St. Gregory the Illuminator Armenian Apostolic Church has stood at 220 South Third Street in Fowler, California, since its consecration on April 17, 1910. The Reverend Father Theodoros Isahagian served as the first parish priest, and the small farming town just south of Fresno became a regional anchor for Armenians who had settled across the San Joaquin Valley. By 1920, approximately 9,000 Armenians lived in Fresno County, with more than half outside the city of Fresno itself, and St. Gregory became the hub of a religious and social community in the Central Valley's Armenian heartland.
More than a century later, the parish continues that role under the spiritual leadership of Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Primate of the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church of North America, and the pastoral care of Rev. Fr. Gomidas Zohrabian. The Parish Council, chaired by Paulette Kalebjian, oversees parish life, and a working office at the church keeps the doors open five days a week.
Sunday Badarak at Ten
Every Sunday morning at 10:00 a.m., the parish gathers for the Soorp Badarak, the Holy Divine Liturgy that has been the center of Armenian Christian worship for nearly two millennia. The form celebrated today was formalized around the end of the tenth century and is offered in krapar, classical Armenian, with additional Greek and Hebrew words retained from the earliest liturgies used by Armenians before St. Mesrop Mashdots created the Armenian alphabet in 405 A.D. Holy Communion is the purpose and reason for the gathering: the mystery of Christ's presence in the broken bread and shared cup, the act of thanksgiving to God for the gifts of both earthly and eternal life in Christ.
The full liturgy, with Scripture readings, hymns, sermon, and the eucharistic celebration, runs through the late morning. Members of the choir, sustained by the Ladies Society, lead the singing. Visitors are warmly received, English-language announcements and printed resources help non-Armenian-speaking guests follow the service, and the priest is glad to greet people after the dismissal.
Baptism, Chrismation, and Communion Together
The Armenian Apostolic Church retains an early Christian practice that sets it apart from many other Christian traditions: the three sacraments of initiation - baptism, chrismation, and first communion - are administered together, generally to infants, just as they were in the days when whole households were baptized at Easter. The priest pours Holy Muron from a dove-shaped vessel and anoints nine parts of the body while singing "Arakeloh Aghavnoh," recalling the descent of the Holy Spirit on Christ. A red and white braid, the narod, is placed around the child's neck along with a cross, symbolizing the blood and water that poured from Christ's side.
Along with the three initiation sacraments, the parish celebrates Penance, Marriage, Ordination, and Funeral according to the Canons of the Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Church. Penance can take both private and public forms; the more common public form, led before communion, is a shortened version of the ten confessional statements of St. Ephraim the Syrian, originally introduced into the Armenian Church by St. Gregory the Illuminator. Marriage follows the Armenian rite that has been observed since at least the fourth century: rings are passed, the right hands of the bride and groom are joined, narods are set on their heads as crowns of honor, and the couple drinks from a common cup of wine recalling the wedding at Cana. Ordination follows a three-fold ministry of deacon, priest, and bishop, with the priesthood fully developed by the second century. The funeral rite is divided into three parts - the Home Service or wake, the Church Service, and the Graveside Service - all subject to the pastor's approval. No funeral is performed on Saturday afternoons after 3 p.m. or on Sundays, in keeping with canon law.
Four Parish Organizations
Parish life at St. Gregory is carried by four long-running organizations, each founded to support the worship and education of the community.
Sunday School (since 1915)
Five years after the parish was consecrated, a group of girls from the church organized a Girls' Church Aid Society and established the Sunday School in 1915. In 1932, the St. Gregorian Club took over sponsorship, and through the difficult years of the Depression the number of students rose and fell with the times. Today the Sunday School emphasizes Bible study for older students, Bible-based stories for younger children, Armenian Apostolic Church traditions and culture, and applying God's love in daily life. A back-to-school fellowship opens the fall, a Christmas program and dinner precede the Armenian Christmas observance on December 25, and the year closes with a graduation and promotion ceremony that recognizes twelfth-grade graduates.
