In October of every year, Armenian institutions all over the world celebrate Translators’ Day. This year we celebrate 1600 years of the invention of the Armenian Alphabet.
The translation movement started in the fifth century AD when Catholicos Sahak Bartev and Mesrop Mashtotz realized the need of the translation of the Bible into Armenian. Having in mind that the Armenians had accepted Christianity as the state religion in 301 AD, there was a real problem: the official language of the church was Greek. Only the educated could read and understand the Bible.
Catholicos Sahak and King Vramshabouh entrusted the task of inventing an Armenian Alphabet to Mesrop. After years of research, Mesrop finally succeeded in 404 AD. Armenian tradition claims that it was during a time of prayer and meditation the alphabet was given to him in a heavenly vision.
Immediately, Sahak Mesrop and their pupils committed themselves to the translation of the Bible. That translation is known as “the Queen of Traslations.” The age of unparalleled intellectual and spiritual enlightenment (the “Golden Age”) had started.
1. In today’s passage Paul says: “You are a letter from Christ.” (vs 3) Although reading the Bible in your own language is a great opportunity, yet us if we only read it. When we understand and obey it, we ourselves become “the letter”. In that case we will not have the Word only on our lips but written in our hearts. The Word of God becomes our guide. We live by it. We grow into it.
2. The Word of God is not written with ink but with the Spirit. We Christians are sometimes tempted to be too attached to the “ink”. But it is the Spirit which gives life to the “ink”.
We do have four Gospels in the Bible. However, there is a fifth Gospel: it is your life in Christ, your testimony. People will read it and God will be glorified. Plato once said that a good teacher does not write his message in ink that will fade; he writes it upon men. This is exactly what Christ had done in the life of the Corinthians. God used Paul, His servant, to write His message on “tablets of human hearts.” (vs 3)
Every Christian is an open letter for Jesus Christ. This is a huge responsibility.
3. As we remember the Translators, let us ask ourselves. Are we good translators? Do people read Christ’s message through us? Do they read the fifth Gospel as we live for Him?
On this special day of commemoration, I also invite you to do whatever we can to keep the Armenian language and heritage alive. We, who have inherited such a rich legacy, can not forget our history.
Our Alphabet was invented for reading the Bible. Let us keep it alive for the glory of God!