armenian experience, as Jews have succeeded in doing the same with the word Holocaust in capital letter. It will be impossible for us to capitalize on a synonym for holocaust, such as Carnage, Catastrophe, Devastation, Extermination, Mass-Murder etc. and  even the capitalized THE GREAT CRIME to uniquely define and conceptualize our tragic experience.

The U.S. presidents have already familiarized the term Meds Yeghern to the world. Inadvertently they have paved the road for us. All we have to do is introduce the term in the language and with time educate the world and also change our mindset.  American English is a very inclusive language. It has accepted Kwanzaa among many others, as bona fide American term. Any American who claims does not know what Kwanzaa means, parlays ignorance or insensately if not outright racial indifference if not bias.

I firmly believe that what happened to us in the 1915-time frame cannot be defined by U.N.’s narrow definition of genocide any longer. Genocide perception has radically changed. The word has been gutted. It has been disemboweled.

What happened to us was indeed the GREAT ARMENIAN DISPOSSESSION, of lives, property, honor, and “time-earned way of life”. 

What happened to us was a crime that is unprecedented in scope and magnitude and has no parallel. 

What happened to us was MEDS YEGHERN, the GREAT CRIME. And yes, it was the GREAT ARMENIAN DISPOSSESSION of lives, of property, and of "a civilization, a culture, and a time-earned way of life."

Edited on April 21, 2023

 

Lucy Deukmejian: Contemplation of a Repatriate

 Lucy Deukmejian: Contemplation of a Repatriate. 

The attached is my translation of an article Lucy Deukmejian - Լիւսի Տէօքմէճեան - posted in keghart.com this week, titled: ‘Վարդանանց նահատակաց անժամանցելի պատգամը» (The Enduring Message of Vardanants Martyrdom), linked below. But I opted to title the translation as “A Contemplation of a Repatriate.”  Vahe H. Apelian

Courtesy ARF Archives 

“Armenians living in the diaspora including I,  as a Lebanese Armenian until two and a half years ago when we repatriated as a family in September 2020,  celebrated the heroic Vardanants battle every year with great pomp. It is true that it is not a state or an official holiday in Lebanon, but we have the freedom to turn it into a holiday from community point of view, with all our institutions: church, school, commercial and non-commercial closed, as we have made it a non-working day for commemorating the battle of Vardanants.

In history, the battle of Avarayr, which took place on May 26, 451, is celebrated the Thursday before the Poon Paregentan feast, to glorify the bravery of the Vardan soldiers, who meaningfully sacrified themselves. One thousand, five hundred and seventy-two (1572) years later, we observe it to convey the battle’s messages to us. But now that I already live in Yerevan, when I asked my native Armenian colleague on Vardanant's Day, as noted on the Diaspora calendar, if she knew that today was Vardanant's Day. She said “no, do you?” I said, “yes, it's today." Jokingly, she said, "Is Vardan aware?"

But when I asked another native Armenian friend if she knew the message the Vardanants' holiday conveys to them. She said: "Yes, I always remind my children of meaningful death... as well as the oath to defend the Fatherland and to preserve it until the last drop of blood."

I asked myself. Why are the native Armenians living in Armenia accused of "disrespecting" the Vardanants holiday by not celebrating it in any official capacity? It didn't take long for me to find the answer. How would an Armenian living in Armenia celebrate the defeat of the many battles in our history? Should the Armenian living in Armenia celebrate Vardanants for what it stood for? Or, as a moral victory? 

Preseserving our language and faith, have been passed down to us from generation to generation in the Diaspora and is symbolized as the message of the Vardanats War. But who said that the language and the faith are not preserved in the Fatherland? Or let's ask in another way. Who said that the Armenians in Armenia are indifferent? It is true that there are such Armenians living in the Fatherland, but they are far from the threat of assimilation and far from the danger of giving up on their Armenian language and faith. In fact, it is the Armenian living in the Diaspora who must strive to keep the mother tongue and faith intact because of the influence of foreign languages, foreign customs, and foreign faiths and sects. Although many times we do not want to admit it out loud that the diaspora is temporary.  Sooner or later everyone in the Diaspora will be assimilated, no matter how hard we try to endure and persevere.

