{"id":12707,"date":"2021-01-25T16:44:43","date_gmt":"2021-01-25T16:44:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiofree.org\/?p=154346"},"modified":"2021-01-25T16:44:43","modified_gmt":"2021-01-25T16:44:43","slug":"after-last-armenian-of-bangladesh-dies-the-church-he-saved-lives-on","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/2021\/01\/25\/after-last-armenian-of-bangladesh-dies-the-church-he-saved-lives-on\/","title":{"rendered":"After ‘Last Armenian Of Bangladesh’ Dies, The Church He Saved Lives On"},"content":{"rendered":"
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How one man\u2019s devotion to a 240-year-old church in the heart of Dhaka saved a unique monument in South Asia.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Michael<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Michael Joseph Martin (pictured in 2008) in the Armenian Church in Dhaka.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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In April, as the coronavirus pandemic dominated the world\u2019s headlines, Michael Martin, famous for being the last of a centuries-old Armenian community living in Bangladesh, passed away<\/a><\/strong> not long before his 90th birthday.<\/p>\n

His death led many to wonder what would happen to the most prominent reminder of Armenian heritage in Bangladesh — the historic church he dedicated much of his life to.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Officially<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Officially known as the Armenian Apostolic Church of the Holy Resurrection, the Armenian Church of Dhaka is located on a narrow lane in the heart of the Bangladeshi capital.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Armenians first settled in Dhaka in the early 1700s. Many of the settlers had been subjects of the Persian Empire, so were able to assimilate to life under the Persian-speaking<\/a><\/strong> Mughal rulers of the region.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"A<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A tombstone in Armenian and English from 1877 on the church grounds carries a tribute from \u201ca fond wife\u201d to her \u201cbest of husbands.\u201d<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Armenians in Dhaka were known as skilled businesspeople who dealt in jute — a stringy plant used to make sack cloth and other goods. They often served as mediators between locals and European traders.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"An<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

An 1861 painting of Dhaka<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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In the early 1800s, 126 Armenians lived in Dhaka, in a suburb named Armanitola, but the small population dwindled rapidly as economic conditions deteriorated.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"A<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A crew making renovations to the church in the 1930s.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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With Armenians nearly gone from Dhaka by the 1980s, the church began to fall into ruin.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Veronica<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Veronica and Michael Martin<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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But in 1986 Michael Martin, one of just a handful of ethnic Armenians remaining in Dhaka, and his wife Veronica, became guardians of the church. Veronica died in 2005.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Repairs<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Repairs being made to the church by a work crew organized by Michael Martin.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Martin wrote that when they took over the property it was “covered with garbage and needed immediate attention.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"The<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The church’s interior<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The couple and their three daughters also faced intense hostility from some locals, who Martin said threatened “my life along with my family\u2026. They used to scare us by hanging voodoo stuff from the trees and burying things in front of the house. God always protected us from the evil.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Martin<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Martin poses in front of the freshly repainted church in 2008.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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After decades spent repairing and guarding the church — on at least one occasion by threatening to use the rifle he kept in his residence — Michael Martin suffered a stroke in 2014 and relocated to Canada. But not before passing guardianship of the church onto someone he trusted.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"An<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

An entrance to the church in Dhaka\u2019s Armanitola suburb, which has a reputation for being a tough part of the city.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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In 2010, Los Angeles-based businessman Armen Aslanyan was on a work trip to Dhaka and first heard about the Armenian Church. After meeting with Martin, the two became close friends. After his 2014 stroke, Aslanyan told RFE\/RL that Martin took him aside and said \u201cArmen, you know now it\u2019s you [who has to protect the church], I have to leave.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Tombstones<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Tombstones stand in a cemetery on the grounds of the church.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Aslanyan says he was taken aback at the prospect of preserving a church on the other side of the world. \u201cI said I\u2019m not that religious so I know nothing about this and I don\u2019t live here.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Dhaka<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Dhaka locals lining up for food being handed out at the Armenian Church in 2020.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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But after Martin told the jet-setting Aslanyan that his taking over the guardianship of the church was all part of God\u2019s plan, Aslanyan laughs that Martin “was putting it in such a way that I\u2019m thinking ‘my God, he\u2019s probably right.’ I mean what was I doing in Dhaka right at that time? I was born in Argentina, I\u2019m living in [Los Angeles]…”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"An<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

An Orthodox Christmas service being held at the church in January 2021.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Under Aslanyan\u2019s wardenship the Armenian Church now has “a very loyal” Hindu family living full-time on the premises. Aslanyan has also founded a trust to look after the church “not for the next 50 years, but for the next 200 years.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Russia\u2019s<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Russia\u2019s ambassador to Bangladesh (left) holds Martin\u2019s rifle as he poses for a photo with the couple.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Aslanyan says the church was in “complete disarray” when Martin took over wardenship in the 1980s, and recalls a story about the late caretaker\u2019s response when a local Muslim gang vowed to kill him. “He said, OK fine. I have eight bullets here [for my rifle] so I know that I will die, but eight of you will come with me.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"A<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A plaque shows the date on which the 240-year-old church was founded.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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A post on a website<\/a><\/strong> of the Armenian Church said after Martin\u2019s death:<\/p>\n

Mr. Martin was instrumental in maintaining the survival of the Armenian Church in Dhaka. Without the many personal sacrifices and complete devotion to the church, the premises and the history of the Armenians in Dhaka would not have survived today. He and his family spearheaded what can only be described as a monumental effort to preserve our beautiful church, and it is something that will never be forgotten.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

This post was originally published on Radio Free<\/a>. <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

How one man\u2019s devotion to a 240-year-old church in the heart of Dhaka saved a unique monument in South Asia. Michael Joseph Martin (pictured in 2008) in the\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27,4,282],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12707"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12707"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12707\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12708,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12707\/revisions\/12708"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12707"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12707"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12707"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}