Ladies Society (since 1949)
The Ladies Society was founded in 1949 by Rose Kandarian, Edna Ahronian, and Nan Mirigian. For more than seven decades the women of St. Gregory have studied, practiced, and propagated the teachings of Holy Scripture and the doctrines and rites of the Armenian church, supporting the choir, the Sunday School, and the upkeep of Markarian Hall. The society is led today by Co-Chairladies Lydia Topoozian and Christine Sahatdjian.
Men's Forum (since 1995)
The Men's Forum held its first meeting in Markarian Hall on March 8, 1995, with Rev. Fr. Shahe Semerdjian and a group of dedicated laymen including Deron Ahronian, Alfred Kayian, Hagie Kandarian, Mitchell Melikian, Nubar Kazarian, A.K. Mirigian, Ham Avedisian, Phillip Kurkjian, George Derderian, Ed Nikssarian, George Surabian, and Harvy Rustigian. Since then the Forum has assisted with every aspect of parish life - church activities, Sunday School, grounds work, and financial support of the ACYO, Sunday School, Armenian School, and church operations. The Forum was central in marking the parish's seventy-fifth, ninetieth, and hundredth anniversaries.
Armenian Church Youth Organization
The ACYO of Fowler is the local chapter of the Armenian Church Youth Organization of the Western Diocese of North America, founded in 1949. The chapter brings together the teenagers of the parish for worship, service, education, and fellowship in Christ according to the doctrines and traditions of the Armenian Apostolic Church.
Markarian Hall and Parish Fellowship
Markarian Hall is the social heart of the parish, the place where the Men's Forum held its founding meeting and where the Ladies Society hosts the meals that have raised funds for the church for decades. Shish kebab dinners, the fall back-to-school fellowship, the Christmas program, and the end-of-year party are part of the rhythm of the year. The hall also hosts the gatherings that mark the anniversaries of the 1910 consecration.
The Armenian Apostolic Tradition
The Armenian Church traces its roots to the apostles Thaddeus and Bartholomew, whose graves are honored as holy shrines in Armenia. After centuries of witness and persecution, the country officially accepted Christianity as the state religion in 301 A.D. through the work of St. Gregory the Illuminator, an Armenian Parthian who had studied in Caesarea in Cappadocia. The patron saint of the Armenians, St. Gregory baptized King Drtad, the royal household, and the princely families. To make the Gospel accessible, Mesrop Mashdots invented the Armenian alphabet in 405 A.D. with the support of King Vramshabouh and Catholicos Sahag, and over the next thirty years the Bible was translated into Armenian from the Greek Septuagint alongside the important writings of the Fathers of the Church. In the Battle of Avarayr in 451, Armenians under Saint Vartan defended their faith and secured their right to practice Christianity freely.
The Armenian Church follows the Church of Alexandria doctrinally and has held the same Christological position as St. Cyril, professing "One Nature of the Incarnate Word of God" while anathematizing the teaching of Eutyches. The Church teaches that Christ became a real and perfect man in body, mind, and soul without ever ceasing to be God. Of the seven ecumenical councils, the Armenian Church accepts the first three - Nicaea in 325, Constantinople in 381, and Ephesus in 431 - rejects the fourth, and refrains from pronouncement on the rest. Its teachings on sacraments and church order are shared with the other Orthodox Churches.
The church's calendar marks many feasts celebrated together by the worldwide Armenian Church. Among them are the Feast of Holy Pentecost, the Feast of the Cathedral of Holy Etchmiadzin, the Transfiguration of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Assumption of the Holy Mother-of-God, the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, and the Holy Cross of Varak. At Pascha the parish proclaims "Christ is Risen from the Dead" with the traditional Armenian Easter greeting.
Pastoral Care and Practical Information
The church office is open Monday through Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and on Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. The office phone is (559) 834-2919 and the fax line is (559) 834-1960. The mailing address is P.O. Box 246, Fowler, California 93625, and the church building sits at 220 South Third Street in Fowler. Livestreamed services and parish updates are available through the parish's Facebook page and YouTube channel.