ArmInfo. TheMother See of Echmiadzin reacted to a statement by the Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, made at a press conference in Los Angeles. Thus, the statement by the head of the Office of the Mother See, Vahram Melikyan, in particular, reads: "The statement of the Prime Minister of Armenia at a press conference in Los Angeles on the clergy of the Armenian Apostolic Church requires further clarification. Holy See of Echmiadzin has never heard of such issues."
Meanwhile, as Nikol Pashinyan said at a press conference, "When we say that we will not interfere in the internal affairs of the Church, some" clergy "conclude that we are not like the previous government, that we are weaker, and that it is necessary to break the ground "under our feet," the Prime Minister said, answering a question from a church press representative that his opinion on the principle of separation of the church from the state worries not only its representatives, but also the Diaspora, since such a position is contrary to history.
As the prime minister pointed out, in history everything is not so simple. "The King Pap (353-374 from the Arsacid dynasty – Ed. note) was considered the greatest enemy of the Armenian Apostolic Church, forgetting that it was the decision of this king that the church received real independence – while earlier the Armenian Catholicos received the rank from the Ecumenical Church in Caesarea. And the King Pap, who is considered the greatest enemy of the AAC, by his willful decision indicated that our Catholicos should be elected in our country.
According to the head of government, he would like to clarify the question of "what do we want>. , Pashinyan noted.
"When, for example, we declare that the media in Armenia should be free, the first reaction of the media becomes – let's break the backbone of the government. When we say that the courts should be independent, the first reaction of the judicial system – and let's cut the ground from under the feet of the authorities "All this is the result of a wrong perception of the situation. Everyone who thought so has regretted and will regret. When we say that we will not interfere in the internal affairs of the church, some" clergymen "conclude that we are not like the previous government, that we are weaker , and the ground should be cut from under our feet. Those clergy of the church who think so will get a serious counterattack and will be brought to their knees in the direct and indirect sense of the word. I want to warn again that no one would regard our smiles and respectful attitude as a manifestation of our weakness ", he declared.
As the prime minister emphasized, his position on this issue is unchanged – the Church will continue to manage its congregational system without any influence of the state. "The government should not interfere in internal church affairs, but this does not mean that the government does not talk with the Church, does not consult with it, does not discuss issues. The church itself must declare where and in what matters it seeks support from the state, so that the Armenian apostolic church has become a stronger structure, like the faith of the people. We are ready to do everything in our power, "he said. In conclusion, Nikol Pashinyan emphasized that he attached great importance to the role of the Armenian Apostolic Church in the history of Armenia.