Pashinyan: Armenian Apostolic Church should be a space free of hatred and political divisions

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said on Saturday that the Armenian Apostolic Church ought to be free from hatred and political confrontation and serve as a space for national unity.

Addressing the issue of the Church’s role in the country’s public and political life, Pashinyan said on Facebook that it should be a space free from political divisions and should primarily focus on spreading divine doctrine in real life.

“There is much talk about the inadmissibility of dragging the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church into politics and of the Church itself engaging in political activity. On this issue, there is, in essence, understanding within Armenian society—if not consensus, then consensus minus a few.

But from this point another question arises: should the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church have a connection to our public and political life, and if so, what kind? I believe that, yes, it should have a connection, and the Church should be the space where people cease to be opposition or pro-government, where even the sharpest political opponents set aside their differences within the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church and can stand side by side during our national church holidays, attend the Divine Liturgy together, offer prayers to God, receive Holy Communion, and commune with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

In my view, this is precisely the kind of public role the Church should have, and its primary concern should be the dissemination in real life of the doctrine of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and the values He professed,” Pashinyan said.