ARMENIA – Sunday school programme for children in Artik

 

In June this year Pope Francis will travel to Armenia. The Armenians are justly proud of the fact that Christianity was declared as the state religion in their country in the 4th century, making it the oldest Christian nation in the world. Almost 95% of the population today belong to the Armenian Apostolic Church which, like the Coptic Orthodox Church in Egypt, belongs to the family of the Oriental Orthodox churches.

The Artik region attaches great importance to the religious education of its children, since media influences and harmful trends in society make it essential to establish strong Christian values and Christian faith in the children.

Therefore a Sunday school programme was established two years ago in the town of Artik and in 10 villages in the surrounding region. 280 children took part in a programme covering Bible stories, religious hymns and songs, the lives of the saints, the major Church feasts, the history of Christianity in Armenia and various ethical topics. Children also participated in many leisure activities and games. During the summer and autumn months five separate pilgrimages were organised to various holy shrines in the country. In addition to this, Information Days were held for the children’s parents.

Thanks to the generosity of our benefactors, ACN was able to contribute 9,000 Euros towards the cost of this project. The vicar of the eparchy ofArtik, Narek Avagan, has written to express his heartfelt thanks to you all on behalf of all the children who took part, their parents and  the entire eparchy. The Sunday school programme was a huge success and will undoubtedly be continued.

 ACN Malta

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