Armenian PM: I Will Lead the "Liberation" of the Armenian Apostolic Church

YEREVAN — On July 8, 2025, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced that he would personally lead the “liberation” of the Armenian Apostolic Church, accusing its leadership of allowing the Church to be seized by an “anti-government faction.” He published this statement on his Telegram channel.

Pashinyan criticized the leadership of the Armenian Church, accusing it of losing spiritual guidance and collaborating with hostile forces: “The house of Jesus Christ, the place of the descent of the Only-Begotten, has been seized by the Antichrist, a depraved, anti-national, and anti-government faction, and must be liberated.” He also said that senior hierarchs of the Armenian Apostolic Church had completely lost contact with Jesus Christ and His teachings.

The conflict between the state and the Armenian Church has been ongoing for several years but became particularly acute in the spring of 2025. The reason for the new escalation was Pashinyan’s statements regarding Nagorno-Karabakh’s affiliation with Azerbaijan.

The deterioration of the conflict was accompanied by the arrest of clergy. At the end of June, Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, the leader of the “Holy Struggle” movement, and the head of the Shirak Eparchy, Archbishop Mikael Ajapahyan, were detained. They were accused of calling for the overthrow of the government and undermining the country’s territorial integrity. The hierarchs rejected the accusations as politically motivated.

The Armenian Church believes that the authorities are attempting to bring the Church under state control. According to the hierarchs, such actions not only undermine the Church’s authority but also weaken the moral stability of the Armenian people during one of the most difficult periods in their history.

The Armenian bishops have warned the civil authorities that they may pronounce an athema against Pashinyan and his supporters.

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