Should the Armenians in Armenia celebrate Vardanants War as a national holiday? Why are the statues of Vardan Mamikonian erected in the heart of Yerevan and Kyumri, along with the statues of other national heroes? Being a nationalistic is not just a word, it is not just observing a holiday that has become a tradition. Nationalism is education. In the Diaspora, every effort is made to preserve that education. The Armenians living in Armenia are also brought up with that awareness. The Armenian in Armenia knows well the history, culture and traditions of his or her nation. Another proof of this are the billboards on the streets and on the walls of buildings in Armenia, which carry brief, sometimes bilingual, information about prominent Armenian spiritual, national, literary and cultural personalities, military personnel, and about churches and monastic complexes. They are not only meant to introduce our greatness and historical riches to foreigners, but also are reminders for Armenians that they should always keep them alive in their memory.

Vardan Mamikonyan Statue in Armenia

Should Vardanats be celebrated “For the fatherland, for the faith” battle cry?  Who has waged and is still waging battles of this nature against visible and invisible enemies more than the native Armenians? Witness the Artsakh wars. The people left everything and went to the boarder with the possibility of never returning. But they went because they have to go. They go because the Fatherland calls them, because the priority is the safety of the Fatherland, because they must protect their "home” They go because the Fatherland is above everything else. In the end, they go because patriotism dictates ownership of the Fatherland which is manifested by living up to that ownership. They go because protecting the Fatherland and standing up for it should not be expected from a foreigner who, at best, will only serve their own inteinterests.

Actually, Armenians living in Armenia, although not in an idealized way and with some shortcomings; but by thinking, speaking, reading and writing in Armenian, confessing the doctrine of the Armenian Church, preserving Armenian cultural values ​​and shedding blood for the safety of the Fatherland, have implements the message of Vardanants. It is true that Diaspora Armenians are proud of those messages and remember them hundreds of years later, but the essential thing is to demonstrate that patriotims and put it into practice.

Who assumes ownership of the Fatherland today? Is it the Armenian sitting far from his homeland where he has laid its foundation and strives to strengthen it further, claims that "there is no future in Armenia?"  Is it the Armenian who is looking for a prosperous and peaceful life far from his homeland, who says "in the future, when I retire, I will come and live peacefully in Armenia with my accumulated money"?  Or is it the Armenian who criticizes his homeland and at every crisis and at every opportunity gives a piece of his mind in abundance? Is it a secret that Armenia needs the potential of the Diaspora now. Its strong arms and creative minds of young people?

"I am the grandson of the brave Vardan who liberated Armenia" ( a line from a poem recited mostly by children)  should not be a cliché. Talk is meaningless without action. Each of us can "liberate Armenia" in the way we can, not just by fighting over the boarder. There are many challenges and our homeland does not only wage military struggle. Are there not Diaspora Armenians who, with their talent, knowledge and ability, can "liberate Armenia" and make it a "strong, prosperous, law-abiding country, from which no one wants to leave", as Berj Zeytuntsian would say?  Will Armenian talent, experience, ability always be enjoyed by foreigners? And then shamelessly say that "Armenia is not a developed country". OK, let's develop this country... OUR COUNTRY. How beautifully and wisely my repatriated friend expressed it when she said: "Let my children study so that with their profession they can better serve Armenia in the future.”

Serving Armenia is not only in words. It is not only by singing revolutionary songs with raised fists (many times in a drunken state). It is not just by saying "we will be going sooner or later" and in the best of circumstances end up going to Armenia for vacation. It is not only by uttering hostile and obscene words against Turks. It is n not only by noting Vardanants' Day and April 24 (dates outside of which we are disunited and divided).

Yes, in the Fatherland or in the Diaspora, we should make it our supreme goal to remain Armenian at all costs and to serve the Fatherland, but also to believe that we are the master of our homeland and its destiny and that ARMENIA is the only home of the Armenian nation. Armenia is our legal refuge and the guarantee of our longevity.

Link: https://keghart.org/deukmejian-vartanants/

 

Lebanon's Currency Depreciates Further, Heading to Turmoil

Attached is my translation of a commentary that was posted in Aztag Daily today, March 15, 2023. The original is copied and pasted below.. Vahe H. Apelian

 

Yesterday morning, the Lebanese woke up with a disheartening news. The market exchange rate for the American dollar had reached 100,000 Lebanese Liras. In other words, the Lebanese currency was further devalued, depressing the citizen even more.

In the morning hours, angry citizens blocked the road in front of Mar Mikhael Church, protesting against the increase in the cost of living due to the rise in the exchange rate of the US dollar. In the afternoon, the transpiration bus drivers and the truck drivers blocked the coastal road of Sidon.  One probably wonders. Where are the citizens who for months gathered in Beirut city center and blocked the streets and kept the highways closed by burning car tires?

The citizens are silenced in their suffering, and continue to be suffocated, tormented but endure all this without raising a voice of protest having resigned, in worst case, to a bad ending, such as dying of a stroke, or committing suicide; and in the best case, continuing their existence as breathing beings, because they no longer live.

