Twenty-five bishops of the Armenian Apostolic Church have publicly reaffirmed their support for Catholicos Karekin II and condemned what they described as the Armenian authorities’ “unfounded prosecution” of the Church’s spiritual leader and other senior clergy.
The bishops, who met for three days in Austria after Karekin was barred by authorities from attending, also demanded the immediate release of four clerics — three archbishops and one bishop — arrested last year amid Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s campaign to depose the Catholicos. Their statement described the prosecutions as politically driven and warned that pressure on the Church is fueling concern not only in Armenia but across the Diaspora.
Criticism of Pashinyan’s campaign has also intensified abroad. On February 11, eight prominent Armenians from communities in the United States and Europe issued a statement saying his “attacks” on the Church pose “direct threats to all Armenians around the world.” Pashinyan responded by accusing them, without evidence, of plotting to move the seat of the Catholicos out of Armenia and seize treasures held in Holy Etchmiadzin — claims dismissed by the Mother See.
Until December, Pashinyan accused Karekin and other senior clerics of violating their vows of celibacy through secret affairs. He later shifted to alleging that they were spying for a foreign state, widely understood to mean Russia. His more recent accusations targeting Diaspora figures in the West have raised further questions about the real motive behind the campaign.
Pashinyan launched his campaign last May shortly after Karekin accused Azerbaijan of ethnic cleansing in Nagorno-Karabakh and of illegally occupying Armenian border areas during an international conference in Switzerland. Critics of the prime minister argue that he is seeking to weaken or neutralize one of the few major institutions still opposing his concessions to Azerbaijan.
In their joint statement, the bishops declared: “We, the bishops of the Armenian Church, reaffirm our fidelity to the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin and to the Catholicos of All Armenians as the visible symbol and guarantor of the unity, reconciliation and concord of the Church.”
The emergency gathering of the Church’s worldwide senior clergy had originally been scheduled for December 10–12 in Etchmiadzin. Karekin first postponed it and later moved it to Sankt Pölten, Austria, citing the government crackdown.
Before the rescheduled meeting, an Armenian law-enforcement agency indicted the Catholicos and six other bishops and barred them from leaving the country. Pashinyan also signaled on February 13 that he would seek to obstruct the gathering.
The meeting nevertheless proceeded on Tuesday, although its status was downgraded by the Echmiadzin-based Mother See because Karekin could not attend in person. He addressed participants by video link, while Catholicos Aram I of the Great House of Cilicia, along with the Armenian Patriarchs of Jerusalem and Istanbul, sent written messages of support.
The final statement, signed by participants, condemned the charges against Karekin and the indicted bishops and archbishops as “fabricated.” It called on authorities in Yerevan to free the four detained clerics and halt what the bishops described as “repressions against clergy and the nationally elected Catholicos of All Armenians.”
The bishops also urged the Armenian authorities to act strictly in accordance with the Armenian Constitution, domestic law, and international law, and to uphold democratic principles, including freedom of conscience, religion, and belief.
Armenian law guarantees the autonomy of the Armenian Apostolic Church and its separation from the state. Church leaders and other critics have accused Pashinyan of violating those protections throughout his campaign against Karekin. Last month, Pashinyan pledged to continue efforts to oust the Catholicos, speaking in his capacity as prime minister after meeting again with a group of bishops and archbishops who broke ranks in November and aligned themselves with his campaign.
Those clerics had denounced the decision to hold the episcopal meeting outside Armenia. But in a notable development, Archbishop Hovnan Derderyan attended the Sankt Pölten meeting and signed the joint statement.
The bishops’ statement ended with an appeal to the pro-Pashinyan clerics, urging them to refrain from “anti-canonical actions,” “weakening steps,” and “separatist manifestations” that could push the Armenian Church toward schism.
