AAC issues statement in response to Armenian premier`s recent  statements 

ArmInfo. On June 2, at the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, under the presidency of His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, a meeting of the Supreme Spiritual Council was convened, with the participation of bishops and primates from Armenia and the Diaspora.

The Council deliberated on various issues, including the challenges  confronting the homeland, Church- State relations, and other pressing  matters of public concern.

Particular attention was given to the recent shameful anti-Church  campaign incited by the Prime Minister. 

In response, the Supreme Spiritual Council issued the following  statement:

STATEMENT

The Prime Minister of Armenia has launched yet another campaign  against the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church, using language unbecoming  of a statesman-replete with insults and accusations-and positioning  himself above the law.

The publications, saturated with obscene expressions and vulgar  rhetoric, violate the most basic norms of civility, trample  fundamental human rights, and gravely offend the religious sentiments  of the faithful-all under the guise of feigned concern and contrived  pretexts.

Political motives drive this anti-Church and represent an attempt to  erode the standing of the Armenian Church and its clergy, who are  rightfully held in high esteem both in national life and within the  international community. It seeks to silence the Church's voice and  diminish its influence in public life.

The Church-hating behavior of the head of government and the  processes he has initiated against national values and the Church  carry destructive consequences and pose a serious threat to Armenian  statehood and the unity of our people, both in the homeland and the  diaspora. 

Such actions fracture society, undermine the spirit of our nation,  and erode the deep-rooted consciousness of patriotic devotion,  particularly in these times of pressing national challenges.  These  reprehensible actions serve the agendas of external anti-Armenian  forces fueled by Armenophobia and align with the slander and false  accusations leveled against the Armenian people and the Armenian  Church by the Azerbaijani propaganda apparatus.

Fully aware of its sacred mission, the Armenian Church will  steadfastly pursue its spiritual and national calling, firmly  opposing destructive forces and unwaveringly defending the highest  interests of our nation, state, and sacred values.

Matters of the Church are governed by ecclesiastical canons and  regulations and lie beyond the jurisdiction of state and political  authorities.

The Armenian Apostolic Holy Church constitutes a unified whole,  bringing together her faithful sons and daughters and devoted clergy  under the leadership of the Nation-Elected Catholicos of All  Armenians.

We urge the competent state authorities to halt the Prime Minister's  unlawful and shortsighted policies.  There is no justification for  involving the Church in artificially manufactured agendas or  provoking retaliatory actions.

In the face of this new trial, we call upon the faithful children of  our Holy Church to stand united and of one spirit, with loyalty to  both our homeland and the Holy Church, and with unwavering faith to  overcome all challenges confronting our people, never allowing the  foundations of our nation to be shaken. Let these unworthy  machinations never become a cause for discouragement or temptation.

We raise our prayers to our Lord Jesus Christ that the life of our  homeland may not be disturbed by destructive forces and that our  people, scattered across the world, may live in peace, prosperity,  and progress. May the Lord preserve our Armenian statehood  steadfastly and bless the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church, the Mother  See of Holy Etchmiadzin, and all her faithful children.