It has seemed to the writer unnecessary in the preceding pages to say much about the unimportant ceremonies, forms and certain superstitious practices which have crept into the Armenian church. But it has been admitted that, owing to various causes and corrupt influences of both so called Christian and non-Christian nations about them, the Armenians were unable to preserve the noble apostolic Church in its simplicity and purity.
A brief reference already has been made to the emissaries and missionaries of the Roman Catholic Church, who early, though unsuccessfully, endeavored to bring the Armenian Church under the influence and control of the popes of Rome. Yet it may not be considered a complete failure, especially after the establishment of the Mukhetarist convent and the activities of its monks, who edited many ancient Armenian works of those who were leaning toward the papal views. As the result about one hundred thousand Armenians cut loose from the Mother Church and formed the Catholic Armenian Church. This separation was completed by the appointment in 1830 of the Sultan of Turkey a patriarch over the Catholic Armenians. This missionary work has not advanced much since.
A few centuries ago news traveled a great deal slower than it does now. The great Reformation in Europe, which shook the foundations of some governments, and shaped the destiny of the nations in the west, was not expected to die out without some little stir in the east. An Armenian priest wrote a book in 1760, praising the great reformer, Martin Luther, and his work, and called the attention of the people to the need for reformation in their own church. It is a pity that his book was never printed. It was, however, more or less, circulated and did its good work. The publication and circulation of the Bible by the British and Russian Bible Societies succeeded the above incident in the beginning of the last century. These events paved the way for a greater movement.
The American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions was organized at Bradford, Mass., June 29, 1810. Mr. Parsons “on his first visit to Jerusalem in 1821 encountered some Armenian pilgrims, whose interesting conversation drew from him the suggestion of a mission to Armenia itself. ‘We shall rejoice,’ said they, ‘and all will rejoice when they arrive.’”
Several Armenian clergymen espoused the cause of reformation in 1826 at Beirut, Syria. Two of them, Bishop Dionysius and Krikor Vartabed, like Paul and Barnabas, traveled through Asia Minor preaching the Gospel to the people with great acceptance. “These brethren assured the missionaries that the minds of the Armenian people were wonderfully inclined towards the pure gospel, and that should preachers go among them doubtless thousands would be ready to receive the truth. They themselves wrote letters to their countrymen, which excited no little attention.”[83]
The publication and circulation of several thousand copies of the Scriptures and their being eagerly read by the leading men, the labors of these and other Armenian ecclesiastics, and especially the training school for priests at Constantinople, which was committed to the charge of Peshtimaljian, “a profound scholar, a theologian, and an humble student of the Bible—a sort of an Oriental Melancthon, even in his timidity”—were indubitable signs of a wonderful reformation.
Revs. W. Goodell and Bird were appointed by the board to join the Syrian Mission, which was established by Rev. Pliny Fisk and Rev. Levi Parsons, who had left America in 1819. On account of the Greek revolution then in progress, Christians everywhere, and especially in the seaports, were treated by the Turks with the greatest barbarity as they are now. Dr. Goodell wrote from Beirut, May 15, 1826:
“Human beings, whose guilt is no greater than that of their proud oppressors, are condemned without a trial, their flesh trembling for fear, their religion blasphemed, their Saviour insulted, their comforts despoiled, their lives threatened, and their bodies filled with pain, and deeply marked with the blows inflicted by Turkish barbarity.”
The condition of affairs compelled the American and English missionaries and their Armenian assistants to repair for protection under the British flag to the Island of Malta. Here Dr. Goodell and his co-workers completed the translation of the New Testament into the Armeno-Turkish in 1830.[84]
The following year Dr. Goodell was instructed by the Board to go to Constantinople and commence a distinct mission there among the Armenians. He was followed in due time by the Revs. Dwight, Schauffer, Riggs, Bliss, Hamlin, Van Lennep, Wood and others. Their work largely consisted in opening schools, translating, publishing and printing religious tracts and portions of the Scriptures, and holding religious services. In the absence of much reading material in those days, these tracts, pamphlets and portions of the Bible were eagerly sought and read by the people, and not without good results.