Citizens' rights in Lebanon are in a tragic situation. More than 80 percent of the Lebanese are impoverished. It should also be noted that the rate of suicides in the country has increased and turned into a suicide every other day, and a suicide attempt every 6 hours.

The only way the lending institutions have realized they can have their complaints against the judicial heard, is by going on an indefinite strike. Yesterday they closed the doors of their institutions as they had announced earlier. 

This segment, which is also responsible for denying the money they owe to the citizens, makes arbitrary decisions and opens or closes its doors according to its whim, without thinking that the citizens, who still have a meager salary in Lebanese Liras, need to resort to their savings to try to meet their basic nutritional needs.  What are they to do if the banks are closed?

 But yesterday afternoon, the Union of the Bankers announced that it will rescind its decision of the open strike and will be open for business starting Monday, March 20, 2023. They noted that that the situation is untenable and the state must assume its responsibility for finding a comprehensive solution.

However, whether the banks are open or closed will not solve the issues, as long as the country is in political turmoil.

Hopeful signs seem to appear for the presidential election. But the issues that have engulfed the country persist, and are getting entrenched further making clear to everyone that uncertainty prevails.

*****

Լիբանանեան Դրամանիշը Աւելի Եւս Կ՛արժեզրկուի` Ուղղուելով Դէպի Խայտառակութիւն

Մարտ 15, 2023  | Գլխաւոր լուրեր, Լիբանանեան

 

Երէկ առաւօտեան լիբանանցիները արթնցան բոթով մը. սեւ շուկային մէջ ամերիկեան տոլարին փոխարժէքը հասած էր 100.000 լ. ոսկիի: Այլ խօսքով` լիբանանեան դրամանիշը աւելի եւս արժեզրկուած էր, աւելի եւս ընկճելով քաղաքացին:

Առաւօտեան ժամերուն, ցասկոտ քաղաքացիներ Շիյյահի Մար Մխայէլ եկեղեցիին դիմաց ճամբան փակեցին` բողոքելով ամերիկեան տոլարի փոխարժէքին արձանագրած բարձրացումին եւ սղաճին դէմ, իսկ կէսօրին փոխադրատարներու եւ բեռնատարներու վարորդները Սայտայի ծովային ճամբան փակեցին նոյն պատճառով:

Հոս հաւանաբար պէտք է զարմանք արտայայտել, թէ ո՞ւր են 6 տոլարի համար փողոցները փակող քաղաքացիները, որոնք ամիսներ շարունակ ողողեցին Կեդրոնական Պէյրութի հրապարակները, եւ երկրին տարբեր նահանգները իրարու կապող մայրուղիներն ու միջազգային մայրուղիները փակ պահեցին հրկիզուող անիւներով:

Իր տառապանքին մէջ լուռ տնքացող քաղաքացին կը շարունակէ առանձինն խեղդուիլ, տանջուիլ ու առանց բողոքի ձայն բարձրացնելու տոկալ այս բոլորին` յոռեգոյն պարագային ունենալով վատ աւարտ մը` ինչպէս` կաթուածահար ըլլալով մահանալ, կամ անձնասպանութիւն գործել, իսկ լաւագոյն պարագային` իբրեւ շնչող էակներ շարունակել իրենց կեանքը, որովհետեւ անոնք չեն ապրիր:

Լիբանանի մէջ քաղաքացիներու իրաւունքները ողբերգական իրավիճակի մատնուած են: Լիբանանցիներուն աւելի քան 80 առ հարիւրը աղքատացած են:

Նշենք նաեւ, որ երկրին մէջ անձնասպանութիւն գործողներուն համեմատութիւնը իր կարգին բարձրացած է եւ վերածուած 2 օրը անգամ մը մէկ անձնասպանութեան պարագայի, իսկ իւրաքանչիւր 6 ժամը անգամ մը` անձնասպանական փորձ մը կատարելու պարագայի:

Միւս կողմէ, դատական մարզին նկատմամբ իրենց բողոքը արտայայտելու միակ միջոցը գտած դրամատուները երէկ փակեցին իրենց դռները` սկսելով բաց գործադուլ մը, ինչպէս նախապէս յայտարարած էին:

Այս մարզը, որ նաեւ պատասխանատու է քաղաքացիներուն ունեցած գումարներուն վերացման, ինքնագլուխ որոշումներ կու տայ, եւ իր քմահաճոյքին համաձայն իր դռները կը բանայ կամ կը փակէ, առանց մտածելու, որ դրամատան մէջ տակաւին քիչ մը աշխատավարձ ունեցող քաղաքացին, որ պիտի փորձէ իր սննդեղէնի տարրական կարիքները հոգալ, ի՛նչ կ՛ընէ, երբ դրամատուները փակ են:

