Throughout September, the Eastern Diocese has been involved in several ecumenical gatherings in New York City. Diocesan Vicar Fr. Simeon Odabashian has represented Primate Fr. Mesrop Parsamyan, as the latter continues the rehabilitation process from injuries he sustained in an auto accident last July.
On September 8, Fr. Odabashian was joined by St. Vartan Cathedral Vicar Fr. Davit Karamyan (both pictured above) for a prayer service held at the Episcopal Cathedral of St. John the Divine. The service launched a new ecumenical effort called “Community at the Crossing,” in which young people from across the U.S. and across Christian traditions elect to spend a year in godly study, prayer, and service to the poor of New York.
Video and written messages came from Presiding Episcopal Bishop Michael Curry, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, Roman Catholic Pope Francis, and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople. Episcopal Bishop Andrew Dietsche concluded the service with a stirring homily.
On the evening of September 19, Fr. Odabashian attended the Appeal of Conscience Foundation’s 2022 Annual Awards Dinner, at the Pierre Hotel in New York. This year’s honorees included Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, chairman of L’Oreal Cosmetics Jean-Paul Agon, and founder of Kraft Foods Robert Kraft.
Leading the event was Rabbi Arthur Schneier, founder of the Appeal of Conscience Foundation, who has had a warm relationship with the Eastern Diocese since the time of the late Primate Archbishop Torkom Manoogian. In his capacity as vice president of the foundation Board of Trustees, Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, former Primate and current Pontifical Legate of Western Europe, was in attendance on September 19 on the dais.