Pashinyan vows to lead movement against priests violating celibacy

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has once again declared that he intends to personally lead a movement to free the church from priests who violate their vow of celibacy.

“I could curse them [the priests], but I won’t. I merely said that I would lead the movement to rid the church of them. There is no need for curses,” he said, adding that he would do so using the same methods as the ”Velvet Revolution,” through which he ousted then-Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan from office in 2018 and came to power, Caliber.Az reports via Armenian media.

The Armenian Apostolic Church has been at odds with Pashinyan since Armenia’s 2020 defeat in the Second Karabakh War, which triggered widespread protests. Garegin II called for Pashinyan’s resignation in December 2020, citing national instability. The tension escalated further following Armenia’s return of four border villages to Azerbaijan in May 2024, leading to protests led by the AAC and opposition figures such as Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, head of the “Holy Struggle” movement, demanding Pashinyan’s resignation and accusing his government of betraying national interests.

In response, the Armenian government has conducted over 90 searches, detaining over a dozen individuals, including senior clerics and opposition activists, on charges of terrorism and plotting a coup. Pashinyan has publicly accused the AAC, particularly Garegin II, of corruption and moral violations, including breaching celibacy vows, and has called for his resignation.

By Sabina Mammadli