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| Armenian Apostolic Church of Holy Resurrection in Dhaka (Courtesy: Armenian Church of Bangladesh) |
The two-storied white-colored church sparkles and
stands quietly in the midst of a flurry of high-rise residential buildings in
Armenian Street of Armanitola in the old part of Dhaka.
Dozens of tombs in the adjacent graveyard
recall the Armenians who lived and died in Bangladesh's capital.
Built in 1781, the Armenian Apostolic
Church of Holy Resurrection is not just a historic landmark but also bears
testimony to Dhaka's once-thriving Armenian community, which was credited with
shaping the economic and social life of the city in the 18th and 19th
centuries.
Set up in 1868, Holy Cross Catholic
Church, not far from the Armenian church, has a sizable Christian community.
Armenian Street and the Armanitola area
are testament to a bygone era. However, much of the glorious legacy of
Armenians in Dhaka including the church could have been lost without Michael
Joseph Martin, the last resident Armenian of Dhaka.
Martin was the warden of the church for
more than three decades. His singlehanded efforts were instrumental in reviving
the church from a shambles, literally.
Martin's three daughters — Eleanor,
Christine and Cheryl — settled in Canada years ago, but he stayed in Bangladesh
with his wife, Veronica, to take care of the church.
Veronica passed away in 2003 and was
buried in the church's graveyard, but Martin stayed put until his declining
health forced him to move to Canada in 2014.
Before leaving, he passed on the
wardenship to Armen Arslanian, an Armenian businessman based in Los Angeles in
the US.
Martin died in Canada peacefully on April 10 at the age of 89. His demise brought an end to an era of Armenians in Dhaka that is now part of history.
