Sunday, February 2, was a celebratory and joyous day for St. John parish, Archbishop Aris Shirvanian was invited to celebrate The Divine Liturgy and deliver the spiritual message. Fr. Mesrop Ash, altar servers, deacons and the choir were ready for the majestic worship experiance of the Episcopal Divine Liturgy.

Following the Episcopal Divine Liturgy, Fr. Mesrop Ash welcomed Abp. Shirvanian on behalf of the parishioners and invited him to deliver the spiritual message.

Reception following the service was held in the Paul Family Fellowship Hall hosted by members of the Armenian Community from Baku, for which we thank them.

Invited by the Mt. Davidson Cross Banquet Committee as the guest of honor, Aris Surpazan visited the the Bay Area to participate in the event, which was held on Saturday, March 1, 2014.

Aris Surpazan is very well known in Bay Area, not only as the parish priest of St. John for 16 years, but as a unifying spiritual leader. He was instrumental in purchasing the Mount Davidson Cross, which is dedicated to the martyrs of the Armenian Genocide, and he also organized a committee to welcome and help over two hundred families that came as refugees from Baku, Azerbaijan during the war for Artsakh’s independence. For both of these monumental efforts the entire Armenian community fondly remembers him.