About 21 participants were in attendance from the Syriac, Armenian and Coptic Orthodox community of Southern California as well as respective priests from each Church. The day began with prayers in Syriac, Armenian and Coptic in the Church followed by a brief description of the day’s events by H.E. Archbishop Mor Clemis Eugene Kaplan.

Attendees then moved into the church hall and were divided into three groups in order to further discuss the events of Holy Week and their significance as well as how to apply the lessons learned into our daily lives. Leading the group discussions were clergy members from across the Southern California Orthodox community.  Each group was given photos of different events of Holy Week and, after discussing their significance and practical application of the lesson learned, were asked to make a presentation on what they had learned.

Each group discussed the events assigned to them using their visual aids and one group concluded by presenting a short skit on how we can truly help one another instead of simply doing the bear minimum required of us. Following the group presentations, participants concluded by uniting in prayer.

Afterwards, the participating youth lingered in the hall to discuss the successfulness of the event as well as future ideas. Participants were excited to meet other Orthodox members and exchanged contact information in efforts of working together towards future events and to keep in touch with one another. The joyful youth left having spoken of the next Oriental Orthodox youth day as well as a possible youth retreat. May God bless the efforts of those who organized the event and continue to work towards Orthodox unity.

Upon resignation of His Eminence Mor Timotheos Ephram Aboudi, who has completed his church administrative duties according to the constitution of our Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch, on February 9^th, 2008, His Holiness Moran Mor Ignatius Zakka I Iwas, Patriarch of the Syriac Orthodox Church appointed His Eminence Mor Athanasius Elia Bahi as Metropolitan Patriarchal Vicar for the Archdiocese of Canada.

The newly appointed Archbishop arrived in Canada on Wednesday February 27, 2008, accompanied by His Eminence Mor Severius Hazail Soumi Archbishop of Belgium and France.

On Sunday March 2, 2008, His Eminence Mor Athanasius Elia was officially installed as Archbishop, Patriarchal Vicar of Canada Archdiocese.

           On Thursday March 6, 2008, The Archbishop Mor C. Eugene welcomed in Western Archdiocese headquarter His Eminence Mor Athanasius Elia Bahi the newly appointed Archbishop, Patriarchal Vicar of Canada Archdiocese, with His Eminence Mor Severius Hazail Soumi Archbishop of Belgium and France.

On Sunday March 9, 2008, His Eminence Mor Athanasius Elia celebrated the Divine Liturgy at St. Ephraim Cathedral, the St. Ephraim choir chanted hymns to welcome His Eminence to the Cathedral hall. Following the Holy Divine Liturgy, their Eminences blessed the faithful then enjoyed the lunch with His Eminence Mor Clemis and clergy of the Cathedral.

           On Monday March 11, His Eminence Mor Athanasius Elia left the Western Archdiocese to Canada and on Thursday March 14, His Eminence Mor Severius Hazail Soumi left to Belgium.

On the morning of Thursday, January 17^th, 2008, the Council of Oriental orthodox Bishops gathered at Holy Cross the Armenian Cathedral in Montebello to celebrate Divine Liturgy.

The four prelates: His Eminences Archbishop Moushegh Mardirossian and Archbishop Hovan Derderian of the Armenian Churches, Archbishop Mor Clemis Eugene Kaplan of the Syriac Orthodox Church and His Grace Bishop Serapion of the Coptic Orthodox Church, all together participated in the Holy Divine Liturgy according the rite of the Armenian Church. Their Eminences were assisted by the clergy of the Armenian church.

The Liturgy began with the “Hrashapar” procession leading the four Bishops to the altar. During the service the four spiritual heads of the Churches, H.H. Karekin II, Catholicos of all Armenians, H.H. Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia, H.H. Pope Shenouda III, head of the Coptic Orthodox Church, and H.H. Patriarch Mor Zakka I Iwas, head of the Syriac Orthodox Church, were venerated by the Prelates.

During Holy Communion, clergy from each Diocese approached the altar to receive Communion from their respective Bishops.

Very Rev. Fr. Myron Aznikian welcomed the clergy on behalf of the Prelate, then gave a lecture on the Feast of the Nativity and Theophany of our Lord Jesus Christ. At the conclusion of the service, the Prelate addressed the clergy wishing them and their Dioceses a prosperous year.

