YEREVAN—Just days following an international conference in Bern, Switzerland that focused on the protection of Armenian spiritual and cultural heritage in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan launched an unprecedented public campaign against the Armenian Apostolic Church, triggering a storm of controversy across religious and political circles.
The conference, titled “Religious Freedom: Preserving the Armenian Spiritual, Cultural and Historical Heritage in Artsakh/Nagorno-Karabakh,” was organized by the World Council of Churches and the Protestant Church of Switzerland and convened at the initiative of His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians. The event brought renewed international attention to the destruction of Armenian heritage under Azerbaijani control and underscored the Church’s role in advocating for the displaced population of Artsakh.
Soon after, during a government session on May 29, Prime Minister Pashinyan criticized the physical state of Armenian churches, describing them as disordered and neglected. “Our churches have essentially become storerooms,” he said, listing bags of cement, scrap wood, rusty rebar and discarded personal belongings as examples. “How can one speak of sanctity and act in such unholy ways? How can one trample on sacredness and then exclaim, ‘Something happened in the complex’?”
In subsequent remarks, Pashinyan escalated his criticism, using language widely condemned as inappropriate. In a particularly controversial Facebook post on May 30, he addressed a bishop, writing: “Srbazan, keep banging your uncle’s wife. What’s your problem with me?”
Pashinyan then went on to question the moral integrity of the clergy, suggested the state should play a role in electing the Catholicos and implied that Karekin II may have violated his vow of celibacy. Calling for institutional reform, Pashinyan demanded that the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin clarify whether the Catholicos has a child, arguing that such a personal life is incompatible with the role of the Church’s spiritual leader.
The prime minister’s comments prompted immediate responses from the Supreme Spiritual Council and senior clerics.
The Supreme Spiritual Council of the Armenian Apostolic Church convened on June 2 at the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin and issued a strong statement accusing the prime minister of launching “yet another attack” against the Church.
The Council criticized the prime minister’s language as “profane, inappropriate and unbecoming of a state official,” stating that his comments not only disrespected the Church and its clergy but also insulted the religious sentiments of the Armenian faithful. They stressed that such rhetoric violates basic norms of civility and is cloaked in “false moral concern.”
The statement warned that these actions align with the interests of anti-Armenian forces, echoing narratives promoted by Azerbaijan’s propaganda machine. It emphasized that internal Church matters are governed by canon law and are not subject to political interference.
The Council called on relevant authorities to halt what it described as the prime minister’s “unlawful and shortsighted campaign,” warning against the politicization of sacred institutions. It urged unity among believers, calling on the faithful to remain strong in their devotion to the Church and homeland.
Archbishop Arshak Khachatryan, Chancellor of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, also responded to Pashinyan’s comments. While welcoming the recognition of the government’s responsibility to preserve sacred sites, he criticized the tone and depth of the prime minister’s remarks.
“It is commendable that the sitting prime minister has finally acknowledged his and the government’s responsibility in safeguarding sanctuaries with heritage status,” Archbishop Khachatryan wrote. However, he lamented the manner in which the issue was raised, adding, “It is regrettable that even when speaking on such a sensitive matter, a person in such a high office cannot refrain from displaying a lack of the recently ‘fashionable’ value—education—as well as a profound crisis in public communication and understanding of the issue.”
Khachatryan stated that the Church has made multiple formal appeals to government institutions since early 2019, raising concerns about the condition of heritage sanctuaries and proposing joint discussions. “Unfortunately, those efforts have remained unanswered by both the relevant state bodies and the government itself,” he noted.
“This unexpected attention may carry some consoling potential. Perhaps the head of state might now also turn his attention to the increasing Azerbaijani claims over Armenian sanctuaries, and more critically, to the urgent need for preserving those at risk of destruction in occupied Artsakh,” the archbishop concluded.
Bishop Hovnan Hakobyan of the Diocese of Gougark responded more sharply, referring to Pashinyan as “the chief madman of the country.”
Bishop Hakobyan refrained from addressing the prime minister’s comments in detail, stating that the Church would not dignify what he described as yet another “shameful episode” that has already stirred “righteous anger among the faithful,” as seen across public discourse and social media.
Instead, Bishop Hakobyan highlighted a contrasting development: the international conference in Bern, dedicated to the preservation of Armenian spiritual and cultural heritage in Artsakh. The event addressed issues such as safeguarding sacred sites, the right of return for displaced Artsakhtsis and the immediate release of Armenian prisoners held in Azerbaijan.
