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During her visit to Addis Ababa, Anna Hakobyan, spouse of the Prime Minister of Armenia and Executive Director of the My Step Foundation, visited St. George Armenian Church, accompanied by Salpi Nalbandian of the Armenian community of Ethiopia and Armenian Ambassador Sahak Sargsyan.
The My Step Foundation reported this.
An Armenian chapel was built in Addis Ababa in 1923. After 1935, St. George Church was established on the same site at the initiative of benefactor Mihran Muradian.
Empress Menen Asfaw of Ethiopia also attended the church’s opening ceremony, symbolizing the important role and standing of the local Armenian community in the country’s public life.
It is Ethiopia’s only functioning Armenian Apostolic church and serves as the seat of the Ethiopian pastorate operating under the Armenian Diocese of Egypt. To this day, it coordinates the spiritual life of the approximately 100 Armenian Apostolic faithful living in Ethiopia.
Hakobyan toured the church, visited the choir gallery and viewed old books containing the liturgy and hymns of the Armenian Apostolic Church.
As part of the visit, Hakobyan also toured the Gevorgian Seminary adjacent to the church and visited the community’s Armenia sports hall.