On the recordApril 24, 2013
As the Representative for Rhode Island's First Congressional District, which is home to many Armenian American families, I am honored to rise today in order to thank His Eminence, Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan, for offering our opening prayer and for recognizing the 98th anniversary of the start of the Armenian genocide. A native of Aleppo, Syria, Archbishop Choloyan was first ordained into the priesthood in 1967. He attended the American University of Beirut where he majored in history and later received two master's degrees from the Princeton Theological Seminary. Since 1998, Archbishop Choloyan has served as the prelate of the Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America and has focused his efforts on strengthening local faith communities under his jurisdiction. On behalf of the Armenian community in my home State of Rhode Island, I am honored to welcome the archbishop here today and to join him in remembering the victims of the Armenian genocide--the systematic extermination of Armenians living under the Ottoman Empire in the early 20th century. I join members of the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues in urging that our government finally recognize the Armenian genocide as a historical fact. ____________________
