Church officially pledged to adopt new Canon Law but failed for 14 years, says PM, warning of ‘deliberate uncanonical situation’

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan highlighted the need for the Armenian Apostolic Church to adopt a new Canon Law as part of reforms he has proposed.

In a video posted on social media, Pashinyan said that the Armenian Apostolic Church had officially intended to develop a Canon Law as early as 2011, but never did so.

He again referred to Catholicos Karekin II by his secular name, Ktrij Nersisyan, because Pashinyan accuses him of holding office illegitimately.

“After the removal of Ktrij Nersisyan, the second point of the roadmap I proposed for the reform of the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church concerns the adoption of the Church’s Canon Law. This agenda has been officially recorded by the Mother See itself. In November 2011, the Statute of the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church was registered with the Ministry of Justice of Armenia, which stated that in the near future, a Canon Law (Constitution) of the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church would be drafted, serving as the fundamental framework for its entire hierarchical structure. But now, 12 years after Ktrij Nersisyan assumed the position of Catholicos, a comprehensive Statute—the complete Canon Law—still does not exist,” emphasized Pashinyan. He added that the fact that the Church, led by Karekin II, has been unable to develop a Canon Law for 14 years speaks volumes.

He accused the Church leadership of deliberately creating an “uncanonical situation” so that there would be no clear understanding or perception of any existing rules, allowing events to unfold as they have.

“Therefore, it is very important that the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church, immediately after the removal of Ktrij Nersisyan and the election of a locum tenens, proceed with the drafting and adoption of a new Canon Law, in which clear and transparent rules will operate—rules that will be visible not only to the clergy but also to the public. This will make it clear to all of us what values the Church upholds and what mechanisms exist for public and internal oversight,” Pashinyan said.

Last week, Prime Minister Pashinyan presented a plan he described as a “roadmap for reforming” the Armenian Apostolic Church after Catholicos Karekin II steps down—something the latter has so far refused to do. Pashinyan has accused Karekin II of illegitimately holding office, alleging that the church leader broke his vow of celibacy by fathering a child while already a bishop, and was ultimately elected Catholicos in 1999 in violation of Church rules. Pashinyan suggested that after Karekin II is “removed,” the Church should elect a locum tenens to oversee the adoption of a new Canon Law, ultimately leading to the election of a new Catholicos.