POPE FRANCIS I: A VIEW FROM ARMENIA
Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso, Italy
April 9 2013
Mikayel Zolyan | Yerevan
9 April 2013
Armenians have followed closely the election of the new Pope, debating
its possible consequences in the process of international recognition
of the Genocide. In social networks, however, the event became an
opportunity to discuss the role of the Church in modern society
On March 31st, Armenians all over the world celebrated Easter. This
includes not only the majority of Armenians, who, as it is well
known, belong to the Armenian Apostolic Church, but also the less
numerous Roman Catholics in the country. A month earlier Armenians
of all denominations closely followed what was happening in Rome,
as the cardinals were choosing the new Pope.
The abdication of Benedict XVI, and the election of Francis I, became
an occasion for the Armenian public to discuss the role of the Church
in contemporary society, a matter which recently has become subject
of heated debates in Armenia.
The issues at stake are not so different from those debated in other
countries: what should be the role of the Church in the Armenian
society, how far should the separation of Church and State go, is
the Armenian Apostolic Church doing enough to adapt to the changing
realities of the 21st century.
The Roman catholic community Roman Catholics in Armenia are the ones
who followed the election of the new Pope more closely. The community,
though small in numbers, has played an important role in Armenian
history. The emergence of the Roman Catholic community is a result of
the contacts between Armenians and Western Europeans at the time of
the Crusades. Here is why Roman Catholics were historically referred
to as “Franks” by other Armenians, a term used in the Middle Ages to
refer to all Western Europeans.
Today there are Roman Catholic communities in Northern Armenia, as well
as in Javakhq (Javakheti), the Armenian populated region of neighboring
Georgia. This was the region where the most prominent Armenian in
the history of the Roman Catholic Church, cardinal Gregoire-Pierre
Agagianian , was born, a cleric close to becoming the new Pope in 1958.
The Genocide issue The Armenian television broadcasted live from Rome
the election of Pope Francis I, and the topic was widely discussed in
social networks, even though this event took place immediately after
the disputed presidential election in Armenia. Some Facebook users
even jokingly compared the two events, using the opportunity to express
their skepticism on the official outcomes of the presidential election,
where incumbent Serzh Sargsyan was declared the winner. Thus, a joke
circulated in Armenian social networks, saying that if the Armenian
Central Election Committee had counted also the votes of cardinals,
Serzh Sargsyan would have been declared the new Pope of Rome.
On a more serious note, however, some Armenians expressed hopes
that Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who, before becoming Francis I, was the
archbishop of Buenos Aires, could play a role in the process of
international recognition of the Armenian Genocide. This hope is
based on the fact that Bergoglio has had close contacts with the
influential Armenian community in Argentina, and has in the past
spoken about the Genocide condemning it strongly.
The historian of religions Hovhannes Hovhannisyan, however, believes
that these expectations are exaggerated. After all, he says, there is
not much that the Pope could do in this respect, more than restating
once again recognition and condemnation of the “Eghern” (the Armenian
name for Genocide), which has already been done by John Paul II.
Poverty and corruption Many Armenians were impressed by the ascetic
lifestyle of the new Pope, and by his down-to-earth approach to the
believers. The new Pope’s active position regarding social issues was
contrasted to the reluctance of Armenian Church hierarchs to state a
moral position regarding issues that today haunt the Armenian society,
such as poverty and corruption. Today, some of Armenian Apostolic
Church hierarchs are increasingly criticized for leading a lavish
life-style.
Thus, several years ago many Armenians were disturbed by the media
reports that one of the Church hierarchs admitted to having received
an expensive Bentley car as a present from one of his godsons: this
was considered extremely inappropriate at a time when many Armenians
live in extreme poverty.
As another expression of this mood, recently a YouTube interview with
a well-known Armenian historian of architecture, Samvel Karapetyan,
went viral among Armenian social network users. The historian accused
some of Armenian Church hierarchs of not doing enough to preserve
the ancient monuments of Armenian Church architecture. Many of these
are today in extremely poor condition, while the Church is spending
millions on building new churches.
At the same time, many social network users also pointed out to the
fact that the Roman Catholic Church today is going through extremely
difficult times, as a result of numerous scandals, while the problems
of the Armenian Church, though quite numerous, are not nearly as
difficult as the ones that the new Pope will have to address.
In any case, Hovannisyan says, the Armenian Church could learn a lot
from the new Pope, who is known for his ascetic lifestyle and his
attention to the plight of the poor and deprived. This can serve as
an example for some of Armenian Church hierarchs who need to fight
the recently emerged trends towards lavish life-style and focus on
serving the community, spreading the message of the Church and helping
Armenians in the Diaspora to preserve their identity and culture.
A growing number of believers Unlike most Western European countries,
the number of practicing believers in Armenia is growing, as well as
the significance of religion in the life of society. This is part of
a trend common to many Eastern European countries, where the fall of
atheist Socialist regimes was followed by a return to spirituality
and religion. In Armenia, however, this trend is strengthened by the
importance that Christianity has historically played in the life of
the country.
Armenians take immense pride in having been the first nation to
officially accept Christianity as State religion (in 301, according
to the tradition). Since then, during hard times, the Armenian Church
often remained the only institution to unite most Armenians, whether
in the homeland or in the Diaspora communities. The 1915 Genocide
in Ottoman Turkey, and decades of totalitarian regime in Soviet
Armenia, have taken their toll on the Armenian Church. However,
today the Armenian Apostolic Church is arguably the most influential
non-State institution in Armenia. It also enjoys close relations with
the government, even though Armenia is a secular state, as proclaimed
by its constitution.
According to Ara Galoyan, an Armenian expert on religions, the
Armenian Apostolic Church, as one of the oldest Churches, enjoys
enormous respect in the Vatican and is very active in the Ecumenical
movement. Moreover, in his opinion, since the Armenian Apostolic
Church has a close relationship with the Russian Orthodox Church, it
may play an important role, helping to establish contacts and solve
issues that divide Moscow from Rome. According to Galoyan, while it
is well-known that the Popes and the Russian Orthodox Patriarchs have
been avoiding a public encounter and therefore prefer not to visit
the same place at the same time, the closest they have ever come to
meeting each other was in Armenia in 2001, during the celebration of
1700 years since the adoption of Christianity, when they missed each
other only for a matter of hours.
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