Armenian Church commemorates Prophet Jeremiah

Today, the Armenian Apostolic Church commemorates the Prophet Jeremiah.

Prophet Jeremiah is one of the four Major Prophets of the Old Testament. In comparison with other persons and saints of the Holy Bible, there is much more and rather trustworthy information about the Prophet Jeremiah.

The Prophet Jeremiah lived during the latter part of the seventh century and the first part of the sixth century B.C. He was the son of Hilkiah, one of the priests of the town of Anathoth, not far from Jerusalem. He lived and preached in Jerusalem. Feeling the calling to serve God, he has devoutly served, refusing to marry and have his own family.

The people, being idolatrous and experiencing social difficulties and unfairness, could not understand his honest motives. As a result of such an attitude, the Prophet Jeremiah prophesies the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple. Witnessing his nation’s idolatry and sin, he continuously preaches equality and true faith in God and exhorts them to change the way they are living and to be fair in their treatment of one another, to stop taking advantage of aliens, orphans, and widows, to stop killing innocent people in this land, and to stop worshipping other gods, for that will destroy them (The Book of Jeremiah, 7:1–6, compare with 5:25–28).