Hundreds Turn Out to Honor Catholicos Aram I During Prelacy Banquet in Los Angeles
More than 800 community members packed the ballroom at Universal Hiton on Sunday to honor His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia, during an banquet hosted by the Western Prelacy and presided over by Western Prelate Archbishop Kegham Khacherian.
The Catholicos was escorted into the hall by the religious leaders who have accompanied him on this Pontifical visit, as well as all clerics of the Western Prelacy led by Archbishop Khacherian, who was joined by the two former prelates, Archbishops Moushegh Mardirossian and Torkom Donoyan.
Joining the Catholicos at the head table were Prelate Kacherian; the Eastern Prelate Archbishop Anoushavan Tanielyan; co-chairs of the Cilician Catholicosate Central Executive Krikor Mahserejian and Stepan Der Bedrossian; Western Prelacy Executive Council chair Vahe Hovaguimian and his wife, Hasmig; Armenian Revolutionary Federation Bureau member Daron Der Khachadourian; ARF Western U.S. Central Committee chair Garo Madenlian; banquet sponsors Hoori Melkonian and her son, Arman; Western Diocese Primate Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Very Reverend Yeremia Abkarian; Bishop Parsegh Baghdassarian, Locum Tenens of the Armenian Catholic Eparchy; Reverend Hendrik Shahnazarian, Pastor of the Armenian Evangelical Church; and Armenia’s Consul General to Los Angeles Dr. Karen Israyelyan and his wife, Anna Grigoryan.
The Pontifical banquet was sponsored by Mr. and Mrs. Varant and Hoori Melkonian, who are also the benefactors of the Holy Archangels Church in La Crescenta.
In her welcoming remarks, Mistress of Ceremonied Talar Boyadjian reflected on Catholicos Aram I’s pontifical visit to the Western Prelacy, which kicked off on October 22.
The American and Armenian National anthems were performed by Suren Hazarian, who is a Deacon at Hollywood’s St. Garabed Church.
In his remarks, Hovaguimian, the Chairman of the Western Prelacy Executive Council, expressed the community’s deep honor in welcoming the Catholicos after nine years and emphasized the visit’s unifying and revitalizing impact.
After a cutlural program and a commemorative video presentation, Prelate Khatcherian, Prelate, addressed the gathering, describing the pontifical visit as a “new bell” that has tolled for the community.
In a moving ceremony, Prelate Khacherian invited Meher Der Ohanessian, who had received the “Prince of Cilicia” medal a week prior for his service to the community to present a Pontifical Scepter and a ring as gifts from the Western Prelacy to the Catholicos, marking this historic pontifical visit. Prelate Khacherian announced, that along with his other generous contributions, Der Ohanessian had underwritten the gifts.
One of the more special moments of the evening came as the Catholicos awarded several individuals for their leadership in the community and their unwavering support for the Western Prelacy and the Cilician Catholicosate.
Prelate Khacherian presented a brief biography of each honor recipient then one-by-one invited them to the stage to receive their insignias.
Catholicos Aram I bestowed the “Prince of Cilicia” medals to Dr. Eric Esraelian, Dr. Viken Hovsepian, Mr. and Mrs. Hovsep and Elizabeth Boyadjian, Mike Sarian and Krikor Topalian. Der Ohanessian had received a “Prince of Cilicia” medal a week before during a concert celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Catholicos’ enthronement. Levon Kirakosian was awarded the “Knight of Cilicia” medal during a dinner for the Cilician Catholicosate’s theological seminary two nights prior to the banquet.
In his pontifical message, Catholicos Aram I called upon the faithful to “strengthen their faith, reaffirm their belief, and deepen their unity,” emphasizing that these values form “the core of our community and the source of our strength.”
He urged the community to take this appeal “seriously and responsibly,” warning that where faith and unity weaken, integrity is lost.
The Catholcos noted that the community is “actively engaged in a healing and recovery process” and reaffirmed his full support.
He also reflected on four key points that would make the community stronger in the future: Diversity should enrich, not divide, the community; Renewal is essential—structures and institutions must evolve to meet new realities; Youth must play a leading role in shaping church and community life; and the Church must remain alive and people-centered, not a “spiritual museum.”
“Faith, faithfulness, and togetherness,” the Catholicos concluded, “should not be a slogan, but a way of life guiding our reflection and action, and sustaining our community.”
