Armenian Apostolic Holy Church The Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin

On June 05, His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians; met and had a discussion with the members of the Brotherhood of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin.

During the meeting, special reference was made to the activities of the clergy serving in the dioceses and the members of the Brotherhood of the Mother See in this period of the Coronavirus pandemic. In these current stressful conditions, they emphasized the importance of making more efforts to strengthen faith, the hope of overcoming these difficulties with the help of God, as well as a spirit of optimism and love towards the Fatherland, nation, and our Holy Church.

Appealing to the members of the Brotherhood with the words of the Apostle, who states: “Therefore, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:57-58), the Catholicos of All Armenians exhorted the clergy to continue their service with spiritual care, and with more vigorous preaching activities, through teaching the Bible and the divine commandments, and by conveying the doctrine of Christ, to fight against inappropriate and unacceptable phenomena in the life of our people.

During the conversation, the steps taken by the Church to overcome the consequences of the pandemic were discussed, and concerns were also expressed about the disharmonious and adversarial atmosphere that has been created in our national and political life.

In connection with the latter, His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme  Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians; stated in part: “Only through love, peace and patience, as well as a kind and caring attitude towards each other, will we be able to keep our national-ecclesiastical life strong, strengthen our statehood, and lead the Fatherland along new roads to progress. In this case, we reflect with sorrow on the undesirable atmosphere in the life of our fatherland, in particular on the Internet, where humiliation and hostility are spread, and values and sanctity are being violated.

The Bible says: “Hatred stirs up conflict, but love covers over all wrongs.” (Proverbs 10:12). We, as Pastors, must take care to keep this realization strong within our children, so that different perceptions of the vision for the country’s development do not lead to acts of intolerance and violence, and political views and disagreements do not lead to the fracture of national solidarity. It is necessary to keep the boundaries of politeness, decency and mutual respect constant, as the establishment of justice and prosperity in the life of society cannot be implemented through inappropriate expressions and provocation of hostility. The current situation and the challenges facing the country should not become the reason for the retreat of virtue, respect and tolerance towards others, or for the violation of rights and dignity, or for the weakening of love and devotion towards the fatherland.

Everyone should follow the counsel of the Apostle, who says: “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (Philippians 4:8).

Many problems in our lives belong to the realm of values, and are solvable through faith in our sacred values, in unity and solidarity. Over the centuries, we have been able to overcome difficulties and hardships with this spirit, and to strengthen our state and national life. Unity is the strength and power of our Haykazyan nation. In all of this, we emphasize the importance of the mission and role of our clergy”.

His Holiness also referred to the mission of the clergy in these pandemic conditions. “Dear faithful, today, in the situation of this Coronavirus pandemic, it is imperative to organize more and more, and to be self-organized. In this regard, the Mother Church, with its clergy, has an important role to play. Continuously supporting the efforts of the state, we have the responsibility to guide our faithful children and urge them to strictly follow the rules set by the relevant authorities when visiting churches, places of pilgrimage, and wherever they go.

We should raise the consciousness of the responsibility for the safety of the lives of others in each individual. Today, we have no task more important than preventing the spread of the pandemic in order to return to our normal lives.

In this sense, our spiritual servants in the dioceses of the Diaspora should also guide our children with relevant exhortations and ensure that they strictly follow the health instructions of the relevant authorities of their countries. Disaster must be prevented, but this is possible only through joint efforts, in an atmosphere of solidarity”, stated the Catholicos of All Armenians.