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This attitude toward time, along with the corollary that continuity is more important than change, may be catching up with the Armenians. Their liturgy is essentially that of Basil (330-379) and still conducted in classical Armenian, which very few parishioners understand. The church relies on just three seminaries, in Jerusalem, Armenia, and Lebanon, to train clergy, and as a result many Armenians—including the million or so in America—have only nominal church leadership. Archbishop Vatche Hovsepian of Burbank, California, notes that for many Armenians religion is "a custom, not a conviction." Linda Maxwell, another Californian who works with Armenian youth, says many of the teens wear crosses but have no idea what the symbol represents.

A 1,700-year heritage of faith is a wonderful thing and well worthy to be celebrated. But this heritage will mean little unless the Armenian church begins looking to the future as well.

Elesha Coffman is associate editor of Christian History.

Copyright © 2001 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.

Other media coverage of the anniversary includes:

Rare relics — The Guardian (Jan. 15, 2001)

A Faith Tested Through 1,700 Years — The Los Angeles Times (Jan. 13, 2001)

Armenians Carrying A 1,700-Yr.-Old Flame — New York Daily News (Jan. 6, 2001)

Christian History Corner appears every Friday at ChristianityToday.com. Previous Christian History Corners include:

This Is Your Life | Exploring the "well-worn sawdust trail" between fundamentalists and evangelicals. (Jan. 19, 2000)

The Heavens Declare the Glory of God | Like Paul, Galileo believed that God made himself known through creation. (Jan. 5, 2000)

Festive Flora | Deck the halls with boughs of pagan significance, falalalala, lalalala. (Dec. 22, 2000)

Peace on Earth? | Christmas Carols and the Civil War (Dec. 15, 2000)

Why December 25? | The month and day of Christ's birth have been hotly disputed for centuries. (Dec. 8, 2000)

The Book Everyone Should Buy | Or at least know about, anyway. (Dec. 1, 2000)

The Saga of St. Chad | A tale of political maneuvers and positioning. Sound familiar? (Nov. 22, 2000)

Accidental Radical | Jan Hus's ideas seem normal now, but in his age they were revolutionary enough to merit death. (November 17, 2000)

Top 10 Reasons to Read This Book | A list of Christian books that changed the century introduces authors and their impact on evangelicalism. (Nov. 10, 2000)

The Un-Denomination | The Southern Baptist Convention has been historically Un-Conventional. (Nov. 3, 2000)

Soul Crisis at the Conference on Faith and History | Academics gather asking questions like, "What does 'Christian history' actually mean?" (Oct. 27, 2000)

Case of the Missing Relic | A piece of Jesus' cross is stolen from a Toronto cathedral—or is it? (Oct. 20, 2000)

The Politicians' Patron | Is Thomas More a saintly model? (Oct. 13, 2000)

General Revelations | Reconsidering Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant. (Oct. 6, 2000)

Olympia Revisited | Christianity and the Olympic Games were once competitors, but at other times have been on the same team. (Sept. 29, 2000)

Weighty Matters | Gwen Shamblin's teachings sound an awful lot like some in the early church—and not in a good way. (Sept. 22, 2000)

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January (Web-only) 2001, Vol. 45