To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven.
Ecclesiastes 3:1
Despite the hardships, the blockade of Artsakh has not disrupted the activities of AMAA, the programs have not been interrupted in Artsakh carrying through with great dedication, service, love, and profound efforts of the devotees. (more…)
Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to each other without grumbling.
1 Peter 4:8-9
“Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.” Mark 16:15
How do you define borders? Are borders the beginning or the end of a designated space?
The latest issue of AMAA News is dedicated to the border villages of Armenia and Artsakh.
Villages are organic habitats. People live there.
When we speak of a border village, we are talking about communities, people, human beings, men, women and children, creatures born in the image of their creator. Thus, the emphasis is on life, comparatively primitive, but yet pure, honest, innocent and down to earth life.
Since the dawn of AMAA’s presence in the Homeland following the 1988 earthquake, and in the 33 plus years since, the mission has exponentially grown and expanded into towns and cities, hills and valleys across Armenia and Artsakh. AMAA has touched people, touched their lives. Changed destinies and directions. Spotlighted visionaries and embraced dreamers. Helped dreams come true. The mission has thrived both in the city and among surrounding communities in all fields within its operational boundaries:
▪ preaching the Word of God
▪ educating the youth and adults
▪ shielding and uplifting values
▪ reaching out to the orphan and the widow.
Historically, AMAA’s first encounter with a border village was just ten years ago but the focus on border life increased right after the 2020 Artsakh War. There was assault at the door. Encroachment created anxiety, fear and darkness. There was need for steadfast resistance, holding the ground, supporting the shoulder and a desperate need for a flood of hope, love and service.
AMAA heeded the call and was there to pay attention, see and listen, greet and hug and reassure love and compassion.
Our promises to our border villages are:
▪ we will suffer and thrive with you
▪ we shall come in the dark and light a candle together
▪ we shall learn from you and together preserve the purest of our values, unstained faith and unspoiled culture.
So, are borders the beginning or the end of a space?
“People put the light on a stand and it gives light to everyone in the house.” Matthew 5:15
Border villages are our lighthouses. The end of Armenia’s borders is the beginning of ‘all the world.’
Please join the AMAA to keep the light on beyond the border. Empower a border family.
Thank you for your support.
Zaven Khanjian, AMAA Executive Director/CEO
February 17, 2022, Paramus, New Jersey
But God will never forget the needy;
the hope of the afflicted will never perish.
Psalm 9:18
Imitating the game show ‘Jeopardy,’ I am in search of a question that would best conform to the above answer. They might not be scarce.
The above ‘answer’ constantly roamed in my mind as I swept through the countries I visited in May and June. Syria and Lebanon; which have constituted the historic lion’s share of AMAA’s global mission and ministry field and Armenia and Artsakh; which prize the current lion’s share.
The ‘answer’ always employed my mental vision even long before I have come to think about the question. (more…)
A year after the war in Artsakh, discontent within Armenians has intensified rather than diminished. Possibly for the first time in a long while, we feel weak and beaten. A year ago today, we woke up to the devastating news of the attack. But after the initial shock, there was confidence and belief. “We Shall Win” slogans put everywhere and repeated continuously. People truly believed it up until the last moment. Defeat was just too unimaginable. (more…)
For the Armenian Nation, April 24 is a solemn day of remembrance, contemplation, and determination to achieve justice that has eluded us for over a century. It is a day when faith is reinforced and hope seems to progress towards actualization. It stands at a crossroad providing us with options as to what methods of action to adopt. It is a time to take stock of past struggles, failures, and successes dotted on the road to Ararat. In this journey of ups and downs, optimism should guide us, because the alternative portends a dark abyss from which one cannot elevate oneself to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Here, famous Armenian-Russian sea painter Ivan Ayvazovski’s canvasses should serve as an example. (more…)
