Building Momentum
Building a church is building a community. Building a strong community is building a country. Building our future and building our tomorrows is building vision.
We are builders. No one can build if there is no creativity which brings us closer to God. We are creators. We create new history, new humanity and a new world.
The dream of Arizona’s community of the last fifty years has become a reality today.
Look at how big our dream has grown from the ground up. The hospitable blue skies of Arizona welcome the Armenian Church dome rising like Mt. Ararat reaching for the heavens. We have reached the finish line and now it is the time to live our dream.
God’s guiding hands has accomplished what was just a dream. For our creative nation, the finish line is another new beginning. This new beginning has started with our new surroundings of the sanctuary known as St. Apkar Armenian Church. Let us continue the journey united around St. Apkar Armenian Church for generations to come.
I want to reveal a secret about the legend of St. Apkar the King; it is true. It will remain true as long as we believe it. King Apkar was one of Jesus Christ’s special saints. He wrote a letter inviting our Lord to Edessa at that time during the 1st century as many Armenians lived in the city. The King was ill and had asked for our Lord’s aid. Jesus replied and sent one of his apostles. Right after Jesus’ assumption, St. Thaddeus arrived in Edessa with the cloth of our Lord’s portrait. The King was miraculously cured and converted to Christianity. He was baptized and became the first church builder in the world. After his death, he became a saint who was known as the saint of healing.
You might think this is just a legend. It is not just a legend. It is happening now as we are continuing to build on the legend.
“Blessed are those who build churches.”
Be blessed.
Rev. Fr. Zacharia Saribekyan
