Archbishop Dirair Mardikian Enters his Eternal Rest

Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, Information Services May 11, 2010 12:15 PM

It is with profound sorrow that we inform our faithful that on the morning of May 11, His Eminence Archbishop Dirair Mardikian, Primate of the Armenian Dioceses of Romania and Bulgaria, entered his eternal rest in Sofia, Bulgaria. He was one of the senior members of the Brotherhood of Holy Etchmiadzin and a devoted servant of the Armenian Holy Apostolic Church. His Eminence was 80 years old.

His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, the Supreme Spiritual Council of the Armenian Church and the clergy deeply mourn the loss of Archbishop Dirair Mardikian.

Blessed be the memory of the righteous.

ARCHBISHOP DIRAIR MARDIKIAN

Archbishop Dirair Mardikian (baptismal name Dikran) was born on 24 May 1930 in Beirut, Lebanon. He received his advanced education in the Sahakian and Abgarian Colleges of Beirut.

He was a student at the Jarangavoratz Theological Seminary at the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem from 1944 to 1947. In 1947 he immigrated to Armenia with his parents and settled in Yerevan. The same year he enrolled in the Institute of Foreign Languages of Yerevan, attending courses in the Department of English Language. He left the Institute and entered the Gevorkian Seminary at the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin. He was ordained to the diaconate on November 1, 1951. In 1952 he graduated from the Seminary with honors and was appointed as the Secretary of the Seminary. During his student years in both Jerusalem and Etchmiadzin, he excelled in his studies.

He was ordained as a celibate priest in April, 1955 in the St. Hripsime Church in Vagharshapat by His Grace Bishop Sahak Der-Hovhannisian, and given the priestly name of Dirair. After his ordination, he was appointed to serve as the Armenian spiritual pastor of Baku, Azerbaijan and served as the secretary of the Diocesan Council.

In October of 1956 he received the rank of Archimandrite (Vardapet) in the Mother Cathedral of Holy Etchmiadzin, by the Catholicos of All Armenians, His Holiness Vasken I, of Blessed Memory.

He also defended his final theses on the subject "The Idea of Peace in the Old Armenian Literature".

In 1957 he was appointed as the Primate Vicar of the Armenian Diocese of Azerbaijan.

In 1958, by the order of His Holiness Vasken I, he paid a pastoral visit to the Armenian Dioceses of Romania and Bulgaria. In the autumn of the same year he was elected the Primate of the Armenian Diocese of Azerbaijan. He served in this position up until to 1960. In 1960 he was elected to serve as the Primate of the Armenian Dioceses of Romania and Bulgaria and holds that honorable position up to the present day.

In October of 1964 he was presented with the order of "Astgh" ("Star") and later 7 other orders. He has also been presented with a high order by The World Peace Council.

On November 29, 1964 he was consecrated as a Bishop by His Holiness Vasken I. In February of 1980 he was elevated to the rank of Archbishop by the Pontifical Encyclical of His Holiness Vasken I.

These accomplishments reflect the rich and meaningful social significance of His Eminence’s life and activity.

Notwithstanding his relatively young age, his first spiritual-administrative experience as the religious leader of the Armenians of Azerbaijan, Nagorno Kharabakh and Nakhichevan was both fulfilling and successful.

The inner spiritual-ritual church life was completely reorganized, the number of clergy increased, churches were furnished with choirs, and the number of people attending churches multiplied due to the consideration of Sheikh-Ul-Islam and the Ministry of Religious Affairs. During this time, the spirit of the Armenian Church flourished in this region.

These accomplishments were noted by His Holiness Vasken I, who subsequently sent Archbishop Dirair Mardikian to Romania and Bulgaria at first as a pastoral visitor and later as a Primate of the Armenian Dioceses of the above mentioned countries.



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