“This international gathering has undoubtedly caused unease and discontent in Azerbaijan,” the bishop noted, suggesting that the prime minister’s attack on the Church was “not coincidental,” but timed to echo the frustrations of a hostile foreign power. “As the enemy expresses its outrage over the conference, the chief betrayer of our country seems to mirror that outrage—choosing this very moment to initiate an assault on the Church,” Hakobyan concluded.
Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, leader of the “Tavush for the Homeland” movement, also sharply criticized Prime Minister Pashinyan and his wife for what he described as ongoing disrespect toward the Armenian Apostolic Church. Speaking in an interview with 168.am, Archbishop Galstanyan stated that their recent statements and social media posts reflect a broader pattern of irreverence displayed by the current administration.
“Years ago, I said that these individuals didn’t come from institutions of statehood but from the streets, and they still do not understand who they are, what offices they hold, or the standards of conduct and lifestyle those roles require. Nothing has changed,” Galstanyan said.
According to the Archbishop, the disrespectful rhetoric toward the Church is not new, but rather consistent with the government’s broader attitude. “This behavior has always been present under this administration. What we are seeing now is only a continuation,” he noted.
He went on to condemn the personal conduct of Armenia’s leaders, stating, “It is appalling to witness the behavior of the country’s top official and his spouse. They constantly speak about education and modern values, yet this is the example they set. Their behavior should be exemplary, but what we see is completely unacceptable.”
In addition to sharp rebukes from the Armenian Apostolic Church, the prime minister’s inflammatory remarks have sparked criticism from a broad spectrum of civil society organizations, legal experts and political figures.
Former Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanyan criticized the prime minister for initiating an “unprecedented and reprehensible rhetorical campaign” against the Church, suggesting that Pashinyan’s actions are an attempt to please Baku and Ankara.
The “Armenia” faction of the National Assembly accused the ruling administration of deepening internal divisions and undermining the nation’s spiritual and moral foundations, emphasizing the Church’s constitutional role in preserving national identity.
Human rights defenders warned that Pashinyan’s comments could be seen as efforts to undermine constitutional order, noting that the separation of church and state is a fundamental principle enshrined in Armenia’s Constitution.
The Genesis Armenia think tank described the prime minister’s statements as politically motivated attacks aimed at eroding public trust in the Church and deepening ideological polarization ahead of elections.
“We strongly condemn the ongoing campaign against the Armenian Apostolic Church, viewing it not only as a deliberate attack on the nation’s core values and identity, but also as a politically motivated attempt to undermine moral boundaries, erode public ethics and deflect attention from serious national security challenges in pursuit of political self-preservation,” the think tank stated.
Hoory Minoyan
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The Church represents the spiritual soul of the Armenian people.
That the Armenian people survived at all, during the 800 years of Muslim rule, is entirely due to the Church.
Pashinyan’s attacks just go to show that he has gone stark, raving mad.
For the life of me, I could not bring myself, with a few strokes on my keyboard, come with such generalizations for an issue that falls squarely on a person to confront.
The PM did not attack the Armenian clergy, the body of people ordained for religious duties. He did not attack an Armenian Catholic priest, nor did he attack an Armenian Evangelical pastor. Pashinyan in fact did not attack an Armenian Apostolic priest from the three institutional pillars of the Armenian Apostolic church, namely from Catholicosate of Antelias, and from Jerusalem and Istanbul patriarchates. I am not even sure the if attack is the proper verb to use. In pointing to the Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II, he stated, asked, if he has broken the vows he voluntarily took for celibacy, chastity, he should resign. It turns out that is the wrong the question to ask.
What’s your point? Maybe you can clarify?
Agree. Maybe he translated it from Turkish. It just does not make any sense.
There is not one shred of evidence of that. Pashinyan and his girlfriend resort to the most offensive slander and smear campaigns against Catholicos Karekin II, other clergy, and the Armenian Apostolic Church as an institution, simply because they “dared” to criticise his disastrous and detrimental policies on Artsakh, in Armenia, his dictatorial tendencies and his corruption, among many other things. Pashinyan sees any criticism to himself and his policies, as a challenge to his rule, and he resorts to ad hominem insults, slander and threats. Such vile language and threats against the Church and its clergy, has not been seen since the Bolsheviks. Pashinyan has already deeply offended, by questioning Armenia’s national symbols and the Armenian Genocide, but now has offended even further by attacking the Armenian Church – and therefore the Armenian nation. This guy and his misdeeds are indefensible.
Enough with the Manufactured Outrage: The Church Must Also Face Accountability
Let’s be honest.
