Reflections by Fr. Nareg Terterian

  … for the least among all of you is the greatest. Jesus predicts his passion and crucifixion. His disciples could not perceive it and fear prevents them from asking Jesus any questions. To deflect the conversation they start arguing as to which one of them was the greatest. The disciples haven’t yet learned the lesson of reversal expressed in the Magnificat (1:46-55) and the beatitudes (6:20-49). Jesus corrects them with an illustration, as he places a child next to him. The one who receives such lowly and weak members of the society receives Jesus and the Father who sent Him. Moreover, becoming the least through service of others is the true indicator of who is greatest.  Becoming the least makes us  rely not on our own resources but it’s a deep spiritual insight of our ultimate dependency on God. Only when we recognize this dependency we can open ourselves to hear the call of God.

A year ago around this time, we arrived early Sunday morning to Armenia and soon after my son Hovsep and I attended Badarak at Saint Gregory The Illuminator Cathedral in Yerevan. As soon as we got out of the church we saw the festivities of celebrating Vartavar on the streets of the Armenian capital. Water splashes everywhere. Such a joyous day with a tradition that comes to us from the pre-Christian era of Armenia honoring the goddess Asdghig , some say while others claim that this tradition goes further back to the days of Noah and a remembrance of the flood. It is a beautiful tradition which unfortunately I won’t be able to celebrate this year in Armenia due to the pandemic. But what makes me sadder is that our country Armenia is under attack by the Azeris with the support of Turkey. We stand in solidarity with our soldiers and armed forces and we pray for the safety of our Armenian brothers and sister in the Republic of Armenia and Artsakh. This Sunday the Armenian Church

In this essay, I will be sharing a few pastoral and psychoanalytic perspectives on the idea of manhood. As I focus on different events from the life of the prophet Moses, I will explore ideas that can inspire us to reconnect with some of the archetypes of the masculine energy that seems to be long-forgotten. Descent Descent or katabasis is a journey downwards. You may need to descend into hardship, frustration, or even hell, to become a hero. Moses was a prince in Pharaoh’s palace who witnessed injustice done to his kinsfolk by an Egyptian. Moses killed the Egyptian and fled to the Land of Midian. Moses became a fugitive, and in the midst of his katabasis, he encountered God in the burning bush. Moses might have never experienced God if he had stayed in Pharaoh’s palace. We live in a culture that rejects and denies suffering because we are afraid. We prolong the process of embracing adulthood. We start a college program and then change the major and delay graduation. We replace our chi

The 2 readings on today’s liturgical calendar are deeply interconnected.   In his 2nd letter to Timothy, St. Paul describes our human condition through the analogy of household articles; some made with gold and silver and others made with wood and clay. Similarly, each one of us has parts of our character that we are proud of and others that we are ashamed of. We may have some habits that reflect our maturity and other habits that expose our inner conflicts and struggles. St. Paul exhorts his disciple Timothy and all Christians to engage in the act of self-cleansing to become “instruments for special purposes”. Self-cleansing to St. Paul consists of fleeing the evil desires of youth and pursuing righteousness, faith, love, and peace. Not engaging in foolish and stupid arguments and quarrels and n ot being resentful.  In other words, self-discipline is the first step towards change. Self-transformation happens when we identify the bad clusters of our being and repl

Some people cling to ways of understanding their faith learned in their childhood. They embrace a childhood notion of a God who will never let anything bad happen and when tragedies strike they abandon God. In today's reading, we encounter the words of Christ that tell about persecutions, imprisonment, trials, and death. We are familiar with the accounts of persecution from the early church. In many countries today, people are being displaced, arrested, tortured, and even executed because of their faith in Jesus. For many of us, however, persecution is a far-off reality. Yet God never promises to give his followers a life that is free from problems. What God promises is that we will not face those persecutions alone. Jesus who experienced the worst kind of suffering and death will be right by our side. Although persecution and death may come, God is in control, and the ultimate outcome will be the eternal victory. "Not a hair of your head will perish" This cannot re

Accompanying him were . . . many others. (Luke 8:1, 3) Jesus was such a mesmerizing preacher and powerful healer that he could have had a very effective ministry on his own. He was a miracle worker who could command evil spirits, the wind, and the waves. He could call down food, water, or fire from heaven. He didn’t need anyone else’s help. So why did he choose to associate with such an assorted group of people as his disciples? Maybe their diversity can give us a clue. Remember, these were men and women, craftsmen and bureaucrats, educated and illiterate. The only thing they had in common was that they said yes to Jesus. Jesus didn’t expect all his disciples to be the same. He enjoyed each one of them for their own unique quirks. He encouraged the gifts he saw in each of them. One was good at fishing and providing dinner. Another scouted out places to stay. Still another provided financial help and hospitality. He gladly accepted whatever resources they brought, whatever