Our Right to Free Speech

Talk about tapping into the Armenian Church. Take the Next Step with your Compass in hand. There’s no name etching on a brick over here – just some pure, straight, Armodoxy.

First off – when was it? Sunday, the memorial dedication of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.? Now call it coincidence, but this weekend the civil rights movement bridged with the world’s largest rally against corporate power and unjust practices. You all know what I'm talking about?. Occupy Wall Street. It was awesome!

The world stood up and said NO MORE! The impact to the people has become so severe that they are no longer willing to accept this excessively unbalanced system. It became a global cause and people banded together to make their statements. People reacted to the monsters - GREED - UNCHECKED POWER – THIS CLASS WARFARE THAT HAS THREATENED SO MANY PEOPLE.

Now…before the guards come and take me away, I have to admit that while all this was happening I couldn’t help but direct my own focus, sparked by these current issues to the state of the Armenian Church. It’s all relevant and I think it’s the perfect opportunity to ask the bigger questions. The aroma of protest has filled the air and we are asking questions about establishment and this institution and what it represents - what her mission really is.

Now, let me step back around as say this – as human beings we SHOULD have basic human rights and freedoms right – this is regardless of nationality, sex, national or ethnic origin, race, religion, language, or other status. As the church we should be the ones who defend these rights and freedoms.

Look at Jesus. What was he doing? He was challenging his own society? Him and his crew were picketing away…he was right there with the marginalized - the women, the poor, the sick. He was challenging the institution – the unjust world and he was PROMOTING DIGNITY – which really is our most basic human right!

Over the last 4 weeks the media has been analyzing and reporting what the 99% are doing in the Occupy Wall Street protests. Let’s sum this up – in these protest rights are being defended – truth is being demanded and the greedy are being called out. A voice that needs to be heard has taken the streets and is calling for change. Whether up against the big banks and corporations, who may be disregarding all of this as a temporary nuisance or winning the hearts and minds of the world – injustices are being recognized and that is a beautiful thing. That is the spirit of people rising above and beyond their little world and expanding towards a better world.

It was the great Civil Rights movement that changed so much for so many. We have all been touched by the work upheld by all the leaders of the movement. It was a few voices that turned into many and the shift towards the most basic of human rights became the ongoing mission.

So as the Armenian Church not only do we look at our Church fathers and our Saints – but we should also be looking at the Dr. Kings, the Rosa Parks, the Sojourner Truths - whose strength and courage rocked the world - who had such an impact on mankind. Let’s rip out of our bubble and expand – let’s kick up that enthusiasm and become the Church that rallies – that strengthens the world – that stands together in the face of adversity. That is the Church that honors the good work that is being done - that supports that work – that builds for that work.

I thought I would be expressing strictly about the family within the Church today but we can see so clearly that the family is bigger than we think. Our gender roles are very important topics that we need to look at but our human roles are even more important.