PRIMATE, CHURCH LEADERS VISIT ARMENIA
Solange De Santis
Staff Writer
Anglican Journal
Sept 27 2005
Looking for support and greater dialogue with Canadian churches,
the Canadian diocese of the Armenian Orthodox Church invited a group
of church leaders, including the Anglican primate, Archbishop Andrew
Hutchison, to visit Armenia in late August.
Throughout 70 years of Soviet rule, the Armenian Orthodox Church was
repressed and it is now “trying to rebuild,” said Archbishop Hutchison
in an interview, noting that the trip was completely sponsored by
the Armenian church.
“The church survived and a core of the faithful survived. It is a
Christian country surrounded by Muslim countries. The borders to
Azerbaijan and Turkey are closed and the border with Georgia is not
as free-flowing as it might be,” said Archbishop Hutchison.
In Canada, he pointed out, the Anglican church has aided Armenian
churches by providing space for new Armenian congregations and
Archbishop George Carey visited Armenia when he was Archbishop of
Canterbury.
The delegation also included Archbishop Brendan O’Brien, president
of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops; Archbishop Sotirios,
Greek Orthodox Metropolitan of Canada; and Richard Schneider, president
of the Canadian Council of Churches.
The hosts were Bishop Bagrat Galstanian, primate of the Armenian
church in Canada, and his assistant, Deacon Hagop Arslanian.
While in Armenia from August 24-31, the group met with His Holiness
Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, at the
Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, a cathedral complex near the capital
of Yerevan that is the center of authority for the worldwide church.
Last year, the Canadian parliament acknowledged the genocide of 1915,
during which 1.5 million Armenians were killed by Turkish forces,
and “that means a great deal to them,” said Archbishop Hutchison,
who participated in a wreath-laying at a memorial for genocide victims.
The visit coincided with the 90th anniversary of the genocide and the
1600th anniversary of the invention of the Armenian alphabet, he noted.
The group also met with political leaders and visited major historic
and religious sites.
The primate discussed with the Armenian church two possible projects
for the Anglican Church of Canada: a bursary to support a theological
student studying in Canada and advice from Canada’s well-developed
military chaplaincy to support a new chaplaincy in Armenia.