The spirit of love was in the air on the evening of Thursday, February 13, as St. Vartan Cathedral held a “Blessing of Newlyweds” ceremony as part of its observance of the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord to the Temple, or Dyarnuntarach. Diocesan Primate Bishop Mesrop Parsamyan led the service, assisted by Cathedral Vicar Fr. Davit Karamyan.
During the short prayer service that began the evening, Bishop Mesrop recalled the Biblical roots of the sacrament of matrimony, from the story of the first human couple in Genesis 2:24. “In the beginning, the Creator made them Male and Female and said, ‘The man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’ Therefore, what God has joined together, let no one separate,” he said.
As the service drew to a close, the clergy and attending couples went outside to the cathedral plaza, where a small blaze was ignited in the center of the cathedral square, with wisps and embers carried afar by a cooling breeze. As the blessings were confirmed, one by one the couples linked hands and ran towards the fire, jumping the flames with a single leap, and solidifying their relationship under God’s guidance and protection.
The Armenian Church has an age-old custom of lighting bonfires on the evening prior to Presentation Day. In Armenia, hardy souls, young couples, and families brave the frigid February night by circling around large fires. For the past few years, churchgoers in New York have experienced their own version of the traditional bonfire, on the plaza of St. Vartan Cathedral.
You can learn more about this Dyarnuntarach tradition in a video from the Bread & Salt series: “Over the Fire.”
After this year’s bonfire ceremony, guests went to the Diocesan Center’s Haik and Alice Kavookjian Auditorium, where a candle-lit dinner awaited the now-blessed newlyweds. Red wine, soft music, and an assortment of Armenian foods were available for the guests to enjoy as they conversed with one another. Bouquets of fresh roses completed the romantic atmosphere.
View a gallery of Presentation Eve photos by clicking here.
Presentation Day Badarak
As Friday, February 14 dawned, the sun shone through the clouds for the first time in days, as if to warmly greet Presentation Day itself. Arriving 40 days after the celebration of Jesus’ birth on Armenian Christmas (January 6), the Feast of the Presentation recalls the day Christ was first brought to the House of God, the Temple of Jerusalem, by Joseph and Mary.
At St. Vartan Cathedral, Fr. Simeon Odabashian celebrated the Presentation Day Divine Liturgy, with the Primate Bishop Mesrop presiding.
The smell of incense permeated the sanctuary, as the St. Vartan Cathedral Choir sang the sacred music, lending an otherworldly quality to the service.
A luncheon followed in Guild Hall of the Diocesan Center. Celebratory toasts were given for the occasion and for various staff members of the Diocese, including one for Dr. Jesse Arlen of the Zohrab Information Center, who was marking his anniversary as a deacon of the church, having been ordained to the diaconate on Presentation Day one year ago.
To view photos of the cathedral’s Presentation Day service, click here.
By John Cermak-O’Brien
Photo above by Harout Barsoumian, Bars Images.