Head of Armenian premier`s staff explain questions about  Catholicos`celibacy 

ArmInfo. The Chief of Staff of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Arayik Harutyunyan believes that since the Armenian Apostolic Church (AAC) has decided to  actively interfere in political processes, it should also be ready to  <answer>.

<If the church initiates certain processes, interfering in political  processes, it should be ready to hear other questions from political  figures, in particular, the question that was asked>, - Harutyunyan  said on June 6 in a conversation with journalists in the National  Assembly, commenting on the confrontation between the head of the  Armenian Cabinet and the AAC.

According to him, the Prime Minister's statements are not an  interference in personal life. <All personal issues were raised  within the framework of the institutional logic of this institution,  in this case, the institution of celibacy>, - the Chief of Staff of  the Prime Minister pointed out. When asked whether this controversy  would weaken the position of the AAC, Harutyunyan assured that, on  the contrary, it is aimed at improving the health of the church. He  also denied concerns that a campaign is being waged against the  entire Armenian Apostolic Church.

In the event of no response from the Catholicos of All Armenians, the  authorities are ready to use the tools given to the executive body  within the framework of the law and the Constitution of the country.

When asked whether this is due to the fact that Pashinyan wants to  thereby <eliminate> a strong rival in the person of the AAC in the  parliamentary elections in the spring of 2026, Harutyunyan urged to  be very careful about opinion polls claiming that the AAC has a much  higher level of trust than the authorities.

<In 2021, the entire church, led by the Catholicos, campaigned  against the <Civil Contract> (the ruling party headed by Prime  Minister Nikol Pashinyan - ed.). The public went and gave an answer  to this Catholicos and his servants (in the extraordinary  parliamentary elections the State Duma gained an absolute majority -  ed.). I urge you not to identify the church with the clergy>, -  summed up Arayik Harutyunyan.

Pashinyan stated at a cabinet meeting on May 29 that all Armenian  churches are closeted and require the introduction of appropriate  standards, since <the real owner of these objects, monuments is the  state>. The Mother See responded to him by pointing out his lack of a  currently <fashionable> education (Pashinyan and his wife are  conducting a campaign called <Education is fashionable> - ed.), as  well as <an internal crisis of correct public communication and deep  understanding of issues>.

The next day, early in the morning, the prime minister posted an  obscene insult to the highest hierarchs of the AAC on his official  Facebook page, in the spirit of:

<Holiness, continue to have sex with your uncle's wife, what do you  care about me>. Then he wondered how many bishops of the AAC are  faithful to the vow of celibacy, pointing out that many are concerned  that he himself is not officially married. The Prime Minister's wife  Anna Hakobyan, in turn, called the clergy "the main pedophiles of the  country". At the end of the day, Pashinyan said that the authorities  of the Republic of Armenia should have a "decisive vote" in the  matter of electing the Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All  Armenians, and candidates for the post of Catholicos should undergo a  background check.

And for several days now, Pashinyan, as well as all representatives  of the State Duma, have been demanding an explanation of whether  Garegin II violated his vow of celibacy and whether he has a child,  "since from the moment the fact in question arose, he could not be a  celibate priest". "This issue must be clarified urgently", the head  of government believes.