January 2012
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New Beginnings
Today marks the beginning of a new year, and the beginning of a new journey in my family’s life. I have been assigned as the pastor of St. John Armenian Church, and will take up my duties as soon as we are able to relocate ourselves to the City by the Bay.
For the past two and a half years you may have followed our experiences in Armenia on this blog, flickr, twitter, or Facebook, etc…,...
December 2011
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October 2011
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I Confess With Faith… and So Can You
Last Saturday was the feast day of St. Nersess Shnorhali, a genius of the Armenian Church, who authored many of the hymns and prayers which continue to be said in our sanctuaries throughout the world.
As part of my personal regime, I’ve committed to praying his seminal work, Հաւատով խոստովանիմ or “I Confess with Faith”, once a day. Toward that goal I’ve formatted the text...
September 2011
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“While my care was employed in guarding against one fault, I was often surprised...”
– Benjamin Franklin on trying to achieve “moral perfection”
July 2011
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Armenian Apostolic Church Uses Modern Information... →
I was interviewed by Radio Free Liberty regarding my involvement with a youth organization started by the deacons of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, who have heavily used Facebook as a tool to reach out to the young people of Armenia. The interview was given just prior to my giving a presentation on Ecology and the Church to a “Manana” (meaning Mana) group at St. Mary Church in the...
June 2011
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“Sainthood emerges when you can listen to someone’s tale of woe and not...”
– Andrew V. Mason
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“The glory of God is a human being fully alive; and to be alive consists in...”
– Saint Irenaeus
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Marrying Mexican and Armenian cuisine →
My Aunt Mary’s yalanchi (stuffed grape leaves)
If you’ll permit me to boast, this is a pretty great article in the Los Angeles Times about the confluence of my family’s culture with that of the author’s, Lorenza Munoz’s, family.
The author of this article is the wife of my Grandfather’s brother’s son. I can truly attest to the fact that it has been a...
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A Clockwork Miracle →
The excellent radio show, RadioLab, presents the fascinating story of how a 400 year old robotic monk came into existence. While its prayers may not have any power, it certainly had the ability to captivate and amaze those who gazed upon it in 17th century.
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“Not to share our own wealth with the poor is theft from the poor and deprivation...”
– St. John Chrysostom
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Homegrown Efforts
Despite itself, Armenia can be a surprising place. It tempts those expats who live here into a sense of ambivalence, because, as a watched pot never boils, we wait with anticipation for things to develop as we expect or hope them to, and sink into cynicism when they don’t. However, its the progress that occurs organically and not by will of outsiders with plans, which sends the cynic in to...
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Unconferencing for a Brighter Tomorrow
Do you like computers? Do you like the Internet? People who, like me, would not only say yes to these questions, but also not even quite understand why someone wouldn’t, fall under a oft-used title these days, geek. I was never a big fan of the term geek, because it certainly wasn’t something I would have wanted to have been called as a child, but its been reappropriated as of late,...
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May 2011
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“All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But...”
– Ira Glass (via nefffy)
April 2011
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Localizing Data Models in MongoMapper
One of my longterm goals for The Oratsouyts Online was to have the content available in at least both English and Armenian. I had developed the site using insanely cool NoSQL technology called Mongo because of its speed and flexibility. The flexibilty was key because I hadn’t worked out the whole data model when I started the project, and I knew it would grow and change in the future.
I...
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March 2011
7 posts
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“We may loose hope for ourselves, but we don’t have the right to loose...”
– Bp. Sahak Mashalian, 2010
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“We ought at all times to wait for the enlightenment that comes from above before...”
– Of “Spiritual Knowledge”, St. Diadochos of Photiki
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Earthquakes, Tsunamis, and God
There are times when the faith of the believer is truly challenged. This is a natural part of the Christian’s journey. They can be opportunities to strengthen one’s faith.
Among all the events that call God’s providence in to question, there are some which are so difficult that they can drive some to doubt and disbelief. These are the death of innocents, particularly caused by natural...
