Armenian Studies Department News

On April 13-14 the Armenian Studies Program of the Hebrew University conducted a Symposium on "Armenian Pilgrimage to the Holy Land." The Symposium was the final event of the year-long celebration of 30 Years of Armenian Studies at the Hebrew University. The Guest of Honor was H.B. Patriarch Mesrob II of Istanbul. As a young priest, Patriarch Mesrob studied in of the Hebrew University's Armenian Studies Program under Professor Michael Stone. The Symposium was organized jointly with the Ben-Tzvi Institute for the study of Jerusalem.

During the two days, an audience of between 40 and 60 persons heard lectures on a variety of aspects of the Armenian presence in the Holy Land. Dr. Bruria Ashkelony (Center for Christian Studies) talked about "Pilgrimage and Monastic Culture" and Dr. Nira Stone (Armenian Studies) on "From Sin to Sainthood: A Pilgrimage to Jerusalem in Armenian Art" describing the pilgrimage and conversion of St. Mary the Egyptian.

Three lectures related to discoveries of ancient Armenian inscriptions: Dr. Ronni Reich (Haifa University) talked about a seventh-century pilgrim hostel west of the Old City where an Armenian graffito was found and Mr. Uzi Avner (Eilat) described ancient roads in the Sinai desert, by which pilgrims traveled to Mount Sinai. Professor Michael Stone analyzed and presented the historical context of the new Armenian mosaic discovered north of Jerusalem, near the famous Bird Mosaic. He proposed a new identification of the two mosaics in a previously unknown Armenian suburb outside the city walls in this area.

Other lectures dealt with specific evidence for Armenian pilgrims of late medieval and early modern times. Mr. Sergio LaPorta (Armenian Studies and Harvard University) discussed the pilgrimage to the Holy Land of St. Grigor Tatewatsi and issues in his biography. H.B. Patriarch Mesrob gave a fascinating lecture on his predecessor on the Patriarchal Throne of Istanbul, Patriarch Yovhannes IX Golod, his role in the strengthening of relationships between the Patriarchates of Jerusalem and Istanbul and in particular with Patriarch Gregory Shghtayagir (the Chainbearer) of Jerusalem.

Dr. Roberta Ervine (Armenian Studies) lectured on Jerusalem Manuscript 3573, an account-book of pilgrims who came to Jerusalem in the nineteenth century. Using its evidence she traced the transformation of the economic and religious function of pilgrimage for the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem. Professor Abraham Terian (St. Nersess Seminary, New York) gave a wide ranging assessment of Armenian pilgrimage literature and its chief characteristics. He established the parameters of the previously unstudied literary genre.

At the opening session of the Conference Patriarch Mesrob read a Gontak, a Patriarchal Letter of Blessing for Professor Michael Stone and the Armenian Studies program. This unique honor was recognized on that occasion and at the Banquet that evening. There, after His Beatitude read the first lines of his Letter in Hebrew, to the delight of the assembled guests, and its translated text was read in English. In his letter, Patriarch Mesrob congratulated Professor Stone and the Hebrew University for the high standard of and devotion given to the Armenian Studies program. He noted the ancient and sustained relationship between the Armenian people and the Holy Land and the appropriateness of the existence of a University-level Armenian Studies program alongside the great institutions of the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem.

On the evening of April 13 a Festive Banquet was held at Jerusalem's Crowne Plaza Hotel. The gathering was greeted and blessed by His Beatitude, Archbishop Torkom Manoogian, Armenian Patriarch of Jerusalem. President Emeritus Professor Hanoch Guttfreund represented the Hebrew University. Greetings were brought by Prof. Amiel Mazar, Director of the Ben-Tzvi Institute, and by Professor Abraham Terian, Academic Dean of St. Nersess Seminary. In his remarks, Professor Stone discussed the importance of cultivating and nurturing the study of the Armenian cultural, spiritual and artistic heritage in the twenty-first century. Patriarch Mesrob presented his Letter of Blessing in Hebrew and English and gifts were exchanged. Among the guests were H.E. Tsolag Momjian, Honorary Consul of the Republic of Armenia; Knesset Member the Honorable Alexander Tsinker M.K; and Professor Steven Kaplan, Head of the Institute of African and Asian Studies. Members of the University and Armenian communities attended the banquet and, particularly notable, was the presence of many students of Armenian Studies.