The clergy then headed to Tumanjian Hall where the Prelate and Priests and Board of Trustees of Holy Cross hosted a lunch. During the reception, His Eminence Moushegh invited the Bishops to offer their remarks. Christmas hymns were also sung by the participants. His Eminence Moushegh offered his well wishes to all and presented the Bishops and clergy members with a memento.

On Saturday, February 9^th at St. Mary’s church in the city of Orange a Sunday School Teacher’s Retreat was held. His Eminence Archbishop Mor C. Eugene Kaplan presides over this event, along with Rev. Fr. Louis Yacoub, Rev. Fr. George Touma, Rev. Fr. John Saif, Rev. Fr. Peter Rouboz, Rev. Fr. Ephrem Adde, and Rev. Fr. Fadi Yousif. There were teachers representing the various churches of the Western Diocese. The retreat focused on the ‘Interpretation of the Syriac Orthodox Divine Liturgy.’

On Sunday, February 10^th His Eminence, accompanied by Rev. Fr. Louis Yacoub and Fr. Abdallah Satoof, traveled to the High Desert Area to conduct the Divine Liturgy. His Eminence, assisted by the parish priest, Fr. Mtanous Askar, and the other respective attending clergy, conducted the Holy Eucharist Service.

December 25, 2007

Beloved Faithful in Christ;

There is no one in history that has been given more names or titles than Jesus Christ. Throughout the pages of the Holy Bible over 100 names and titles are given to Jesus, for example, He was called “the Bright morning star, Wonderful Counselor, Alpha and Omega, the lamb of God…” Each of these names or titles has its own rich meaning. There is no person in history who had been given more names and titles than Jesus Christ. Throughout all generations, Christ was identified with distinguished position.

But there is not any name that is more indicative of His birth in flesh than “Immanuel.” This name that was mentioned in the gospel of Matthew (Matthew 1:21-23) is clearly the same name mentioned in the prophecy of Isaiah who first called Him “Immanuel.” It was 753 years before His birth in flesh, that the prophet Isaiah stated: “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14), and he continued his prophecy on this Child saying: “For unto us a Child is born. Unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6). And this very special Christmas name, as Matthew tells us, in the Aramaic Language means "God is with us." He is the only One worthy to be called “Immanuel, God is with us”. His birth was eternal salvation to all mankind from sin and death.

The New-Born of Mary, who was born in a manger, for whom shepherds came to see and wise men to travel hundreds of miles to worship, is the real Immanuel, God is with us. What does the name ‘Immanuel, God with us’ truly imply?

We ask ourselves, wasn’t God always with the human race? Wasn’t God “with us” before the coming of Jesus? Yes He was, because God, the Creator, has always been with His creation, contrary to false gods and atheists and many who believe in a god who created the world then departed far away. But the true God has always been with us. In this regard, God says in the book of Jeremiah 23:23,24: “Am I a God near at Hand” says the Lord, and “not a God afar off?... Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?” The God of the Holy Bible, the True Creator, is omnipresent, everywhere at the same time, whose presence fills all creations, mountains, hills, oceans, and every piece of land on earth, yet, He is not a part of His creation. He is still the Creator who is known by His creatures. Since God is omnipresent, everywhere, then He is certainly present amongst us and with us.

But with the birth of Jesus in flesh, in Bethlehem, Immanuel takes on a new meaning. The Newborn Baby Immanuel is with us not only to bless us, nor is He with us in the sense that He is going to only work through Jesus to help us, protect us, or guide us. No, the Babe Lord Jesus who laid in a manger is “God with us” because He is the true God.

What made the shepherds return to their fields rejoicing? What made the wise men fall down in wonder and worship the Baby of the manger? Isn’t it because they recognized they were in the presence of God who appeared in flesh! Yes, it was the gripping realization that they were in the presence of their Creator who was made man.

Years later St. John the Evangelist under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit would write the perfect commentary on the Christmas events. He states in the beginning of his gospel: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; and all things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made...And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth" (John 1:1-3, 14).

The true message of Christmas is one to stagger the imagination: The Second Person of the Holy Trinity, the only begotten Son of the Father, the eternal Word, our Creator wills to clothe Himself in our nature, and to become man, our brother, one of us. God Himself lies in the manger, completely human, completely Divine. So the message of Christmas is that God is with us in the Person of Baby Jesus.

