Zohrab Information Center adds Liturgy and Liturgical Materials Collection
A collection of mostly unpublished materials related to the liturgy and worship services of the Armenian Church is now available for the interested public to view at the Zohrab Information Center. The Liturgy and Liturgical Materials Collection was processed by Andrew Kayaian, librarian of St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary and St. Nersess Armenian Seminary, and Nareg Seferian, who completed his doctoral studies at Virginia Tech’s School of Public and International Affairs in 2023.
The collection consists of four series. The first brings together a number of documents pertaining to the Badarak or the Divine Liturgy – that is, the service with which the faithful are most familiar from ordinary Sundays. Armenian churches tend to have books in their pews with the text and order of the Badarak, often in Armenian with translation and transliteration so that parishioners can follow along. These official pew books are usually published by the various dioceses of the Armenian Church and have made their way into library collections around the world. What makes the Zohrab Information Center’s collection unique is that it consists of more ephemeral or local materials put together by individual priests, parishes, or others for specific occasions and local needs, which otherwise would be lost or unknown if not gathered together here. This series in the collection also includes materials related to the various aspects of Sunday worship, such as Gospel readings, the confession, and the creed.
naregseferian.com 