The proceedings of all three conferences held by the Hebrew University's Armenian Studies Program this past year will be published as a book in the newly established Hebrew University Armenian Studies series.

CALL FOR MANUSCRIPTS

The Hebrew University Armenian Series (formerly University of Pennsylvania Armenian Texts and Studies) calls for the submission of manuscripts in the broad field of Armenian Studies.

The series is published by Peeters of Leuven, Belgium.

Persons interested in proposing manuscripts to this series should contact the editor, Michael E. Stone. Manuscripts will be considered by the Editorial Board or by independent readers appointed by the Editorial Board.

Books accepted by the Editorial Board will be published. Camera Ready Copy is no longer required.

Michael E. Stone
Armenian Studies Program
Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Mount Scopus, Jerusalem
Israel
fax: +972-2-588-3658

Recently the following Armenological and Armenological connected works have been published by Brill Academic Publishers of Leiden, Holland.

PSEUDO-ZENO: ANONYMOUS PHILOSOPHICAL TREATIES

ISBN 90-04-11524-2

From inside the cover:

The ANONYMOUS PHILOSOPHICAL TREATISE is here presented to the western world for the first time. It is a philosophical treatise of the Late Antique period, written in about the sixth century C.E. The author was a Christian, but he utilized pagan philosophical sources. This this is one of the latest writing of ancient philosophy, and as such is of very considerable interest and importance.

The ANONYMOUS PHILOSOPHICAL TREATISE was preserved only in Armenian. It was published first half-a-century ago in Armenian and in Russian translation, but it barely known to western scholarship. Here a new edition is presented, preparedon computer, together with critical apparatuses, translation and commentary. A variety of tools for the study of the text are included: a concordance, a wordlist of the English translation, trilingual tables of Armenian - Greek - English technical terminology and more. Michael E. Stone is professor of Armenian Studies at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Manea E. Shirinial is a Senior Researcher at the Mashtotz Matenadaran Institute of Ancient manuscripts in Erevan, Armenia. Prof.dr. Jaap Mansfeld (Utrecht) and Prof.dr.D.Th.Runia (Leiden) cooperated with Stone and Shirinian in the preparation of the book, particularly of the Commentary.

LITERATURE ON ADAM AND EVE: COLLECTED ESSAYS

ISBN 90-04-11600-1

This book contains two substantial contributions by Michael Stone of Armenological Interest:

The Legend of the Cheirograph of Adam, pp. 149-166

Selections from ON THE CREATION OF THE WORLD by Yovhannes T'lkuranc'i: Translation and Commentary, pp. 167-214.

From inside the cover:

For many centuries, the acts and destinies of the first-created human beings, Adam and Eve, have intrigues artists, story-tellers and theologians alike. This volume is a collection of articles on these traditions, written by some of the foremost scholars in the field.

The volume consists of two parts. In the first part, G.A. Anderson and M.E. Stone, close collaborators for years, have combined a number of studies on the rich variety of Adam and Eve traditons, from the LIFE OF ADAM AND EVE onwards to late medieval writings in Armenian. The second part, edited by Joh. Tromp, consists of papers read at the 1998 Leiden symposium and deals more specifically with the LIFE OF ADAM AND EVE.

Gary A. Anderson is Professor of Hebrew and Old Testament at Harvard Divinity School.

Michael E. Stone is Gail Levin de Nur Professor of Religion and Professor of Armenian Studies at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Johannes Tromp is Lecturer of Ancient Israelite Religion and Greco-Roman Judaism at Leiden University.

