AVANT: Treasures of the Armenian Christian Tradition
St. Nersess Seminary's AVANT series comprises book-length studies intended to bring to light the riches of the Armenian Christian heritage as reflected in her patristic, dogmatic, liturgical and other early religious literature. These spiritual treasures are presented in English translation with commentary. The series seeks to reveal the distinct Christian witness of Armenian Christianity. The series was launched in 1998, in anticipation of the 17th Centenary of the Christianization of Armenia by St. Gregory the Illuminator (301-2001 AD).
AVANT is published by St. Nersess Armenian Seminary in collaboration with St. Vladimir's Seminary Press, which coordinates production, marketing, distribution and sales.
To purchase AVANT volumes call 1-800-204-2665, or click on the links below.
AVANT 1 (2001) The Teaching of Saint Gregory, revised edition.
Robert W. Thomson
The Teaching of Saint Gregory is part of the Armenian History by the unknown author known as Agat‘angelos. The Teaching is presented as a sermon to the Armenian court giving the essential content of the Christian gospel. In its present form, however, it is a literary composition of the late-fifth century. Its great importance is that it was recognized by later generations as the core of Armenian Christian teaching. Professor Thomson has thorougly revised his translation and commentary from its first publication in 1970.
To order your copy of The Teaching of Saint Gregory CLICK HERE
AVANT 2 (2005) Patriotism and Piety in Armenian Christianity: The Early Panegyrics on Saint Gregory
Abraham Terian
Armenian Christianity manifests a unique blend of patriotism and piety. Beginning from the inception of Armenian letters at the turn of the fifth century, Professor Terian surveys that blend in ancient Armenian sources spanning a thousand years. He shows how the theme finds its fullest manifestation as a literary motif in the medieval panegyrics (praise literature) dedicated to St. Gregory the Illuminator. Also included are translations of selections of thirteen of these odes and panegyrics, as well as a complete translation of the long Panegyric of Yovhannes Erznkats‘i.
To order your copy of Patriotism and Piety in Armenian Christianity CLICK HERE
AVANT 3 (2006) Worship Traditions in Armenia and the Neighboring Christian East. An International Symposium in Honor of the 40th Anniversary of St. Nersess Armenian Seminary
R. R. Ervine, ed
The worship of the Armenians and their Christian neighbors—Byzantine, and East and West Syrian—conserved and transmitted through liturgy, remains as a vital link to their heritage, and this collection provides the key to the heart of the Christian East. The voices captured in the pages of this book originate from a symposium held
in honor of St Nersess Seminary’s 40th
anniversary, where a panoply of scholars currently working in the field of Eastern liturgy shared the fruits of their work.
To order your copy of Worship Traditions in Armenia and the Neighboring Christian East CLICK HERE
Contents of Worship Traditions
I. LITURGY IN HISTORY
The Development of the Liturgy in Armenia and Her Neighbors Was the Eucharistic Anaphora Recited Secretly or Aloud? The Ancient Tradition and What Became of It
Robert F. Taft, S.J.
On the Formation of the Armenian Anaphoras: A Preliminary Overview
Gabriele Winkler
A Response to Prof. Winkler on the Formation of the Armenian Anaphoras
Maxwell Johnson
On the “Preparatory Rites” of the Armenian Divine Liturgy: Some Remarks on the Ritual of Vesting
Hans-Jürgen Feulner
A Response to Prof. Feulner on the ‘Preparatory Rites’ of the Armenian Divine Liturgy
Peter Galadza
The Influence of Iconoclasm on Liturgy: A Case Study
Dn. Stefanos Alexopoulos
Liturgy’s Effect on Sacred Architecture, Arts and Letters
Some Distinctive Features in Syriac Liturgical Texts
Sebastian P. Brock
A First Glance at the Armenian Prayers
Attributed to Sourb Ep‘rem Xorin Asorwoy
Edward G. Mathews, Jr.
Homilies and Biblical Commentary in Classical Armenian Writers
Robert W. Thomson
Mandakuni’s “Encyclical” on Fasting
Abraham Terian
he Liturgical Imagination of Medieval Armenian Monasticism
Sergio LaPorta
Vahan Aygekc'i’s Holy Places Prayerbook
Roberta R. Ervine
The Altar and the Martyr: Theological Comparisons in Liturgical Texts and Contexts
Lizette Larson-Miller
III. LITURGY YESTERDAY AND TODAY
The Interplay of Faith, Liturgy and Change
Armenian Spirituality: An Attempt to Define
Some of Its Main Features and Inner Dynamics
Boghos Levon Zekiyan
Toward a Modern Mystagogy of Eastern Liturgies
Steven Hawkes-Teeples, S.J.
Rediscovering the Didactic and Missiological Aspects of Liturgy for Today
Eugen Aydin
The Monastery and Applied Liturgical Renewal
Brother Stavros of New Skete
The Question of Modern Liturgical Reform in the Armenian Church:A Clergyman’s Perspective
Arshen Aivazyan
* * *
Other volumes in preparation:
The Letter of Makarios to the Armenians
Abraham Terian
Vartan Arewelc'i's Exhortation to Priests
Roberta Ervine
Fasting in the Armenian Church
Abraham Terian
The Cross in the Church and the Church in the Cross: The Early Development of the Feasts of the Cross in Armenia
Michael Daniel Findikyan
The Prayers of St. Ephrem the Syrian
Edward G. Mathews, Jr.
The Armenian Hymns of St. Ephrem the Syrian
Edward G. Mathews, Jr.
AVANT 1 (2001)
AVANT 2 (2005)
AVANT 3 (2006)