What we’re witnessing is not a “campaign” against the Armenian Apostolic Church, but rather the overdue unraveling of an untouchable institution’s immunity to scrutiny. Prime Minister Pashinyan didn’t wage war on the Church—he held up a mirror. And the reflection has made many uncomfortable, particularly those who’ve long used the cloak of sanctity to deflect from dysfunction, privilege, and hypocrisy.
The emotional avalanche triggered by the Prime Minister’s remarks should alarm us—not because he dared to question the Church’s role or criticize its condition—but because so many still believe that the Church is above reproach. This sanctified status has allowed generations of leaders within the Mother See to operate with minimal transparency and little civic accountability while benefiting from state funds, public trust, and near-absolute reverence.
Let’s unpack the facts.
Churches as storage rooms? That’s not fiction—it’s visible, documented reality. Photos from across Armenia show sacred buildings used to hoard construction materials, forgotten furniture, and personal junk. That is not piety; it’s negligence. Pashinyan didn’t fabricate this—it is symptomatic of a leadership failure within the Church, and it deserves public scrutiny.
And what was the Church’s response? Not repentance. Not a commitment to clean up and reform. But outrage, deflection, and name-calling. A bishop openly calling the Prime Minister “the chief madman of the country”? Others accusing him of serving “anti-Armenian forces”? This is the reaction of a deeply defensive institution, not a humble spiritual guardian.
More telling is the sudden invocation of Azerbaijan and “external enemies” every time the Church is challenged internally. This tired tactic—equating criticism with treason—is precisely what authoritarian regimes do to silence dissent. It’s absurd to suggest that confronting domestic corruption or incompetence is somehow “doing Baku’s bidding.” If anything, ignoring the rot at home is what weakens us in the face of our true adversaries.
Let us not forget: the Church has itself asked the government for help in preserving sacred sites—then resisted when it arrived in the form of honest assessment. You can’t demand public funding and moral influence while refusing public oversight. You can’t claim the moral high ground while dodging questions about personal conduct, financial management, and institutional accountability.
As for the Prime Minister’s personal tone—yes, it was jarring, perhaps deliberately so. But maybe it’s time we stop pearl-clutching over tone and start grappling with substance. Armenians have heard centuries of formal pleasantries while real problems festered. Maybe a little shock is exactly what was needed to shake the Church from its insular slumber.
This isn’t about tearing down the Church. It’s about asking it—finally—to rise to the moral and spiritual standard it so often demands from others. That requires humility, not hubris. Cooperation, not confrontation.
The Armenian people are not turning away from faith. But many are turning away from blind reverence toward institutions that have failed to modernize, adapt, and lead in the face of crisis. Faith endures. Trust must be earned.
If the Armenian Apostolic Church truly seeks to be a beacon for a new Armenia, it must welcome the disinfecting power of truth—not recoil from it.
Well said, Hagop.
The Armenian churches in Antelias and Etchmidzin, have demonstrated a blatant lack of leadership in past decades. Not one comment have they uttered nor meaningful action have they taken during and after the war in 2020, the blockade of 2022-‘23, the loss of Artsakh in 2023, the ensuing refugees from Artsakh, the POW’s and political prisoners still held illegally in Baku prisons subjected to humiliating sham trials, the destruction of Armenian cultural sites, etc. PM’s come and go every six years, but not so with the Catholicos. While unsavory rumors have been circulating for a long time in and around Etchmiadzin, airing their dirty laundry in public is not what we expect from our leaders in the 21st century. Give « diplomacy » a chance.
Many of the churches in Armenia are historic as they are hundreds of years old and need constant maintenance.
So, of course, building materials would be seen in many churches.
What, exactly, is the Church supposed to do? Allow churches to fall into disrepair and abandon them?
You can imagine the insults that Pashinyan would be making then!
I think everyone can understand that attacking the Church is part of Pashinyan’s plan to appease the Turks.
Nothing pleases Turks more than a divided Nation and divided Church.
Is the ARF ready to release its grip on the Prelacy and re-unite it with Etchmiadzin? Or will it continue to appease the Turks?
Let the ARF do it’s politicking and diplomacy outside the Church, not through the Church.
