Armenian Resilience in the Heart of New York

Yesterday, the combined Armenian community of the New York metropolitan area gathered for the Badarak at St. Vartan Cathedral to commemorate our Holy Martyrs and the 110th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. After the Badarak, we stepped out into the streets of New York City, walking shoulder to shoulder, step by step, from St. Vartan Cathedral all the way into the heart of Times Square.

And as I walked, surrounded by our clergy brothers and faithful people, I couldn’t help but think: 110 years later, and we are still here. 110 years after the Armenian Genocide, we are still lifting our voices in the streets of one of the most important cities in the world. 110 years after pain, loss, and devastation tried to wipe out a people, we are still standing, still marching, still calling out for truth and justice.

Friends, that’s the miracle of resilience God placed inside of us. Other nations have known sorrow. Other people have faced tragedy. But something about the Armenian spirit refuses to be extinguished. There's a spiritual fire in us that keeps burning through every hardship, through every disappointment, through every attempt to silence our voice.

One of the participants was holding a sign that said it so perfectly: "We Will Never Forget. We Will Never Give Up.” That's the story of our people. That's the spirit God placed inside of us. St. Paul says in 2 Corinthians 4:8-9: "We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed."

Isn't that who we are? We were pressed, but we were not crushed. We were struck down, but never destroyed. We walked through fire and came out stronger. We passed through the waters and emerged purer. The world tried to silence us, but here we are, still singing, still praying, still building, still believing!

Yesterday was a living testimony that when God plants a seed of life, no power on earth can uproot it. And we, the children of survivors of the Armenian Genocide, are the living, breathing proof. May we carry that spirit forward. May we honor those who came before us by standing tall, speaking truth, and shining the light of Christ in this world. We are here, by God’s grace, and we are here to stay.