The Diocese
Posted: 11/29/2016
The Christmas Holiday season is perhaps one of the happiest times of the year. Not so for those who have suffered loss, especially the loss of a child. The pain for bereaved families is great and the holiday festivities adds to the level of pain. On Sunday, December 11, 2016, the Western Diocese will participate in the worldwide commemoration of Children’s Memorial Day. The doors of the St. Leon Cathedral will open at 6:45PM and the short prayer service begins promptly at 7:00PM.
A candle-lighting procession will give an opportunity for families to share their loss or stand in solitude with others who share their plight. This remembrance is part of a worldwide event organized by the Compassionate Friends, a bereavement support group. In each time zone throughout the world, candlelight services will take place that day, creating a wave of light that circles the globe.
In 1997, then President Clinton official named the second Sunday in December as Children’s Memorial Day. The Armenian Church has organized this unique vigil for the past 20 years, ever since a young girl, Cathia Hamparian, was tragically killed in an auto accident.
Her mother, Maria Hamparian speaks of the importance of this memorial, “For a fleeting second, every memory we have came flooding back to us as we saw the flame through tears, distorting it into something magical. This is as close as we can get to our child now.” Others who have participated confessed that the presence of friends at a time like this gives strength and reassurance to family members and emphasizes the power of love.
His Eminence Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Primate of the Western Diocese is pleased to offer this service for the community, in an effort to assist families during the holiday season. Event organizer, Fr. Vazken Movsesian admits, “This is one activity of our ministry that I had hoped would not increase in numbers, but sadly it has.” Accidents, illness and war are all claiming the lives of the innocent. “At the memorial we will remember the names of our children who even though have left us will always stay as shining lights in our heart.”
We ask all families who have suffered through the loss of a child – whether through illness, accident, violence or war – to submit their child’s names for inclusion in the prayer and candlelight service. Families are invited to bring a picture of their loved ones to St Leon Cathedral, 3325 N. Glenoaks Blvd., Burbank, CA 91504 on Sunday, December 11. The service will begin exactly at 7:00PM to coincide with the other services throughout the world. Names can be sent to forcathia@aol.com or call Maria at 626.826.7833. The service is open to all.
