Armenian archbishop warns of consequences if church leader is detained

Archbishop Mikayel Ajapahyan on Thursday warned that Armenia would face profound consequences if Catholicos Karekin II were ever taken into custody, as tensions between the clergy and the government continue to intensify.

Speaking to journalists after a ruling by Armenia’s Criminal Court of Appeal, Ajapahyan, the leader of the Shirak Diocese, said the Armenian Apostolic Church had weathered far greater trials throughout its history and would likewise withstand the current pressures.

“The church has endured every trial imaginable. There is no reason to believe it will not overcome this one as well,” Ajapahyan said, referring to the government’s anti-church campaign.

Asked whether he believed the detention of the Catholicos was a conceivable scenario, the archbishop responded with a grave warning.

“God forbid that His Holiness should ever be detained,” Ajapahyan said. “If such a development were to occur, the Armenian nation as a whole would bear the consequences.”

Ajapahyan said he planned to visit Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, who is currently standing trial, before traveling to the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin to meet with Catholicos Karekin II.

Addressing members of the clergy whom he accused of siding with the authorities in their dispute with the church, Ajapahyan said he would regard them as “betrayers of the faith.” Nevertheless, he stressed that the path to reconciliation remained open should they express remorse and return to the fold of the church.

“The decision ultimately belongs to the Catholicos; it is not ours to make,” he said.

Earlier in the day, the Court of Appeals overturned Ajapahyan's conviction and remanded the case to the Shirak Court of First Instance for renewed consideration. The court lifted the archbishop’s house arrest but left in place the travel ban imposed on him.