On March 10-13, Mother See in Holy Etchmiatsin, H.S.O.T.T. The meeting of the Supreme Spiritual Council was held under the chairmanship of Karekin the Second Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians.

After the greeting and blessing of the Catholicos of All Armenians, the chairman of the Monastic Council, T. Archbishop Nathan Hovhannisyan.

2026 in Sankt Pölten, Austria. The leader of the Armenian Diocese of Damascus, Fr. Bishop Nalbandyan of Armash.

The GCC noted with satisfaction that the bishops participating in the meeting discussed the challenges faced by the Armenian Church, the current state of Church-state relations, as well as issues related to the achievement of the Church’s mission in a prayer union and formulated a number of recommendations for the benefit of organizing the life of the Church and overcoming existing problems. The GCC decided to start pursuing the settlement of the problems, stressing that the existing problems in the church life should be solved exclusively in a legal and ecclesiastical-canonical way.

In the Diocese of Masyatsotni, the deputy presbyter of the diocese T. Reverend Ruben Zargaryan. It was noted that Arman Saroyan, who was disbanded, obstructs the pastoral, canonical and administrative activities of the diocese with the illegal support of the authorities, causing tension among the clergy and believers.

At the same time, it was recorded that the majority of clergymen of the diocese continue their pastoral service, remaining faithful to church orders and canons.

In the context of church-state relations, reports were presented on legislative initiatives, as well as on the criminal, administrative, and civil cases initiated against the Mother See of St. Etchmiadzin and churchmen who were illegally imprisoned and subjected to other measures of disruption, judicial acts and their statistics. Tiar Gevorg Danielyan and lawyer, I.G.T. tiara Ara Zohrabyan.

Emphasizing the imperative to respect and preserve the rights and autonomy of the Church, justice and democratic principles, the Supreme Spiritual Council condemned the arbitrary, discriminatory actions of the RA authorities, the persecution of the Armenian Church and its members, the imprisonments on trumped-up charges, as well as the attempts to create artificial obstacles to the Church’s activities through the use of state levers, to restrict them, and to illegally interfere in church life.

Reference was also made to the bills and sub-legislative acts presented by the authorities recently, which limit the legal status and activities of the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church, as well as their discussion is seen as a convenient excuse for voicing and unhindered dissemination of anti-church theses. It was noted that such initiatives undermine the constitutional foundations of Church-state relations, in particular, the right to freedom of conscience and religion.

The Council of Ministers also rejected Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s proposal for 2026 in the European Parliament. In the March 11 speech, the accusatory attributions made against the Armenian Church and ecclesiastics: “agent of foreign influence”, “war party”, etc., with which there is an obvious attempt to create grounds for justification for the illegal actions carried out by the Armenian authorities against the Church and the planned further repressions.

2026 The director of the administrative and economic department of the Mother See of Saint Etchmiadzin, T. Musegh Bishop Babayan. The latter presented to the congregation members the preparatory works and the questions and recommendations related to the organization of the meeting. Appropriate instructions were given in this regard.

T. presented a report on the cessation of spiritual service in the RA Armed Forces, the pressures on the soldiers, and the problems that arose. Reverend Movses Sargsyan. The General Assembly confirmed that the unilateral decision of the Minister of Defense contradicts the provisions of the RA Constitution, the Law “On Relations between the Republic of Armenia and the Holy Armenian Apostolic Church”, as well as the corresponding decision of the government, which stipulates the service of chaplains in the Armed Forces. Emphasizing the importance of the service of artillerymen in the recovery of the spiritual and morale-psychological atmosphere of the army, it was found necessary to discuss the new regulations of the service and the ways to return them to the legal dimension.

The inspector of the Gevorgyan Theological Seminary, T. Husik abegha Smbatyan.

The congregation listened to the report with gratitude. Emphasizing the work aimed at strengthening the training and spiritual education of the clergy, they ordered to continue taking consistent steps in the direction of improving the educational programs and attracting new students.

During the meeting, the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin activity bulletin for 2025, the financial year, the final reports of the construction of the Mother Cathedral and the report of the Audit Committee were presented. 2025 were also presented. Spiritual-propaganda, cultural, educational and social programs implemented in Armenia and diaspora communities.

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