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ANKARA: Armenian patriarchate determined to hold Sept 19 service at

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  • ANKARA: Armenian patriarchate determined to hold Sept 19 service at

    ARMENIAN PATRIARCHATE DETERMINED TO HOLD SEPT 19 SERVICE AT SURP HAC

    Hurriyet Daily News
    http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=patriarchate-determined-to-hold-the-service-at-surp-hac-on-sep.19-2010-09-08
    Sept 8 2010
    Turkey

    The Armenian Patriarchate of Istanbul assembly was gathered under
    the chairmanship of Aram AteÅ~_yan.

    The Armenian Patriarchate of Istanbul has put an end to uncertainty
    on whether the divine liturgy will be held Sept. 19 at the Surp Hac
    (Holy Cross) Church on Van's Akdamar Island.

    The patriarchate confirmed Monday that the service will be held as
    planned, despite the fact that a cross may not grace the church's dome,
    as had been initially promised.

    "The [patriarchate's] spiritual assembly decided that the organization
    [of the service] will be held as initially planned, without undergoing
    any changes," the patriarchate said in a written statement Monday
    after the assembly was gathered under the chairmanship of Archbishop
    Aram AteÅ~_yan, according to the Anatolia news agency.

    The divine liturgy, which is intended to be held annually, will be
    held for the first time since 1915 at the church in eastern Turkey.

    The building currently serves as a museum.

    The debate on whether the service would be held as planned or called
    off or postponed to a later date arose after the Mother See of Holy
    Etchmiadzin, the headquarters of the Armenian Apostolic Church,
    rejected the invitation to attend after learning that no cross
    had been affixed to the top of Surp Hac ahead of the service. The
    Istanbul Patriarchate said the ceremony would be held despite the
    Etchmiadzin's decision.

    Thirty nongovernmental organizations criticized the controversy
    regarding the "cross issue" in a joint statement, according to a
    report Tuesday by daily Radikal.

    The Surp Hac Church in the eastern province of Van became a subject of
    debate in Armenia and among members of the Armenian diaspora after it
    was opened as a museum and no cross was placed on its dome. Turkish
    and Armenian experts restored the church in 2007 at the initiative
    of Atilla Koc, the culture minister at that time. The church was then
    opened as a museum.




    From: A. Papazian
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