A bell tolling for Garegin The Armenian Church chooses change

It appears that the fierce confrontation between the Armenian leadership and Catholicos Garegin II is approaching its conclusion — and in favour of the current authorities. This is indicated, in particular, by a new and rather sensational statement from Armenian bishops demanding that Etchmiadzin be cleansed of Garegin II.

“An expert examination has confirmed the authenticity of the video materials involving Arshak Khachatryan. Ktrich Nersisyan (the secular name of Garegin II — ed.) is attempting at all costs to conceal the sacrilegious act committed by Arshak. Ktrich Nersisyan has proven unfaithful to the vow he took during his enthronement as Catholicos — to lead the Armenian Church through ‘upright teaching’. The bishops appealed to the faithful and the devoted children of the Church, calling on them to cleanse the holiest of holies — the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin — of the sacrilegious clergyman and those who share his guilt, firmly condemning the erroneous path of Ktrich Nersisyan,” the statement reads.

It should be recalled that indecent video materials involving the head of the Catholicos’ chancellery, Archbishop Arshak Khachatryan, circulated online. In this connection, Armenia’s Investigative Committee has launched a criminal case regarding their dissemination.

To begin with, it should be emphasised that the statement in question — in which Armenian clerics, albeit indirectly, call on the Catholicos of All Armenians to leave Echmiadzin — is unquestionably advantageous to the current authorities. After all, Prime Minister Pashinyan’s objective is precisely to remove Garegin II from office, as the Catholicos has become excessively involved in political affairs. In this respect, the Armenian premier’s concerns are not entirely unfounded: a politically activist Catholicos poses a direct challenge to secular governance. And Garegin II has indeed crossed every imaginable boundary in this regard. It is enough to recall that, following Armenia’s defeat in the Second Karabakh War, he sharply criticised the prime minister and repeatedly urged him to resign.

The confrontation reached its peak in 2024, when Archbishop Bagrat (secular name: Vazgen Galstanyan), acting with the Catholicos’s blessing, led mass protests against the border demarcation process with Azerbaijan.

Such blatant interference in state affairs exhausted the government’s patience, and Pashinyan resorted to the only weapon available to him at that moment: he accused the Catholicos of violating his ecclesiastical vows, in particular celibacy, and called on him to step down voluntarily.

“Garegin II has a child, which contradicts the canons of the Church. A person who has broken the vow of celibacy has no right to hold the post of Catholicos,” the Armenian prime minister wrote on his Facebook page.

From that moment, the standoff between Garegin and Pashinyan entered a phase of open confrontation. Thus, at the end of June of this year, officers of Armenia’s National Security Service arrived at the Catholicos’s residence in Etchmiadzin to detain Archbishop Mikael Adjapahyan, against whom the Prosecutor General’s Office had opened a criminal case on charges of calling for the overthrow of the constitutional order. In October, the authorities arrested the head of the Aragatsotn Diocese of the Armenian Church, Bishop Mkrtich Proshyan — a nephew of Garegin II — who is accused of coercing individuals to participate in assemblies and rallies. And these are only a few examplesю

Returning to the statement by the Armenian clerics, it should be noted that such unanimity among several church figures regarding radical measures against Garegin II points to a deep split within the Church itself and to the broader structural problems it faces. The newspaper Zhoghovurd has also written about this, noting that a group of clergymen has emerged within the Armenian Church who have begun expressing support for Prime Minister Pashinyan.

Thus, the following conclusion can be drawn: Pashinyan has succeeded in winning part of the clergy over to his side, and this has intensified divisions within the ecclesiastical community. As further confirmation, it is worth noting that the bishops’ statement came shortly after the prime minister told journalists that “Ktrich Nersisyan has exhausted all possibilities of participating in the reform process; he simply must vacate the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin,” adding that any follower of the Armenian Church may take part in this process.

“We must follow the path of reform; without this, no issue can be resolved. I welcome the willingness of anyone to take this path,” he said.

To summarise the above, it can be assumed that before the decisive events planned for Armenia next summer, Nikol Pashinyan will manage to cleanse the Church of the revanchists in cassocks — including with the support of those clergymen who have understood that the mission of the Church is to bring the light of goodness into society, not to ignite a new fire of war. And we may hope that over time, the number of religious figures in Armenia who preach peace, harmony and good neighbourliness will continue to grow.