Monday, September 23 2019 18:57

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.