Let my heart rejoice that it may fear Thy name. -Psalm 85:11 (LXX)
Eventually settling in Detroit, Michigan, they had their third of five children: my grandmother, Florence Valentine Peringian. Although born into an Orthodox family, sadly she was taught very little of her faith. She went on to marry an American Southerner of Hebrew descent, Forrest Wolfe; himself a Fundamentalist Christian. My grandmother was pursuaded to accept the faith of her in-laws and this, in turn, was the faith in which I was raised.
My grandmother Florence -like her mother, Asanet, before her- was a woman filled with faith and devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ. I am very thankful to God for them both because they shared their vibrant faith with me from early childhood. They also taught me about our great heritage as Armenians and the great struggles our people have had to endure primarily for the sake of our faith in Christ. These stories embedded a deep desire in my heart to learn more about this great heritage.
As a young man disillusioned by Christian disunity and seeking knowledge of the truth, after being challenged by Catholic speaker, I began to study the faith of the early Church. He argued that in order to understand the Scriptures, we must see what those who were taught by the Apostles themselves believed about the Bible. After all, "who would understand the Bible better," he argued, "we, living 2,000 years later, with a totally different culture and language, or those who received the Scriptures from the very hands of the Apostles themselves, as well as their Apostolic instruction?" So I began reading the works of the Apostolic and early Church Fathers: e.g. St. Ignatius of Antioch, St. Justin the Martyr, St. Ireneaus of Lyons, St. John Chrysostom, St. Jerome, St. Basil, St. Ambrose, St. Augustine as well as other early Church documents.
The results of these studies, for me, were staggering. I was astounded by all I found which contradicted what I was taught to believe as a "Bible-believing Christian" (for more on this see: My Coversion Story). I still believed in God's truth contained in the Bible, yet I found that many of the Bilbical interpretations I was taught, were directly contradicted by the faith of the early Church. After much heart-rending study and reflection, I slowy began to accept the Orthodox Faith of the one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
During this time period I married my lovely wife, Valerie, a Catholic of Italian descent. As we have grown together in our faith, enduring the many ups and downs of the Christian spiritual life, we have been blessed with seven children. In our efforts to teach them the faith, I realized that, as a descendant of Armenians, I had a unique Orthodox heritage that I myself hardly knew. So I began to study the theology, liturgy and history of the Armenian Church. I spent the next decade studying and worshipping with Latin-Roman Catholics (primarily at Assumption Grotto Parish), American Orthodox (at St. Mark Parish) and Armenian Catholics (at St. Vartan Parish) until my spiritual sojourn finally brought me home to the Orthodox Church of Armenia.
By Providence, there was a thriving Armenian Orthodox community in my area (St. John the Baptist Parish) from which I gathered many books and much information over the years. This had actually been the parish of my own relatives when they left Dikranagerd to come to Detroit. Over the years, I had several "heart to heart" discussions and developed a warm friendship with the pastor, Rev. Fr. Garabed Kochakian. After experiencing the Divine Liturgy of St. Athanasius at St. John's, in all its profound beauty, I understood what St. Vladimir's emissaries reported about their first expeince of an Orthodox Divine Liturgy: "We did not know whether we were in heaven or on earth." This same heavenly worship is maintained to this day in all Orthodox Churches.
For years I wore an Armenian gold Cross with the word "Etchmiadzeen" engraved on the back of it. I kept this Holy Sign close to my heart out of respect for the Apostolic, Holy See of the Catholicos-Patriarch of All Armenians and because of my deep reverence for the Orthodox Faith. I finally decided to do what the Lord had been guiding me to all my life. I contacted the pastor of St. John the Baptist (Fr. Garabed) and informed him of my desire to embrace the fullness of Orthodoxy -requesting admission into the Holy Orthodox Church of Armenia.
His welcome to me and my family was overwhelmingly positive and embracing. It was one of the greatest moments of my life when I was received into the ancient Church of my forefathers through the anointing of Holy Myron in the Mystery of Holy Chrismation.
Der Garabed took several steps to ensure my family's active participation in the Church. I became a Reader and then received the ecclesiastical tonsue and the four minor orders from Abp. Khajag Barsamian. My eldest daughter, Veronica, joined the choir & three of my sons, Hovhannes, Kreekor & Andon have become Acolytes. In 2006 I was ordained a Sub-Deacon with my Armenian middle name "Ghazaros" (Lazarus) and am now studying for the full diaconate. I consider the opportunity to join and serve the Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Church a true gift of God of which I am certainly not worthy. I thank the Lord for guiding me all along this way (see Psalm above).
Trusting in Christ's Light, Sub-Dn. Lazarus Der-Ghazarian
For those interested: The Bibliography of my Journey to Orthodoxy
For more family info: The Der-Ghazarian Family
Return to Homepage: Looys Kreesdosee
The name Der-Ghazarian, is Armenian for Lord (Der) which connotes Reverend, and Lazarus (Ghazar) and son of (ian). Literally it means Son of the Reverend Lazarus and was my great-grandmother's maiden name.
Any name in Armenian beginning with Der indicates a priestly family. In that family's heritage there was a priest or a line of priests. This is possible because the Armenian Church, like all Eastern Churches, preserves the ancient practice of allowing married men to be ordained as priests. I am thankful to have it as my name not only out of my honor for St. Lazarus (see St. Lk. 16:19-31, St. Jn. 11:1-44) and for the priest in my family's history, but also because my Medz Maireeg (grandmother) Asanet (whose name comes from Genesis 41:45), who was a very special woman to me. In bearing this name, I honor her for her faith in Christ, the love she shared, and her humble -yet profound- dedication to her Armenian Christian heritage.
the Raising of Lazarus