A support rally is planned for February 8 at 1:00 p.m. in the park next to Saint Etchmiadzin Church in Tbilisi, in solidarity with the Armenian Apostolic Church. The event was announced by Levon Chidilyan, a former member of the Cultural Council of the Diocese of the Armenian Community in Georgia.
“We call on all devoted sons of the Armenian community in Georgia to express their support for the Mother Church of all Armenians. Thanks to this Church, the Armenian people have preserved their national identity and image for centuries,” the announcement reads.
It emphasizes that in recent months, the Armenian Apostolic Church has been subjected to “repression by the current authorities of the Republic of Armenia, with obstacles placed in the way of believers’ spiritual life, the foundation of the Church undermined, and senior clergy and priests arrested on fabricated charges.”
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, along with bishops and archbishops who demand the resignation of the Catholicos, have issued a statement calling for participation in the Church’s reform. Pashinyan read the statement on a Facebook livestream, after which it was signed by the supporting clergy. He noted that a coordinating council is being formed to organize reforms within the Armenian Apostolic Church. Membership in this council will require unanimous consent.
The statement also unveiled a roadmap for Church reform, which includes: publicizing the reform agenda, removing the current de facto head of the Church, electing a locum tenens (interim Catholicos), adopting a Church statute, and holding a new election for the Catholicos of All Armenians.
