The Journey Before the Journey

A suitcase can be packed in an afternoon. A soul takes longer to prepare.

We fold our clothes, check the weather, gather our documents, and make sure we have everything we need. But a pilgrimage requires another kind of preparation. The heart must grow quiet, the mind attentive, and the soul open to whatever God desires to reveal.

As the Psalmist writes, "Blessed are those whose strength is in you, whose hearts are set on pilgrimage" (Psalm 84:5).

Today, we begin our diocesan pilgrimage, “Retracing Our Armenian Roots.” We will travel through places that shaped the faith, history, culture, and soul of the Armenian people. We will walk where our ancestors walked, pray where they prayed, and stand before churches whose stones still carry the echoes of their hymns.

For me, this journey is deeply personal. My grandfather's roots lead to Armash and Van, and my grandmother's to Yozgat. Their stories are part of my story. As I cross these lands, I will be tracing the invisible roads through which faith, memory, and identity reached my own life.

Each of us begins this pilgrimage carrying something within us: the name of a village, a photograph of a grandparent, a family story, a familiar melody, a treasured recipe, an unhealed wound, or a prayer passed down through generations. They are threads connecting us to saints, martyrs, and generations of believers whose faith remained steadfast through every trial.

But these memories are not meant to keep us living in the past. Roots are not monuments buried in the past. They are living things. Hidden beneath the surface, they continue to draw nourishment and give strength for new growth.

We go, then, not merely to remember, but to be transformed by what we remember. The lives of our ancestors still bear witness: their courage teaches us to endure, their hope to see beyond suffering, and their faith to keep praying when the road becomes difficult.

May this pilgrimage become an encounter with the living Christ who sustained our ancestors and carried them through their darkest days. And may we return not only with memories, but stronger in faith, deeper in our Armenian Christian identity, and renewed as witnesses to the God who walked with them and still walks with us.