This is a moot point about the canonical division of the Armenian church starting with Bolshevik takeover, which was understandable that diocese beyond Armenia should resist a atheistic Soviet dominated church like as with the Russian orthodox church outside the Soviet Union. However in 1994 the Russian
churches were reunited, thus they lost little time. Clearly the prolonged lack of conciliation over a schism from what was driven by a now invalid external factor not an internal polity or theology issues is on the Armenian churches own hierarchy being unwilling to cede personal authority . Perhaps doing nothing is a trait the waffling around over Artaskh 1994 – 2020 until it was snatched away. Despite fellow ex Soviet neighbours Azerbaijan and Georgia upon independence recognising Palestine in 1992 and Israel being unfriendly to Armenia, Armenia took 32 years to realise that appeasing Israel over Palestine issue didn’t actually gain any reward for their position
The Catholicos is not infallible, the clergy and the Armenian Apostolic Church are not beyond reproach and criticism, but it is undeniable that Pashinyan has an agenda and a vendetta against this institution and its clergy, including Karekin II, simply because they criticised him and his rule, and he regards them as the biggest threat to his rule. He prefers that there is no criticism and opposition whatsover to himself, be it opposition political parties and politicians, the Armenian Apostolic Church and the Armenian public. He is using the same slander and smear campaigns of the Turks and Azeris against the Armenian Apostolic Church. Just browse in Turkish and Azerbaijani media about the Armenian Apostolic Church. Stop defending this guy!
Pashinyan disguised as prime minister is truly the devil in disguise. He has attacked just about every organization in the country and now the turn has come to the church leadership and that for two primary reasons. One, because the latest and major anti-Pashinyan rallies were led by a clergy, Tavush Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, calling for his resignation and now at the highest level by the Catholicos of all Armenians for the protection of Armenian churches under enemy control because the Pashinyan has washed his hands off Artsakh altogether. What the church leaders are doing according to Pashinyan, from personal attacks on him to calling for the preservation and protection of our ancient and sacred houses of worship, are obstacles to get that empty and unenforced “peace agreement” to use as trophy to claim victory, burying all the devastation and destruction that he has already caused, in attempts to try to regain the loyalty of those whom he had previously deceived twice to remain in office to save his own skin.
What Pashinyan is doing is in many ways very similar to what Donald Trump did recently in the US presidential elections. Having been convicted on 34 criminal charges, he realized the only way to avoid prison as a felon was to win the presidency. Pashinyan knows what is awaiting him should he fail in upcoming elections and using his power he is trying to do everything he can, by digging into people’s fears and emotions, to divert attention from his unpatriotic and traitorous activities onto others as a means to secure his seat. It is no coincidence what he says and does are in synchrony with the enemy hateful speech and demands because ultimately they are the ones who want this traitor in office to accomplish their anti-Armenian plans. The two need each other. The enemy needs incompetent pacifist Pashinyan to attain its fascist goals and Pashinyan needs the enemy support to remain in office to save himself! Creating chaos and fear mongering serves them both because they know once a patriotic government takes control all their schemes will come crashing down!
Pashinyan will never cease to offend (be it his attacks against the Armenian Apostolic Church, be it his questioning of Armenian national symbols, its history and its tragedies, or his nauseating futile overtures to Azerbaijan and Turkey and their despots Aliyev and Erdogan), whose offending and rubbing salt in the wound, knows no limits.
Yesterday (6 June 2025), he congratulated the Republic of Azerbaijan and the people of Azerbaijan on the occasion of the Islamic holiday Eid al-Adha (“Qurban Bayramı” in Azerbaijani).
See in Pashinyan’s own X (Twitter) account:
https://x.com/nikolpashinyan
He has congratulated and sent condolences to Azerbaijan and its dictator Aliyev on several occasions.
Have his congratulations and condolences ever been reciprocated by Azerbaijan and Aliyev?
None whatsover! He might well be talking to the wind or to a wall.
For example, when Russia downed the Azerbaijan Airlines plane on 25 December 2024, mistaking it for a Ukrainian drone, Armenia was the first country to send condolences to Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan thanked every country that sent condolences – except Armenia.
Here are two sources:
https://www.civilnet.am/en/news/810775/pashinyans-condolences-on-plane-crash-ignored-by-baku/
https://x.com/azerbaijanmfa
In the official X (Twitter) account of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan, scroll down to 25 December 2024, and you will see that Azerbaijan has indeed thanked every country that sent condolences – except Armenia.
He is shortsighted, clueless, repeats mistake after mistake, magnifies them, and further harms Armenia down the road.