Why does the human race need Immanuel (God is with us)? It is because our sin had separated ourselves far away from Him as it had been written by the prophet Isaiah 59. "But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He does not hear." These words were spoken originally to the covenant people of Israel, but they apply to all who have sinned against the Creator. In one place it is written, "If we say we have no sin we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." (1 John 1:8). And in the book of Psalm it is written: "The Lord has looked down from heaven upon the sons of men, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one" (Psalm 14:2-3).

That is why we need "Immanuel, God is with us" Jesus Christ, Only He can undo what we have done. Only the One who created us in the first place can restore us again. Only our Creator can break down the wall of sin that separates His creatures from Him. Only He can give their lives the meaning and perfection they were supposed to have. Only "God with us" can rescue us from the oblivion that we are heading toward.

And that is what the eternal Word (Son) of God decided to do. For He saw the dire need of restore that the human race was in. He saw the ugliness, the brutality, and the violence that sin bred in man. He saw the emptiness and the restlessness of creatures in rebellion against their Creator. He saw that death reigned like a cold-hearted tyrant over His creation. Most of all He saw that His creation which had once been so beautiful, was now marred and vandalized almost beyond repair by corruption of sin; and that everything was heading for everlasting condemnation.

And so God the Son, who was sent by God the Father, sprang into action. He knew that according to the Law set by God the Father, man must die for his sin. He also was well aware that man could not be restored to His Creator until the Law was kept perfectly and sin was done away with. But because He loved His creation so much that He did not want them to perish, the eternal Word of God decided to die in flesh in order to give life to His creation. And to fulfill this decision, He had to become human and take flesh. And thus, 2000 years ago, “when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.” (Galatians 4:4,5). And thus the Word became flesh and became Immanuel, Jesus Christ.

Because of His great love for His fallen human race, He left His glory and made Himself of no reputation, came to our world taking our dead form in order to give us life. Through His blameless perfect life and by His death on the cross, He wrecked, broke down the wall of separation that our sin had built, and reconciled us to God His Father; as it is written: “God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses to them.” (2 Cor. 5:19) So, through Jesus Christ, Immanuel, our sins were forgiven and we were reconciled again with our Creator.

By this name, Immanuel, the whole human race gets its need to fulfill God’s plan of salvation. How lucky and blessed we are for Jesus Christ has come and became Immanuel, God is with us.

On the blessed occasion of the birth of our Savior and Redeemer Immanuel Jesus Christ, in flesh, we offer our warmest felicitations to our highly esteemed holy father Mor Ignatius Zakka I, Iwas, Patriarch of Antioch and all the East, supreme head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church, asking the Lord to keep him healthy and prolong his life, and we congratulate all eminences of the church, the shepherds of all Archdioceses worldwide as well, especially the faithful of our Western USA Archdiocese, clergy, deacons, parish councils, institutions, parishioners, and our whole faithful Syriac people in general.

May the Holy Baby shower His blessings upon you through Christmas, and may He bestow upon your upcoming feasts and New Year His joy, health, and tranquility. May His grace be with you all. Amen.

December 14-17, 2007

Throughout the weekend His Eminence presided over meetings which initiated the formation of a Parish Board to organize events within the Arizona community. His Eminence also spent time visiting many families, conveying his prayers and best wishes for all.

On Sunday many faithful gathered to partake in the Liturgy, and during his homily His Eminence spoke about the ' Revelation to Joseph.' In his oration, His Eminence reflected upon Joseph, focusing on seven aspects about the man into whose care our God entrusted his very own Son, and a man of whom we can learn many things from. In his homily, His Eminence spoke about Joseph's character: "Joseph was a righteous man, committed to God's commandments. He had no fear or shame of his commitment. Joseph is an example to every man: Do not be afraid to be a man of prayer, in union with God, surrendered completely to God's Will, avoiding evil and doing good."

The Divine Liturgy was followed by a community picnic where everyone enjoyed an afternoon of food and refreshments. The Archbishop offered words of praise to the parents and children of the community, and exhorted the parish for its diligent work and accomplishments. Prior to his return to Los Angeles on Monday, the Archbishop thanked the community for their hospitality and warmth, encouraging them to continue to cultivate their love for one another.

H. E. Archbishop paid a pastoral visit to parishioners of St. Thomas, Bay Area

H. E. Archbishop paid a pastoral visit to parishioners of Arizona

“Ascension of the Lord”

Archdiocese Annual Meeting