In a statement released by its Bureau, the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) condemned what it described as a deliberate attack not only against the Armenian Apostolic Church but against the entire Armenian nation, its identity, and character.
“The recent developments in the homeland represent a planned attack not just on the Church, but on the entire Armenian people and their national identity,” the statement reads. “This cannot be interpreted merely as a conflict between Church and state.”
The ARF sharply criticized the Armenian government for what it called orchestrated assaults and persecution targeting senior clergy and labeled the authorities’ behavior toward the Church as unacceptable and condemnable.
The party also addressed recent controversy surrounding attention shown by Catholicos Aram I of the Great House of Cilicia toward individuals it accuses of undermining the Church, calling this reaction “completely unacceptable” and a cause of outrage both in Armenia and the Diaspora.
In response, the ARF urged a unified effort from the two Catholicoses of the Armenian Apostolic Church, with full public support, to protect the Church from internal and external threats aimed at eroding the Armenian people’s identity.
“These efforts must defend the Church, an institution that holds exceptional national value in the life of the Armenian people, from all forms of destructive and diminishing interference,” the statement concluded.
Catholicos Aram I of the Great House of Cilicia has condemned the ongoing arrests of clergy in Armenia and tasked Archbishop Shahan Sarkissian, currently in Armenia on a cultural mission, to relay his concern and protest to Armenian officials, including Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. On October 16, Archbishop Sarkissian met with the Prime Minister. Official statements from the government and the Catholicosate differ in tone and content.