@ Steve M whilst Armenia hegemon position had been in steady decline since 1994 something of many prefer to believe all started in his taking office in 2018 there is little doubt Pashinyan has been a running dog in regards to Turkey and Azerbaijan until diplomatic relations are established unless Turkey and Azerbaijan afford courtesies for Christian festivals in communications with Armenia then Armenia shouldn’t afford such gestures likewise with the Russian shootdown of the Azeri plane which ended up crashing in Kazakhstan, Armenia could very have stuck to diplomatic silence after all the incident had nothing to do with Armenia although was slight boon in causing discord between Moscow and Baku and given it’s refusal to acknowledge the condolence should in future make no comment in regard to misfortunes Azerbaijan may invariably find like anywhere else in the world unless Baku shows civility but as the Alyiev cult regime needs an external scapegoat such is unlikely even if some Azeris wish to move on from the animosities which have been a boon to Russia indeed the defeat of 2020 and the overrun of what was left of Artaskh along with Russia own cordial relationships with Turkey and Azerbaijan and it’s hypocrisy over Artaskh and military shortcomings exposed in its invasion of Ukraine forcing many Armenians an asking of questions previously considered seditious and unjustified.
It’s worth noting that in Azerbaijan there is a sense despite the current cordial relationship with Russia and it’s recent pro Azeri positions that it has exploited and manipulated ( such as when it supported Armenia) them too aswell to advance it’s own interests actually…
Is everyone that stupid, naive, and blind? Why is Armenian Weekly publishing this biased article attacking PM as if he said a lie while defending the Church and Catholicos Karekin II who is well known to be corrupt mafia thug? Is he above the law to do as he please just because he is a priest in the church? Pashinyan did not attack the church, but is instead calling for accountability. Was the response from the Church? Nothing but cheap and cowardly deflection. Instead of addressing the core problems that the PM outlined, they accuse of pleasing the enemies which has nothing to do with Turkey or Azerbaijan. I hope he will put those priest mafia thugs accountable and in jail. Only Hagop in here was the rational and logical commentator without falling into blind emotions. We need more people like you, Hagop jan.
Teapot calling the kettle black! I think you are the stupid one here for not knowing that according to the Armenian Constitution the government has no right to interfere in the affairs of the church. That is the business of the institution of the Armenian Apostolic church. There is no article in the Armenian Constitution that gives power to the state leadership to make any such statement about the church leader or make decision on behalf of the church. This traitor does not even attend church ceremonies and when he does it is always in a private gathering with his criminal collaborators for public display only. He is not even married in the eyes of the church.
More importantly, why is he poking his nose where it does not belong and why now and not in 2018 when he lied his way into office or any other time for that matter? There are many reasons. I will give you one just to get the message across and hopefully you will come to your senses instead calling everyone, other than one, stupid just because you are uninformed and misinformed. That traitor Pashinyan has washed his hands off Artsakh and its displaced and ethnically-cleansed population at the hands of the enemy with Pashinyan’s blessings. The church leadership is raising those questions and therefore becoming a major obstacle to Pashinyan-Aliyev plan to put the last nail on Artsakh’s coffin so Pashinyan can get the enemy to sign that fake and empty “peace agreement”, which is unenforced and not guaranteed by a third-party state, to use as a trophy to take to his former cheated followers to lie to deceive them yet again, for the third time, to get reelected as prime minister in upcoming elections for the sole purpose of saving himself from consequences of his criminal activities. He must have taken an advice from Trump’s deception page in the sense that for Trump himself, having been convicted of 34 criminal charges, the only way to avoid incarceration as a felon was to win the presidency!
Attacking the Church is attacking Armenian identity.
We know what Pashinyan and his Turk loving cohorts are up to.
« Article 17. The State and Religious Organisations
1. The freedom of activities of religious organisations shall be guaranteed in the Republic of Armenia.
2. Religious organisations shall be separate from the State.
Article 18. The Armenian Apostolic Holy Church
1. The Republic of Armenia shall recognise the exclusive mission of the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church, as a national church, in the spiritual life of the Armenian people, in the development of their national culture and preservation of their national identity.
2. The relations between the Republic of Armenia and the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church may be regulated by law. »
Neither is Karekin II nor are other clergy violating the Constitution of Armenia and the separation of religion and state.
It is definitely NOT against the law for the Catholicos and other clergy, to express concern and to provide constructive criticism, which is what they are doing, about the dire situation Armenia is in.
The simple fact is, that Pashinyan cannot stand criticism to himself, his disastrous rule and his attempt to become the unchallenged ruler of Armenia. This is the mindset of any intolerant authoritarian-minded leader – which he is (his “democratic credentials” proved to be a ruse and a sham, once he came to power). That is why he distorts and resorts to slander, smear campaigns and other attacks, be it the Armenian Apostolic Church, opposition political parties and politicians, independent media, NGOs, etc.
The sad fact is, that there are many sycophants and apologists who defend this man – including here in the comment section.