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Fasting and the Art of Dog Training
Lent has begun, and so I’m following our faith’s traditional fasting regimen, which is to say that I’m refraining from eating all animal byproducts. Of course, Lent isn’t just about fasting, its also about making more time to pray and think about our spiritual life, and it’s also about doing proactive, God-pleasing things such as feeding the homeless or fundraising for a charity.
Nonetheless,...
“Do not grieve or complain that you were born in a time when you can no longer...”
– St. Augustine (via nihilseddeus)
February 2011
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On the Priesthood, Part II – The Pastor
When you were asked as a child what you wanted to be when you grew up, how did you answer? I’m not sure what I said, though I used “Video Game Tester” as a joke for a few years. Apparently, many children say things like doctor, policeman, fireman, astronaut, or scientist. My favorite answer is the one given by the child of a friend here in Armenia. A driver of a typically rundown taxi asked the 4...
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To Yerevan With Love
Edgar, age 12, sending some ♥
http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lmubcwf5xe1qzuc8o.jpg
The feast of St. Sarkis the Captain was celebrated yesterday, February 19. St. Sarkis is an iconic saint of the Armenian Church, a martyr who gave his life in the 3rd century at the hands of the Persians. He refused to renounce his faith while in the service of the Persian Kingdom. We also celebrate the...
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On the Priesthood - Part I
I know the exact moment that it happened, sort of. I was sitting with the Primate of our Diocese, Abp. Hovnan Derderian, in his backyard. He had graciously invited me over to his house to discuss issues relating to our Diocese’s youth organization. I had some months earlier decided to leave a decent position at an organization that advocates for Armenian issues at the state and federal level in...
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Another Point of View
Its been an often reflected on fact that when I came to Armenia about a year and a half ago my Armenian was poor at best. My entire vocabulary could probably have been recorded on two 8.5 x 11 sheets of paper.
Entering the Kevorkian Seminary was challenging for a number of reasons, not the least of which was my inability to understand most of what was being taught in my classes. Naturally, over...
January 2011
4 posts
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He was an exception – about Hrant Dink →
Interesting thoughts about Dink’s life and tragic assassination 4 years ago today. His death was significant, but his life more so. This is an occasion to pray that God illuminate his soul, but also that the shadow that has covered the Turkish and Armenian peoples for the past 96 years be lifted by God’s providence and our positive efforts. Many people today protest, write, talk and...
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Oratsouyts Mobile →
This was several months in the making. Its still got a long ways to go, and I hope the users of the Oratsouyts Online enjoy it.
The mobile interface More often than not, we find opportunities to use the Oratsouyts when we’re away from our desks. Perhaps, on the way to Church on a given Sunday we want to see what feast is being celebrated, or we find a few free minutes in a taxi or on a bus when...
December 2010
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November 2010
2 posts
therealitycheck asked: If you had to pick one hero, who would it be?
October 2010
12 posts
jhochberg asked: Matthew, I read your post about Armenian typography and you are clearly the right person to answer a question I have: Does Armenian use the equivalent of upper-case letters to indicate proper nouns and sentence beginnings, as do English and other languages written in the Roman alphabet? Thanks, Judy
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Today is the feast of Saints Matthew, Mark, Luke... →
Today is my name day! It is also the name for anyone named Mark, Luke, or John. In the Church, when we celebrate the lives of revered saints, it has also been the custom to celebrate those people who were named after these saints. In some cultures, as is the case in Armenia, this an occasion that can be as important and celebrated as a birthday. Therefore, I will be excepting gifts for the...
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Armenia Must Pass Domestic Violence Legislation →
Sign this petition which calls on the Armenian Government to expedite the passing of domestic violence legislation, and guarantee justice in the death of Zaruhi Petrosyan, a mother of one and victim of domestic abuse, by investigating all possible guilty parties (not just the husband but also his brother and mother); as well as investigate allegations of local law enforcement’s prior knowledge of...
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