BRAINTREE -- Archbishop Richard G. Henning and Vicar General Msgr. Robert Oliver joined local clergy, elected officials, scholars, and members of Boston's Armenian community for a commemoration of the 111th anniversary of the Armenian genocide at the Massachusetts State House on April 24.

"It is a blessing and an honor to be with you today, and I want to note the joy, the history of the close collaboration between the Armenian community and the Latin Rite Catholics of the archdiocese," Archbishop Henning said before delivering the invocation.

In 1915, the Ottoman Empire began a campaign of mass deportations, killings, and forced starvation against the Armenian people, resulting in an estimated death toll of around one million. To this day, the Turkish government denies that a genocide took place, while the U.S. and other countries have recognized the atrocities.

The genocide prompted a wave of Armenian immigration to the Boston area, particularly to Belmont and Watertown. Armenia is the oldest Christian nation in the world. Most Armenians belong to the country's own church, the Armenian Apostolic Church, while others belong to the Armenian Catholic Church or Armenian Evangelical Church.

In his remarks on Beacon Hill, Archbishop Henning said that members of the Apostolic and Evangelical Churches are his "Christian brothers."

"The Armenian people have brought to Boston and to the whole world a rich Christian faith and a treasure house of artistic, literary, and musical works, as well as a legacy of scientific achievement, international trade works, and great works of architecture," he said.

He said that the Armenian people and their history of Christian faith have been a gift from God.

"Too often the people have suffered the effects of wars of aggression, and even a most terrible campaign of genocidal violence," he said. "Even in this darkness, these people have given a martyr's witness of faith in God and compassion for others."

The genocide failed to kill the spirit of the Armenian people, the archbishop said. By God's grace, the Armenian diaspora spread worldwide, "serving as tangible reminders of an enduring faith and an irrepressible embrace of your gift of life."

"We mourn those lost to senseless violence," he said. "Lord, we mourn those missing generations even today as people continue to suffer the loss of so many and so much. But even as we mourn, we give you thanks and place our hope in you."

At the end of the commemoration, Archbishop Henning joined Armenian clergy in an intercessory prayer, invoking the martyrs of the genocide.