ArmInfo. The first meeting of the working group on relations between the Republic of Armenia and the Holy Armenian Apostolic Church took place.
The meeting was chaired by Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Nikol Pashinian and the Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II.
In his welcoming speech, Prime Minister Pashinyan, in particular, noted: "As a result of discussions with the Supreme Patriarch, we came to the conclusion that it is necessary to create a working group to regulate the relations of the RA government and the Holy Armenian Apostolic Church in order to have a permanent working format, discuss and solve emerging issues. I want to say that one of the key points of the election program of the "My step" bloc is the question of preserving our national identity". According to Pashinyan, this issue has been in the constituent program of the force headed by him since 2013.
At the same time, he stressed the need to clarify how the views of the government and the Church are identical on various issues: "We must try to understand each situation and listen to all the arguments. We must leave the field of arbitrary decisions and take clearly reasoned, informed decisions. The very first question to be answered is whether we differentiate the history of the Armenian people from the history of the Armenian Apostolic Church? If so, why? If not, why?, etc.".
Another question, according to the prime minister, is related to the AAC real estate, property tax: "We need to understand what approach to take here, because it is not yet clear whether this movable property is homogeneous or not, whether a tax approach should be applied to various segments of this property or No, in the case of the application, should it be one or not? I have already discussed this topic with the Catholicos, and this is especially relevant in light of the fact that today we are conducting an extended campaign, urging citizens to pay taxes, because as a result of these paid taxes, the amount of work that the government must do is formed and drawn up. In this issue, we need the support of the Armenian Apostolic Church. Thank God that our call has been worth understanding>.
The prime minister assured that this year the government will overfulfill the state budget revenues by at least 40 billion drams, which will make it possible to raise the salaries of the military, teachers, and make serious capital expenditures in various fields.
He again urged to discuss all the accumulated issues in an open, constructive atmosphere.
The prime minister assured that reading the Bible has become a new starting point in his life: "The teaching of Christianity in all respects, including in terms of state-building, is revolutionary. I am confident that this doctrine can open the door to happiness not only for the Armenian people, but also for all mankind, "said Pashinyan, stressing that Christian values can and should serve to strengthen the Republic of Armenia and the prosperity of the Armenian people.
"I don't know whether such a format existed in the past or not, but I am sure that this is an important stage for us, because structural questions without dark corners should really be given to questions. From time to time, we will discuss the issues raised during our periodic meetings, but I hope that as a result of the work of the working group, we will hear more solutions than problems, "Pashinyan concluded.
In turn, the Catholicos of All Armenians expressed satisfaction with the meeting of the working group in terms of achieving results in regulating Church-State relations. "This is a good opportunity to discuss issues of mutual interest and find ways to solve them in order to achieve the mission of our Church, in the name of our country and people". According to him, the expansion of Church-State cooperation should help strengthen the national and spiritual life of the people, families, the brightness of the church and the power of the state, the formation of a conscious and law-abiding citizen.