April 24 represents a sacred day in the life of our nation. On this day, in Armenia as well as in the Diaspora, every Armenian is filled with spiritual and national awareness and are reminded of the sacrifices they make to safeguard their Christian faith. Moreover, this day gives birth to a firm and unwavering vision which encompasses the entire creed of one million and a half victims.
96 years have passed since the First Genocide perpetrated by the Ottoman Turks. In this comparatively short period in history, the children of a whole generation of victims have survived, in Armenia and in the Diaspora, by believing firmly in the spirit of Christ’s Resurrection, and furthermore, by making the sacred mystery of the Resurrection part of their very essence.

In one of his reflections devoted to the calamity of the Armenian Genocide, Archbishop Yeghishe, of blessed memory, has made the following statement:  “Several attempts have been made to annihilate us physically; however, we have always had an inner, spiritual strength, which is difficult to explain, that has united our language, religion, national characteristics and civic struggles thus rendering our people vigorous and strong, and safeguarding its survival. 
For centuries, our people have expected neither pity nor admiration, but rather the right to live freely and peacefully under the righteous God-given Sun.  Naturally we cannot relinquish our rights from the lands paid for by the bloodshed of our forefathers, an undeniable and infinite debt which we have inherited.
Dear faithful,
We live in a world where people are so oppressed that they are unable to express their sense of justice.  The vivid proof of that is the constant postponement of the Armenian Genocide recognition.  However, this historically undeniable fact keeps the children of our nation always alert.  The memory of the victims of the calamity will not allow our consciences to rest until we appropriate our rightful claims.  Just like the Israelites, who roamed in the Sinai desert and turned the Ten Commandments into their spiritual guide toward the Promised Land, Armenians living outside the Motherland will roam in their own Sinai deserts and will create a brighter future inspired by visions reflected from Holy Etchmiadzin.
We pledge to keep the memory of the victims alive deep in our hearts along with the numerous sacrifices and hardships endured by our leaders during the Soviet era.  We shall heed to the call “Gochem abroghats” of our Karabagh heroes, to keep alive the name of the Armenian nation and to hold onto our biblical land, where God Himself descended and blessed our nation with His Resurrection.  It is this spiritual force, which, passing through our victimized forefathers, inspires in us the vision to be born again as a free and independent nation.  “The dead will be forgotten when the dream is dead, and the living are dead when the dead are silent.  Together, we have a dream that connects our yesteryears to our tomorrows.”

Our nation’s continuing dream is our Motherland, Armenia.  “A meager and bleak light, sparking from the ashes of our dreams, has landed at the foot of Ararat, which, with its pale rays protects our past dreams and future radiance.”
When we commemorate the memory of the victims of the Genocide, it is important to make our Motherland and Holy Etchmiadzin part of our life, for Motherland and faith are two of our most precious values that are the purpose and mission of our life.
Today I call on to our sons and daughters, especially the younger generation, to make a pilgrimage to our roots – our Motherland. This should be the guiding principle of our life, so that by the centenary of the Genocide, every living Armenian would have visited our homeland and experienced deep in his heart the true feeling of belonging.  For, the stronger our spiritual link is to our Motherland, the mor