Բայց եւ այնպէս երէկ կէսօրէ ետք Դրամատուներու միութիւնը յայտնեց, որ կ՛ուղղուի երկուշաբթի, 20 մարտ 2023-էն սկսեալ իր յայտարարած բաց գործադուլի որոշումը բեկանելու` հաստատելով, որ կացութիւնը վտանգաւոր դարձած է, եւ պետութիւնը պէտք է իր պատասխանատուութիւնը ստանձնէ` ամբողջական լուծումներու յանգելու առումով:

Ընդհանուր պատկերին մէջ սակայն, դրամատուներուն բաց կամ փակ ըլլալը պիտի չկարենայ հարցեր լուծել, այնքան ատեն որ երկրին քաղաքական տագնապը կը յամենայ:

Այս շրջագիծին մէջ նախագահական ընտրութեան առումով թերեւս յոյսի նշոյլներ սկսած են երեւիլ, սակայն երկիրը յուզող տագնապները կը գոյատեւեն եւ աւելի եւս կ՛ամրապնդեն իրենց դիրքերը` բոլորին համար յստակ դարձնելով, թէ անոնց լուծման առումով անորոշութիւնն է տիրականը:

 

 

 

Lebanon’s Quagmire: it’s the fault of the Italians!

Vahe H. Apelian

The determination of the Lebanese currency rate is a mystery. 

On February 1, Reuters reported the following: “BEIRUT, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Lebanon devalued its official exchange rate for the first time in 25 years on Wednesday, weakening it by 90% but still leaving the local currency well below its market value. The pound has crashed since a financial meltdown in 2019 after decades of corruption, profligate spending and mismanagement by the ruling elite in Lebanon which has left the crisis to fester despite soaring poverty. The central bank confirmed the new official rate of 15,000 pounds per dollar, scrapping the rate of 1,507.5 pounds at which the currency was pegged for decades before the collapse.”

But that official exchange rate pales in comparison to what the market bears and no one in Lebanon seems to care what the official exchange rate is, for that very reason. Also, for the fact that the banks have put a cap on the amount of dollar a depositor may withdraw from savings, should the person have a savings account. But all claim the allowance of withdrawing their own money is not enough to cover their ongoing needs given the state of the economy and hyperinflation.

 On February 11, 2023, the exchange rate on the market was 66,300 LL for a green buck. Today the exchange rate is 92,300 LL for a $. When I ask my friends in Lebanon who sets that exchange rate and titrates to a fraction such as 93,200 LL? They tell me nobody seems to know. They tell me that they read the rate posted in the internet or become aware of it on the market, and realize that their purchasing power has eroded further and that their daily necessities will be even more expensive. This hyperinflation appears to have no end in sight.

Meguerditch Hagop Bouldoukian is an internationally acclaimed economist and the author of many books. He was the founding Dean of the Business and Economics Department at Haigazian University, former Deputy Governor at Banque du Liban - The Central Bank of Lebanon and has held other important positions in the finance world. A few days ago, he noted the following on his Facebook page: 

“If the current indecent leaders of the Lebanese state (for more than 30 years) leave the arena, optimism can be created among the public, which brings forth confidence, which is what everyone needs. The value of the paper currency devalued from 12,000 to 91,500 per $, after Najib Mikadi became the prime minister.” Najib Mikadi is a billionaire. He was elected as the prime minister on September 10, 2021, thirteen months after the resignation of the previous prime minister. It is not hard to visualize the implication on the people’s lives the devaluation of the Lebanese currency from 12, 000 LL to 91, 500 had during the past 18 months. 

Lebanese are known for their resiliency and for their pungent humor in face of adversity. My friends Krikor Kradjian, let me know yesterday that the Lebanese are sarcastically faulting the Italians for their anguish  - حق على الايطاليان" ! - "sparing" their illustrious leaders !

Krikor emailed me the following:

“Lebanon is the country where civilizations, armies, conquerors and tyrants have come and gone and left their mark.

The Lebanese have this saying: "The fault is with the Italians".

In order to impose its presence in the Mediterranean Sea and, in particular, to keep the Suez Canal open, the command of the Italian Navy decided to destroy the battleships and maritime centers belonging to the Ottoman naval forces stationed along the coast of Beirut.

