Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has moved to advance reforms of the Armenian Apostolic Church, signing a controversial roadmap with ten senior bishops that could pave the way for the departure of the current church leader.
The document, signed at the prime minister’s residence on 5 January, sets out a series of steps described by Pashinyan and participating clergy as essential for the "revival" and strengthening of the Church.
The roadmap envisages a public announcement of reform plans, the removal of the current head of the Church, the appointment of a locum tenens, the adoption of a new church statute and the election of a new Catholicos of All Armenians under revised canonical procedures.
According to the proposal, the new statute would be designed to ensure compliance with canon law, improve financial transparency and enforce ethical standards among clergy.
Pashinyan first outlined the broader reform framework on 8 December, saying it would be activated after Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II steps down.
He emphasised that the Church’s governance needed updating to reflect greater accountability, ethical standards, and the spiritual mission of the institution.
To oversee the implementation of the roadmap, a coordinating council will be established, tasked with guiding the Church’s renewal process.
The initiative has prompted criticism from church loyalists and civil society groups, who warn that state involvement risks undermining the constitutional independence of the Armenian Apostolic Church.
The Church has not issued a formal public response to the roadmap.
Observers say the move forms part of a broader effort by Pashinyan to assert greater oversight of religious institutions, which he has framed as necessary to reinforce national spiritual values and public accountability.
Relations between the government and the Church have been strained for several years.
Pashinyan has repeatedly criticised Karekin II’s leadership, questioning his moral and administrative authority and describing the current governance model as arbitrary and uncanonical.
He has pointed to the absence of a comprehensive church statute, despite commitments made as early as 2011, as evidence of the need for reform.
Over the past year, several senior clerics have been detained amid disputes over church governance, including Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, Archbishop Mikael Adjapahyan, Bishop Mkrtich Proshyan and Arshak Khachatryan, head of the Echmiadzin chancery.
The confrontation has deepened divisions within Armenian society, with senior clergy warning against political interference and stressing the Church’s constitutional autonomy.
Analysts say the standoff reflects a broader struggle over church–state relations in Armenia and could shape public opinion amid ongoing political polarisation.
Leaders of Iran, Israel, and the United States reiterated their determination to press on with the conflict on Friday (13 March), as the Middle Eas...
A suspect crashed his truck into the hallway of a Detroit-area synagogue where child...
Although against international humanitarian war, targeting desalination plants and other key locations is increasingly being used as a way of makin...
Iran should continue “blocking the Strait of Hormuz,” while the U....
The U.S. should shut down its military bases in the Middle East, Iran's new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei ...
The new constitution of Armenia must not contain any reference to the Declaration of Independence, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said on Thursday (12 March), according to Armenian media reports.
Georgia has cancelled international tenders for the construction of major road sections that form part of a regional highway linking the country with the borders of Armenia and Azerbaijan.
A freight train carrying more than 1,000 tons of Russian grain will depart for Armenia through Azerbaijani territory on Wednesday. The shipment consists of 11 wagons loaded with a total of 1,023 tons of agricultural cargo.
Russian grain is once again moving by rail to Armenia along a route that had been closed for decades. The latest freight train departed from Baku on 9 March carrying hundreds of tonnes of grain.
The U.S. should shut down its military bases in the Middle East, Iran's new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said on Thursday (12 March). His words were read out by a broadcaster on state Iranian television.
A towering lava fountain from Kilauea shot about 400 metres into the air late on Tuesday (11 March) on Hawaii Island, prompting temporary closures at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and part of a key highway as volcanic ash and debris fell over nearby areas.
More than 68,000 children in eastern Afghanistan have been displaced after clashes between Afghan and Pakistani forces intensified along the border, according to a new report by Save the Children.
Georgia has cancelled international tenders for the construction of major road sections that form part of a regional highway linking the country with the borders of Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Centuries-old palaces and mosques in Isfahan, Iran’s celebrated cultural capital, lie in ruins after a series of air raids struck the city’s historic centre, leaving officials to warn of a devastating loss to both national and global heritage. AnewZ’s Touraj Shiralilou visited the city.
Leaders of Iran, Israel, and the United States reiterated their determination to press on with the conflict on Friday (13 March), as the Middle East war approached two weeks, leaving thousands dead and millions affected, tensions in the region escalated further with a deadly attack in Iraq.
Iran should continue “blocking the Strait of Hormuz,” while the U.S. should “shut” its Middle East military bases, new Iranian Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, said on Thursday in his first speech since being elected. He is still yet to appear in public, and a broadcaster read out his words.
International security and climate change are top of the agenda as leaders and policymakers from around the world meet at the 13th Global Baku Forum in the Azerbaijani capital this week.
Fifteen Turkish-owned vessels remain stranded in the blockaded Strait of Hormuz, Türkiye’s Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu said on Wednesday.
New Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has said Iran should continue ‘blocking the Strait of Hormuz’ in his first statement since his election, read out on Iranian State television on Thursday (12 March).
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment