Catholicos of All Armenians Voted at the 14/11 Polling Station in Etchmiadzin


His Holiness arrived at the polling station accompanied by the Brotherhood of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin. After the election, the Patriarch of All Armenians answered questions from journalists gathered near the polling station.
 

Michael Hezemann


German writer, historian, and researcher Michael Hezemann was in Armenia on the occasion of the Armenian publication of the book “The Armenian Genocide.” In the interview, he talks about the newly discovered archives on the Armenian Genocide, his research, and the parallels he found when comparing the Young Turk and Nazi crimes. Michael Hezemann also touches on the current anti-church campaign in Armenia, examining and condemning such a situation from the perspective of a neutral researcher.

On June 7, the Armenian Apostolic Church will celebrate the feast of Holy Etchmiadzin


On the occasion of the feast, a liturgy will be served in the Mother Cathedral, during which a prayer will be sung for the Armenian Church, people and homeland. A Republican wish will also be made for the unshakable and eternal radiance of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin. The feast of Holy Etchmiadzin is one of the most important feasts of the Armenian Apostolic Church, dedicated to the vision of the founding of the Mother Cathedral. According to tradition, in 301, after Christianity was declared the state religion, St. Gregory the Illuminator had a vision in which he saw Christ descending from heaven, who struck it with a golden hammer and indicated the place for the future cathedral.

 

Armenian and German archaeologists present the oldest church in the region at Matenadaran


The unique church discovered during the excavations of ancient Artashat was most likely built by Trdat the Great and Gregory the Illuminator. The newly discovered structure was discovered by the joint Armenian-German “Artaxata” project, when archaeologists were excavating near Khor Virap. Archaeologists from the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography and the Institute of Archaeology of the Ancient and Christian Periods at the University of Münster, after several years of excavations, confirm that the discovered octagonal structure is most likely the oldest church in the region.
 

Several books were presented at the Matenadaran of the Mother See


Historian and researcher Michael Hezemann arrived from Germany to participate in the special presentation. Years ago, he found thousands of previously unknown documents related to the Armenian Genocide in the Vatican archives. Historian Avetis Harutyunyan’s work “Armenian Migration During the First World War and the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church” reveals the history of Armenian migration after the Armenian Genocide in 1915-17. Armine Tigranyan’s study concerns the process of destruction of the cultural heritage of Artsakh by Azerbaijan. Priest Ararat Poghosyan’s book tells about the Armenian liberation struggle of the 16th-17th centuries and the role of Holy Etchmiadzin in that struggle. The books were published under the direct supervision of the Catholicos of All Armenians.
 

The 42nd Annual Assembly of the Diocese of Canada was held at St. Mary of the Assumption Church in Hamilton


The congregants expressed deep concern about recent developments affecting the life of the Armenian Church and the nation, and considered unacceptable the continued persecution and targeting of clergy in Armenia, which diminish, undermine and devalue centuries-old spiritual, moral, cultural and national values. The assembly condemned the so-called “Reform Council”, considering it an illegal initiative that contradicts the canonical order, sacred traditions and church governance of the Armenian Apostolic Church.
 

Exhibition dedicated to Sebastatsi opened at the Mekhitarist Seminary


An exhibition entitled "Abbot Mekhitar and the Students Who Perpetuated His Vision" has opened at the Mekhitarist Seminary, featuring rare books. The oldest book dates back to the beginning of the 18th century, when Armenian scientific thought was in decline, manuscript schools were being closed, printing was expensive and often inaccessible, and there was a problem with distributing Armenian books. In those difficult times, Mekhitar Sebastatsi dreamed of creating a center where Armenian thought would flourish.
 

Shio Mujiri elected new Catholicos-Patriarch of the Georgian Orthodox Church with 22 votes


57-year-old Shio Mujiri has been considered a potential successor to the late Ilia II since 2017. He served as the Catholicos-Patriarch's vicar for nine years. More than a thousand delegates from monasteries, other religious institutions, as well as public figures from the fields of science and culture took part in the election. The vote was conducted by the high-ranking clergy of the Holy Synod, and Metropolitan Shio received 22 out of 39 votes. In his speech, he stated that the Georgian Orthodox Church should continue to act as a guardian of national identity and a structure uniting the nation.
 

Bishop Mesrop Barsamyan Re-Elected Primate of the Eastern Diocese


The 124th Diocesan Deputy Assembly of the Eastern Diocese was held in Milwaukee, USA, and was attended by clergy and lay delegates from Armenian church parishes on the East Coast of the United States. Bishop Mesrop Barsamyan has been re-elected Primate of the Eastern Diocese for the next four years. Bishop Mesrop has led the Eastern Diocese of the Armenians of the United States since 2022. The bishop will begin his second four-year service in the diocese, having received the approval of His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians.
 

The Mother See Strongly Condemns the Statement of the Caucasus Muslims Board


The Caucasus Muslims Board is attempting to justify the destruction of the Armenian spiritual and cultural heritage of Artsakh by the Azerbaijani authorities, in particular, the complete destruction of the Holy Mother of God Church in Stepanakert. The Mother See notes that the desecration, appropriation or destruction of holy sites cannot be justified by any political, administrative or pseudo-legal formulation.

 

A work on Prince John and the Grner School of Miniature Painting has been published


The English volume entitled “The Half-Blood Prince and His Artistic Legacy” is the third monograph on Cilician miniature painting by Emma Chougaszyan, PhD in Art and Medieval History at the University of Montpellier. Archbishop John, brother of King Hetum I, founded the Grner School of Miniature Painting and is considered the founder of a new direction in miniature painting in Cilicia in the second half of the 13th century. This cleric, of royal origin, was the greatest patron of the arts and sciences in Cilicia at that time.

The Mother See has published the work of German historian Michael Hezemann on the Armenian Genocide


The book, written based on unpublished documents from the Vatican Secret Archives, addresses the Armenian Genocide. Michael Hezemann, studying numerous valuable documents, testimonies, letters and reports kept in the Vatican archives, irrefutably reaffirms the reality of the Armenian Genocide and its planned implementation.