On February 24, 1912, two Italian warships attacked and sank the warships of the Ottoman Navy. The city of Beirut also received its share of bombing. Sixty-six (66) citizens were killed and hundreds were injured. The attack by the Italians was unexpected and a surprise for the citizens of Beirut, who were leading a peaceful life.

Thereon, whatever calamity or adversity happened, the Lebanese attribute it to the Italians, even nowadays, they repeat the claim (dismissively of course):

"Italians are the culprits. !" 

 

 

 

A Significant if not also a Rare Gift

Vahe H. Apelian

 Last year Harout Aprahamian gifted me a booklet type package titled “The Official 1980 United States Olympic Committee Proofcard Collection”. Marilyn, Harout’s wife, presented it to me after a church service. It’s a collection of stamps issued on the occasion of 1980 Olympics. I was very appreciative that Harout had thought of me when he came across this booklet and purchased it for gifting it to me. But I had not realized the historical significance of the collection until very recently.

The package is a collection of the first day covers of the stamps the United States Postal Service (USPS) issued celebrating the 1980 Olympic Games. Each stamp has the first day of issue and the issuance city postmarked, celebrating a sporting event of the Olympics. They are as follows:

September 5, 1979 in OLYMPIA, WA celebrating, DECATHOLON

September 28, 1979 in LOS ANGELES, CA, celebrating TRACK

September 28, 1979 in LOS ANGELES, CA, celebrating SWIMMING

September 28, 1979 in LOS ANGELES, CA, celebrating CREW ROVING

September 28, 1979 in LOS ANGELES, CA, celebrating THE EQUESTRIAN EVENTS

September 28, 1979 in LOS ANGELES, CA, celebrating ARCHERY

November 1, 1979 in COLORADO SPRINGS, CA, celebrating HIGH JUMP

February 1, 1980 in LAKE PLACE, NY, celebrating SPEED SKATING

February 1, 1980 in LAKE PLACE, NY, celebrating SLALOM SKIING

February 1, 1980 in LAKE PLACE, NY, celebrating SKI JUMPING

February 1, 1980 in LAKE PLACE, NY, celebrating HOCKEY

February 1, 1980 in LAKE PLACE, NY, celebrating BOBSLEDDING

The package also contains a few pages long booklet titled “The United States Olympic Committee presents a History of the Olympic”, and each U.S. Olympic Committee Official card depicts the story of the game along with the first day issue postmarked stamp.

I unearthed the following information about the 1980 Olympic. 

The summer Olympics took place in Moscow between July 19 to August 3, 1980. The chairman of the Soviet Socialist Central Committee Leonid Brezhnev opened the games which took place in the Grand Arena of the Central Lenin Stadium. I cite the names to make a point of the change in history during the past five decades.

The 1980 Winter Olympics games were held before, from February 13 to 24, 1980, in Lake Placid, New York. During the games Olympic history was made when the U.S. hockey team beat the Soviet hockey team. I quote: “U.S. hockey team beats the Soviets in the "Miracle on Ice" In one of the most dramatic upsets in Olympic history, on February 22, 1980, the underdog U.S. hockey team, made up of college players, defeats the four-time defending gold-medal winning Soviet team.”

These stamps are not significant because of the “Miracle on Ice”, but for what transpired afterwards. The U.S. boycotted the upcoming summer games in Moscow. The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan took place on December 24, 1979.   On February 20, 1980, President Carter demanded that the Soviet Union withdraw its troop from Afghanistan. But the Soviet Union made clear that it had no intention of removing its troop. Consequently, on March 2, 1980, I quote: “President Jimmy Carter informed some 160 U.S. athletes and coaches that the United States would boycott the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow in response to the December 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. It marked the first and only time the United States boycotted the Olympics.”

From philatelic point of view, the more significant event is what transpired afterwards. A few days after President Carter’s announced boycotting the 1980 Summer Olympic Games, the United States Postal Service removed from circulation the stamps it had issued a few months earlier celebrating the 1980 Olympics. I quote: “On March 11, 1980, the USPS removed all the stamps it had issued for the upcoming Summer Olympics in Moscow from sale as part of an American boycott of the games. According the USPS, this was the first time they removed stamps from sale for political reasons since the Civil War.” (see the link below).

Harout's gift to me is the collection of the first day covers of those very stamps that the USPS printed and then removed from circulation, making the first day cover collection of these stamps significant if not also rare.

Olympics Stamps Removed from Sale: https://info.mysticstamp.com/olympic-stamps-removed-from-sale_tdih/?fbclid=IwAR19cJR-QhX8rpGIuIsTqQsGhCCxZ4u4p8g94-DAvCtCJsI18ZGixBNbn84