The Armenian women must not remain silent

Vahe H Apelian

This blog is my rewording in English my latest blog in Armenian  

The breach between the Armenian state and the ecclesiastical hierarchy of Etchmiadzin has widened. The state has banned Catholicos Karekin II from traveling abroad. The crux of this issue for me is the celibacy of Catholicos Karekin II to occupy the throne of St. Gregory the Illuminator. Whatever other attributions are made and whatever solutions are proposed or contemplated to resolve the matter, no fundamental resolution can be achieved until the public is assured that Catholicos Karekin II, is a celibate bishop, and hence is the worthy successor to the throne of St. Gregory the Illuminator.

The controversy over whether Catholicos Karekin II has a child came about not long after his consecration; that is, since the ill-fated date of October 27, 1999. Of course, I am not referring to the Catholicos’ consecration, but to the murder that occurred on that date, inside the National Assembly claiming the lives of the political elite of Armenia.

If the controversy is correct, then it means that Karekin II Catholicos has raped an Armenian woman. There is no consensual sexual relation for the celibate bishop. The catholicos thus has impregnated a woman and has abandoned her by not accepting in public the responsibility for his liaison and continues to deny his paternity. It is not only the controversy that is worrisome, but the silence of the Catholicos is. He does not deny the controversy, nor does he negate the possibility of the rumor being true. The catholicos remains silent on this most grave matter.

According to the church cannon laws, the catholicos must be a celibate. If the rumor is true, then Catholicos Karekin II must resign, or the ecclesiastical hierarchy of Etchmiadzin will have to remove him from the throne of the catholicosate. Perhaps, he may be forgiven and allowed to continue his spiritual reign in the Holy See. In any case, the transparency is necessary. And if it is the Prime Minister who, knowing of its falsehood, is deliberately spreading it at the highest level, I have no doubt that, if not the National Assembly, then the Armenian citizen will remove him from the post, if not immediately but surely at July 7, 2026 general election.

During this difficult period in history, the Armenian women mostly remain silent. Some even supports the Catholicos. I am surprised to read that there are Armenian women in Armenia who justify the catholicos by saying that he is, after all, a male. In Armenian Որձ է։ In other words, such behavior is expected from an Armenian man, be he a catholicos. A terrible mentality seems to have taken root, among some of the women of Armenia. And in the Diaspora, Armenian women are not united to demand that the Catholicos address this controversy.

This is the first time that I realize that it’s the Armenian woman, more than the church itself, who has carried the heavy burden for the survival of the nation, through our long history, as a devoted mother, grandmother, paternal aunt or maternal aunt. However, I also realize, that her inordinate burden seems to have robbed the Armenian woman of her exclusive human rights, commonly understood by the women in the West. In this case an Armenian man, especially as a catholicos, cannot ignore such rumor or glance over it and go about unconcerned. The Catholicos must be transparent and address this long simmering rumor.

I repeat, whatever the attributions are and solutions may be proposed or contemplated for bridging the state and the present Echmiadzin divide; no solution can be substantiated until Catholicos Karekin II addresses this grave matter of his celibacy. Yes, the state of Armenia has nothing to gain if the catholicos is removed because of the allegations. It also is true, that mother church at Etchmiadzin has not nothing to gain if the catholicos is retained on his spiritual seat without addressing the issue of his fathering a child out of wedlock. 

It remains for the collective Armenian woman to demand public transparency from Catholicos Karekin II on this controversial issue. More than any segment of the Armenian society, it is the Armenian Women who can bring about a much-needed resolution to his grave matter.