Archbishop Torkom Manoogian, Armenian Patriarch of Jerusalem lectured to a full hall at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem on February 29, 2000. The Patriarch lectured on "The Genius of Komitas Vartabed through his Songs." Setting Komitas' musical activity into the context of his life, the Patriarch stated, "the killing of Komitas' creativity was itself the genocide of a major part of Armenian culture."

The lecture was jointly sponsored by the Hebrew University's Armenian Studies Program and the Department of Musicology. Patriarch Torkom was presented by Michael Stone, Professor of Armenian Studies and introduced by Professor Steven Kaplan, Head of the Institute of African and Asian Studies. His Beatitude in his lecture, illustrated by his own presentation of many Komitas songs, pointed out the need to fit the interpretation of Komitas' music to the spirit and the realities of Armenian life and the Armenian people.

An audience composed of professors and students of Armenian Studies and of Musicology and of members of the University, the Armenian Community and the general public took away vivid impressions of the Patriarch's magisterial presentation of central dimensions of Komitas' rich musical heritage. "It is most important that the name of this foremost Armenian musical genius has been so fittingly presented at the Hebrew University," commented Professor Michael Stone.

Following the lecture, Patriarch Torkom was guest of honor at a dinner hosted by the Armenian Studies program with the support of the Department of Musicology. Guests included President of the Hebrew University Professor Menahem Magidor, Dean of the Faculty of Humanities Professor Yair Zakovitch, H.E. Mr. Tsolag Momjian, Honorary Consul of the Republic of Armenia; Professors Amnon Shiloach and Roger Kamien of the Musicology Department; and Professor Michael Stone and Dr. Nira Stone of Armenian Studies. President Magidor presented Patriarch Torkom with a book on the Albert Einstein Archives which are held by the Hebrew University. The Patriarch presented the Armenian Studies program with a number of books on Armenian music including some of his own arrangements of Komitas' music.

A delegation of six American Armenian leaders paid a visit to the Hebrew University's Armenian Studies program on February 23, 2000. The delegation was composed of Mr. Ross Vartian, Executive Director of the Armenian Assembly of America; Mrs. Annie Totah, Armenian Assembly of America Board Member; Mr. Robert Kallodisan, Board Member and Counsel to the Board of Trustees of the Armenian Assembly of America; Mr. Hirair Hovanian, a founding benefactor of the Armenian Assembly;of America Mr. Van Krikorian , Chairman of the Armenian Assembly of America's Board of Directors; and Ms. Carolyn Mugar, President of the Armenian Assembly of America.

The visit to the Armenian Studies Program was part of a study mission hosted by the American Jewish Committee. During the visit to the Hebrew University the delegation was received by Hebrew University President Menahem Magidor and discussed with him both the aims of the Armenian Assembly of America and the role of Armenian Studies at the Hebrew University.

After a tour of the Hebrew University's beautiful Mount Scopus Campus, the delegation met with the staff and students of the Armenian Studies program and with members of the Hebrew University Armenian Studies Organization. The discussion was lively and wide-ranging, with issues of the study of the Armenian Genocide taking a prominent place. Stress was also put on the vital importance of a profound knowledge of the spiritual, artistic, literary and intellectual creativity of the Armenian people. Study of the Armenian cultural heritage was seen as the assertion, beyond all others, of the vitality and continuity of Armenian life into the twenty-first century.

In the evening the guests received home hospitality offered by Professor Michael Stone and Dr. Nira Stone, both of the Armenian Studies program; by the Rector of the Rothberg School for Overseas Students Professor Menahem Milson and by Head of the Institute of African and Asian Studies, Professor Steven Kaplan.

His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians, His Beatitude Mesrop II, Patriarch of Istanbul and All Turkey, and His Excellency Mr. Robert Kocharian, President of the Republic of Armenia, made millennial pilgrimages to the Holy Land during the week of January 19, on the occasion of Christmas. All three of the Armenian leaders met with students of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem's Armenian Studies Program. Encounters between the visiting dignitaries and top university officials were very fruitful.

