The sacred Blessing of the Holy Muron will be held at the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin on September 27. During the ceremony, the Godfather for the Blessing of the Holy Muron (“Godfather of the Holy Muron”) also plays a major role.

How is the “Godfather of the Holy Muron” selected and what is his mission? The Information System of the Mother See informs upon the request of journalist for Hayern Aysor Gevorg Chichyan.

According to the sacred tradition, when St. Gregory the Illuminator performed the Blessing of the Holy Muron, he granted the honor of being the Godfather of the Holy Muron to Armenian King Trdat, who took on the responsibility of being the protector and patron of the marvelous oil made for the Armenians.

Some rituals of the Armenian Church, like the Blessing of Water or the Blessing of the Holy Muron, have their “Godfathers”. The Godfather for the Blessing of Water is referred to as “the Godfather of the Cross”, and the Godfather for the Blessing of the Holy Muron is referred to as “the Godfather of the Holy Muron”. Recently, the godfathers of these two ceremonies were mundane clergymen devoted to the church, as a sign of the prayers of the faithful. The godfather plays his major role during the Blessing of the Holy Muron. The godfather walks in front of the Patriarch in a silk shirt, usually goes up on the Stage and helps open the Boiler.

The Blessing of the Holy Muron is usually held in the Armenian Apostolic Church once every seven years. It is performed by the Catholicos of All Armenians, and the Godfather of the Holy Muron represents all Armenians around the world. Unlike the Blessing of the Holy Muron, the Blessing of Water ceremony takes place in all Armenian churches, and each Church has its Godfather of the Cross. The Godfather of the Cross is selected from among people of different levels of the church community who provide their assistance to the given church throughout the year and support the spiritual pastor to carry out his programs devoted to the construction of churches.

The Godfather of the Holy Muron is selected based on his contributions to the nation and the church. Being a godfather is also the Church’s appreciation for the great merit of the given person and the major contributions that he has made to the nation and the Church.

Benefactor of the Mother See, Canadian-Armenian Haig Titizian has been selected as the Godfather of the Holy Muron this year.

Argentine-Armenian benefactor Eduardo Eurnekian was the Godfather for the Blessing of the Holy Muron in 2001, and Armenian American benefactor Sarkis Bedevian was the Godfather in 2008.