Armenian Apostolic Holy Church The Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin

On June 9, His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians; among with the Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople Archbishop Sahak Mashalyan; members of the Supreme Spiritual Council; Diocesan Primates and Bishops serving in the Mother See attended the session of the Brotherhood Conference in the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin. The meeting is attended by Archimandrites and monks from the dioceses and church structures of Armenia and the Diaspora, as well as representatives from the Armenian Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia and the Armenian Patriarchates of Constantinople and Jerusalem

Following the Lord's Prayer, Rev. Fr. Archimandrite Garegin Hambardzumyan, Director of the Mission Department of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, welcomed the attendees. In his remarks, Father Garegin introduced the two-day pastoral visit of the conference participants to the Dioceses of Gegharkunik and Tavush. Father Garegin particularly emphasized the visit of the Brotherhood members to different communities on the border, the meetings with the families of soldiers killed, wounded and missing in the 44-day Artsakh war, and families with many children displaced from Artsakh.

Then the Patriarch of All Armenians conveyed his blessings and message to the Conference participants.

His Holiness happily welcomed the presence of the Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople, the Brotherhood members and clergymen from Hierarchical Sees united in the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin regarding the Brotherhood Conference, emphasizing that such gatherings are important occasions for strengthening the spirit and renewing the covenant, as well as to discuss the issues that concern the Armenian Church, clergymen and faithful.

"We are pleased to note that the Conference is being held in the year of the 1720th anniversary of the founding of Holy Etchmiadzin, under the symbolic slogan "Echmiadzin As a Mission". Through the descend of our Lord Jesus Christ, Holy Etchmiadzin became a special blessing of God and a heavenly gift in the life of our people. The sacrament of Holy Etchmiadzin was beautifully formulated by the historian. You as well are Holy Etchmiadzin, its mission is your service in the Homeland and in different parts of the world. The more powerful you are in the Lord and your effective ministry, the more powerful is Holy Etchmiadzin," stated His Holiness, emphasizing that the more fruitful and lively the pastoral, administrative, and spiritual service of the Brotherhood is, the stronger and unshakable is the mission of Holy Etchmiadzin in the life of the people.

In the conditions of the various challenges facing the nation and the homeland, the Armenian Patriarch found the implementation of the most awake and responsible service necessary, so that the Church always keeps the torch of faith burning and preserves and protects the Armenian people from the dangers and threats.

"In the brightness of these realities, we must define and determine the priorities of the service to the Lord of our Holy Church, with their directions, plans and deeds, and establish a developed strategy for a wide period of time, recording the vision and expected results of pastoral activity in the spiritual, educational, cultural, social spheres, as well as make the word of God, the preaching of spiritual values with modern perceptions more accessible to the children of our Holy Church", stated His Holiness.

The Catholicos of All Armenians noted with concern that the authority of the Church is continuously being attacked in an attempt to reduce the benevolent influence and activities of the Apostolic Holy Church and the clergymen in the life of the Armenian people and to weaken the traditional structure of the people's unity, unity and national identity. In this regard, the Armenian Patriarch urged the churchmen to be zealous in their words, deeds and actions, to correct the shortcomings, being a good example to people, showing great love and care towards the people.

His Holiness also reflected on the existing disagreements in the Church-state relations, which are result of the authorities' misconceptions about the Church's mission, as well as the Church's principled positions in addressing the various challenges of domestic life. From that context, the Armenian Patriarch considered it unacceptable to withdraw the subject "History of the Armenian Church" from school programs, which was an important contribution to the important work of providing the young generation with knowledge about universal spiritual values, principles of Christian faith, national identity and self-awareness, and our sacred heritage.

"Our Holy Church is always an ally of the authorities in the mission of nation-building, welfare and strengthening of the state. However, our calling is to boldly raise the alarm about the dangers, to stand against the manifestations of injustice in the the life of the Homeland, the processes that harm the motherland, national interests", added His Holiness.

In this difficult post-war situation, the Armenian Patriarch urged the clergymen to make continuous efforts in the spiritual and social mission for the war victims, dead, disabled, captured and missing Armenians and their families.

"At this difficult moment for our people and homeland, it is imperative that all of you in the diaspora communities strengthen your efforts to use all possible means to speak out before the state, diplomatic, international and inter-church structures about Azerbaijan's aggression towards Armenia, the settlement of the Artsakh issue, the unblocking of the Lachin Corridor, the issues of ensuring the right of self-determination of our people living in Artsakh, so that we can face the trials that plagued our country and find patriotic solutions.

. . . The church does not have any other interest than the one that derives from the responsibility towards God, the motherland and the people. The main goal of the church's mission is the humankind and the salvation of his soul, and along with that life-saving service, national protection and serving the strengthening of the native country.

Now, it is necessary to keep a clear vision of what kind of Armenian faithful, what kind of Armenian person we want to educate and bring up, so that the words and actions of the clergy are aimed at that main task.

Only the abstract presence of faith in a person's life is not enough, but with the mission of our Holy Church, we must continue to create a God-loving, patriotic Armenian person, the bearer of our ancestors' deposits and heritage", concluded His Holiness, wishing the clergymen of the Brotherhood God's support in their spiritual ministry. The Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople, His Eminence Archbishop Sahak Mashalyan greeted the participants of the Brotherhood Conference and conveyed his best wishes.

Then the Conference continued its work, during which the participants were also welcomed by the representatives of the Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia, Armenian Patriarchates of Constantinople and Jerusalem.

Reports were made by His Eminence Archbishop Vasken Mirzakhanyan, Director of the Ecclesiastical Conceptual Issues Office of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin -(On the topic of "Promotion of the Social Teaching of the Armenian Church") and His Grace Bishop Armash Nalbandyan, Primate of the Armenian Diocese of Damascus- (on the topic of "The Armenian Church in Inter-Church Platforms"), following which group discussions, exchanges of opinions, speeches on the reported topics took place.

On June 10, the feast day of Saint Gregory the Illuminator's coming out of Pit, the participants of the Conference will participate in the Divine Liturgy and the Andastan (blessing of the four corners of the world) ceremony in the Khor Virap monastery.