Prof. Michael Stone, Patr. Mesrob of Istanbul and Bp Aram Ateshian Patr. Mesrob with Armenian Studies Program Students

His Beatitude Mesrop II made an informal visit to the university on January 17, accompanied by Bishop Aram Ateshian. They were received by Prof. Michael Stone, head of the Armenian Studies Program, and Prof. Steven Kaplan, head of the Institute for Asian and African Studies. His Beatitude spent an hour in animated conversation with twenty students and members of the faculty. Topics discussed included the present situation of the Armenian community in Turkey, the effects of the recent earthquake on Armenian institutions, and dialects of Armenian spoken in Turkey. The Patriarch reminisced about his days as a student at the Hebrew University and his courses in Biblical archaeology and Armenian Studies. His Beatitude's clarity of vision and dignified presence impressed all present. Patriarch Mesrop II will return to Jerusalem in April 2000, when he will be the guest of honor at the conference on Armenian Pilgrimage which concludes the celebration of 30 Years of Armenian Studies at the Hebrew University.

Rector Menahem Ben-Sasson, Pres. Robert Kocharian, Prof. Michael Stone

On Wednesday, January 19, H.E. Robert Kocharian, President of the Republic of Armenia, paid a visit to the Hebrew University. He was accompanied by Mr. Vardan Oskanian (Minister of Foreign Affairs), Armenia's Ambassador Delegate to Israel Dr. Edward Nalbandian, Honorary Consul of Armenia Mr. Tsolag Momjian and other diplomats. He was received at the entrance to the University by the Rector, Prof. Menahem Ben Sasson and Prof. Michael Stone, head of the Armenian Studies Program. In his address to University officials, President Kocharian stressed the importance of maintaining an active Armenian Studies Program at the University. Both he and Rector Ben Sasson highlighted the similar historical fates of the Armenian and Jewish peoples. A discussion on practical cooperation between the Hebrew University and institutions of the Armenian Republic followed. The Rector mentioned potential exchange of students and faculty, particularly with Yerevan State University. The need for a fully funded Chair in Armenian Studies at Hebrew University was also noted. Following these exchanges, Prof. Michael Stone outlined the activities of the Armenian Studies Program, focusing on its uniqueness in teaching the full range Ancient, Medieval and Modern Armenian language and culture. He outlined the Program's future needs for further development in the areas of Modern Armenian literature and history. President Kocharian commented that there should be a mutual development of Armenian Studies in Jerusalem and of Jewish Studies in Armenia. Follow-up discussions between the University and Armenian institutions will continue.

H. H. Karekin II and Prof. Michael Stone Students of the Armenian Studies Program with the Catholicos

At 3 PM on the afternoon of January 19, His Holiness Karekin II Catholicos of All Armenians held an audience with students and faculty of the Hebrew University Armenian Studies Program. His Holiness spoke warmly of Jerusalem's significance for Armenian history, and praised the Armenian Studies Program as a major center for maintaining and understanding the spiritual and intellectual heritage of the Armenian people. Then His Holiness responded to questions from students seated around the table concerning the present state of the Church in Armenia and His Holiness's personal vision and aspirations at the beginning of his Catholicosate. His Holiness graciously invited the students to visit Holy Ejmiacin during the Armenian Program's study trip due to take place in September, 2000. Prof. Michael Stone, head of the Armenian Studies program, presented His Holiness with a book on the history of Jerusalem, as a souvenir of this historic visit.

The week's activities closed with a formal luncheon given by Mr. Ezer Weizman, President of the State of Israel and Mrs. Weizman in honor of President and Mrs. Robert Kocharian. This concluding event was attended by Prof. Menahem Magidor, President of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Prof. Michael Stone and Dr. Nira Stone of the Armenian Studies Program, as well as by the Armenian delegation and by many Israeli friends of Armenia. The Israeli evening news covered the luncheon in detail.