LOS ANGELES–Western Prelate Bishop Moushegh Mardirossian–as well as the Western Prelacy’s Executive and Religious councils announced Thursday that His Holiness Aram I–Catholicos of the Holy See of Cilicia will pay a pontifical visit beginning October 18 and lasting until Oct. 25–to personally preside over events marking the 1700th anniversary of Armenia’s adoption of Christianity as a state religion.
Upon his arrival to Los Angeles–the Catholicos will meet with say vespers and greet the community at Glendale’s St. Mary’s Church on Oct. 18. The following morning–Aram I is scheduled to meet with upperclassmen from area Armenian schools affiliated with the Prelacy. This meeting will take place at the Hall of Crucifixion and Resurrection at Glendale’s Forest Lawn Memorial Park.
The official Prelacy 1700th anniversary celebration is scheduled for Oct. 19 at Alex Theatre in Glendale. The festivities will begin at 7:30 p.m. with the Catholicos presiding.
From October 20 and 21–the Catholicos will attend and speak at a symposium on Cilicia organized by Professor Richard Hovannisian–holder to the Armenian Educational Foundation Armenian History Chair at UCLA. The series is sponsored by the Armenian Educational Foundation Chair in Modern Armenian History at UCLA–and the Cilician Armenia conference has as co-sponsors the Western Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America/Richard and Tina Carolan Fund–and the UCLA Division of Social Sciences–International Studies and Overseas Programs–and Center for Modern and Contemporary Studies.
The Catholicos will leave for Fresno on Saturday evening and say Mass at the 100-year-old Holy Trinity Armenian Church on Sunday. He will leave for San Francisco on the following Monday–and attend 1700th anniversary celebrations in that community.
More information about the Catholicos’ visit to the Western Prelacy will be available in the future.
The Prelate and Prelacy councils urge all community members to take part in this historic pontifical visit.