Message of Fr. Vazken Movsesian, parish priest of St. Andrew Armenian Church, Cupertino, from the Nakhagoch Newsletter. Electronic version archived on: SAIN-- St. Andrew Information Network -------------------------------------- c. 1986 Fr. Vazken Movsesian Address comments to: dervaz@sain.org -------------------------------------- Pastor's Message With the exception of the Native Americans, all the people of the United States are immigrants. At some time either we, our parents, grandparents came to this country. For we Armenians, we were forced out of our homeland. We came to America to find the freedom to grow once again. For many, the Statue of Liberty became the first picture of America, the first image of freedom. This month we celebrate Miss Liberty's birthday. We have renovated and cleaned her up for the occasion. Over the past few weeks we have been unable to escape this news. Entrepreneurs have enjoyed the freedom of America and have place the Lady's picture on anything salable, from fast foods to underwear. After all the fanfare is over, after the relighting, after the swearing in of 15,000 new citizens, after the last fireworks display, we are still left with Liberty and this of course carries with it tremendous responsibility. The freedom we enjoy in America is very unique. It allows man to function in the same manner God had willed for man. "In the image of God He created him, male and female He created them" (Gen. 1:27). Our Church has understood the "image of God" to mean created with free will Écreated with the ability to create. As St. Gregory of Nyssa writes, "freedom is the essential element of man's likeness to God." Man is not robot nor a computer programmed by another. Man is not a beast with blind instincts, but free. This free-will is what sets us apart from all of God's other creations. It is the one thing that makes us uniquely human. As Reinhold Neihbur states, "The chief source of man's dignity is man's freedom and capacity for self determination." Unlike the rest of nature, we are able to say "Yes" or "No" to God, we are able to refuse our Creator. America is unique among countries in this world in that she recognizes this God-Man relation. "We hold É that all Men are created equal É are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among them are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of HappinessÉ" write the authors of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. However, freedom is a two-edged sword. We as Americans are well aware of the dangers of freedom. In the name of freedom we are allowed to bear arms that kill. Freedom allows war to be romanticized in movies and in the media. Because of freedom, we are free to abort the fetus as a means of birth control. It is said that the food produced in California can feed a good portion of the United States, yet because of freedom in the economic market there is still hunger in this country. The list goes on. There are problems in a free system. Some have felt this to be the "flaw" in God's creation as well. When man rejects God, or in his freedom says "No" to his creater then there is evil. War, poverty, hunger exist from a broken relationship between God and man. The question arises why would God create man free if this freedom involved such a risk? Why did God allow His children the opportunity to reject Him? É to say "No" to God? The answer is simpleÉ why do parents have children? why do parents create despite all the risk in bringing them up? The answer: Out of Love! God does not want slaves but sons! Sons and daughters that will respond "Yes" to Him in their freedom. Freedom means having a choice. God says, "I stand at the door and knock; if any one hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to himÉ" (Rev. 3:20). He does not say that He will break the door down to come in. He gives us a choice. He knocks. We have the option of opening or closing the door. This is how God created us and this is the basis of the rights we enjoy in America. After all the fanfare of "Liberty Weekend" is over let us take a good look around. Sure there are problems in the free American system, but God creates us with liberty. Let us truly thank God for a country and government that is founded on Liberty. May we learn to appreciate this freedom and not abuse it. --Fr. Vazken -------------------------------------- c. 1986 Fr. Vazken Movsesian Address comments to: dervaz@sain.org --------------------------------------