In this article Will Alkass looks back on a trip that he made to Armenia, a country with an ancient history of Christianity.
Some years ago, my wife and I decided to visit Armenia, an 'off-the beaten track' country but with the promise of hidden surprises to be discovered. Armenia is one of the South Caucasus countries and is land-locked. It is bordered by Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan and Iran and has a population of around 3 million. However, it is estimated that some 7 million Armenians live in other countries around the world in the wider diaspora. Evey country has an emblem or symbol and Armenia’s symbol is the pomegranate which represents fertility and growth.
We found the Armenian people to be very polite and friendly; although they are modern and forward looking, at the same time they show many of the good old values of hospitality, family cohesion and respect for the elderly. The older generation who grew up under the Soviet occupation speak Russian as their second language, but the younger generation are very well versed in English.
The Armenian Apostolic Church
This is one of the Orthodox churches of the east; it is described as "Orthodox" because it has remained faithful to its teachings and traditions over the centuries, and 'Apostolic' (and this is a point of great pride to Armenian people) because Armenia was the first country in the world to adopt Christianity as its official religion in the year 301, following evangelical missions by two of Jesus' apostles, first Saint Jude Thaddeus and then Saint Bartholomew.
St Jude the apostle, was one of Jesus’ twelve apostles. He is believed to have written the 'Letter of Jude' which is one of the shortest books of the Bible; he is thought to have been martyred in Beirut around 65 A.D. St Jude is known and loved throughout the world as the patron saint of 'Hopeless Causes'. Saint Bartholomew served as a missionary to Ethiopia, Parthia (in modern Iran), Lycaonia (in modern Turkey) and Armenia. The apostle is said to have been martyred by flaying and beheading at the command of the Armenian king Astyages. His relics were supposedly taken to the church of San Bartolomeo all'Isola in Rome.
Throughout the long history of Armenia three further personalities deserve mentioning: firstly King Trdat IV who adopted Christianity as the state religion between 301 and 314, secondly St Gregory the Illuminator who was the first Catholicos of the Armenian church and who is credited with ordaining many priests and bishops and for building many churches and monasteries including the Etchmiadzin Cathedral, and thirdly St Mesrop Mashtots who invented the Armenian alphabet in 405 AD and translated the bible into the Armenian language.
There is no doubt that it is its strong deep-rooted Christian faith and its unique language that has kept Armenia as a unified nation, despite centuries of invasion, occupation, domination and ill-treatment by its competing neighbours: the Persian, Ottoman and Russian empires.
Etchmiadzin Cathedral is probably the oldest Cathedral in the world. It is the mother church of the Armenian Apostolic religion and is impressive both from the outside and on the inside which contains many frescoes and icons. In the museum attached to the Cathedral one can find some very interesting objects, including the relics of several saints, the Holy Lance with which Jesus was pierced while on the cross, and the oldest bible written in Armenian. The whole of Armenia is studded with churches and monasteries, each with its own individual architectural design, history and legend. Interested visitors can be escorted on organised trips to marvel at the richness, culture and history of these religious sites. Two of these churches are illustrated below.
Mount Ararat is the national symbol of Armenia and is the biblical site where Noah is believed to have landed with his Ark after the great flood. It is situated just across the border in Turkey, an hour’s drive from the capital Yerevan from where you have a beautiful panoramic view of the mountain with its snowy cap surrounded by vineyards; the peak is more than 5000 m in altitude.
Armenian brandy and Armenian food.
You would be forgiven if you thought that the French brandy and cognac are the best in the world and have no parallel. However, I was convinced otherwise when we visited one of the factories for wine and brandy making in Yerevan where we were taken on a guided tour of the factory and ended up tasting the different varieties of brandy; I can now vow to the high quality of Armenian brandy but just don’t call it Cognac! The best brands are Ararat, Karas and Noy.
As for Armenian cuisine, thanks to centuries-old traditions and multiple foreign influences (Persian, Arabs, Ottoman, Russian) there are a great variety of dishes and recipes. Below are illustrated: Tolma (stuffed vine leaves) with yoghurt, Mixed pickled vegetables, Lavash (traditional flatbread baked leavened in a clay oven), Lahmajoun (spiced meat on flatbread).
The Armenian Genocide
No description of Armenia would be complete without reference to the Armenian Genocide when during the First World War, one and a half million Armenian men, women and children were massacred and suffered mass atrocities in eastern Turkey over a number of years at the hands the Ottoman authorities. Much has been written about this, but to get a first-hand understanding we visited the Armenian Genocide memorial complex on a hill just outside Yerevan. It was a rather distressing visit because along with the historical facts it was illustrated by some gruesome photos. At the centre there is a monument to commemorate the event, containing an eternal fire. People gather there every year on 24th April to lay flowers around this eternal flame in commemoration of the genocide.