If the Armenian church is at stake, so is the Armenian state

Vaհe H Apelian 

If the present conflict is viewed and presented to the interested public that the Armenian government is against the church; I can make the same counter argument that the Armenian Church (Apostolic) is against the Armenian state.

The sovereignty of the Armenian state faces a formidable opposition from within led by the Armenian Apostolic Church, that is plainly aligned with the Russian Orthodox church and the Russian state against the sovereign Armenian state in favor of an Armenian state subservient to the Russian state.

It is hard to envision that Armenia faces the formidable opposition of the Russian Federation, when Armenia cannot harm Russia let alone the fact that Armenia does not harm its longstanding ally. After all, Armenia hosts the largest Russian battalion in South Caucasus. The 102^nd Russian military base is stationed a few kilometers away from Gyumri. Not only Armenia hosts it, but also shares with Russia the cost for maintaining the basej.

Just fathom the following, for a second:

Russia is roughly 575 times larger than Armenia, with a total area of about 17.1 million square kilometers compared to Armenia’s 29,743 square kilometers

Russia is vastly more populous than Armenia. Russia has approximately 143.4 million people (ranking 9th globally), while Armenia has a population of about 3.0 million people (ranking 136th globally). This makes Russia's population roughly 47 to 48 times larger than Armenia's.

Russia's economy is vastly larger than Armenia's, with a nominal GDP of roughly $2.56 trillion compared to Armenia's $29.2 billion. This makes the Russian economy nearly 90 times larger than Armenia's in total nominal output.

Russia's military dwarfs Armenia's in every measurable category, with roughly 1 million active-duty personnel compared to Armenia's tens of thousands, and a massive advantage in tanks, aircraft, and defense spending. Russia is a global military superpower, while Armenia maintains a much smaller regional defense force.

Why is then Russia against Armenia, when Armenia cannot be a threat to Russia in any way?

The only plausible explanation I can come with is the Russian imperial pride and mindset, that its smallest ally wants to exercise its own sovereignty and diversify and chart its own course, as it sees fit. I can find no other explanation. Those who can, may share their thoughts. No, TRIPP is not the cause. TRIPP is the current excuse.

Why do so many Armenians support Russia?

I do not think there is a grass root opposition against the policies of the Nikol Pashinyan led Armenian government. Surely there is lingering nostalgia of Soviet Armenia.  The opposition in Armenia is led by a few oligarchs, and a cadre of former Soviet era nomenklatura, who amassed a formidable fortune and understandably have reasons to believe that they can keep their fortune having Armenia as a protectorate of Russian Federation, if not subservient to it. Yes, there is a valid reason for their political orientation, and exploiting the church vs the state, for their own sake. Those who think otherwise that there is a grass root opposition to the policies of the Armenian government for general welfare, may share their views. 

The issue for me is the Armenian Church hierarchy that opposes reform and wants to retain its status quo.   I propose the government not to pursue legal action against the Catholicos and the members of his council. It is politicizing the issue.  That does not mean the Armenian state should not be critical of the Church for wanting to their temporal privileges. Let the people decide if the Catholicos Karekin II and his hierarchy deserve and are worthy of. their respect and obedience. It is us the people, who  extend ourselves and ask for their blessings; it is us who have them baptize our children; have them bless us and  our children as we kiss the right hands of the Catholicos and his high placed clerical entourage, as a testament of our obedience to the divinity they represent on earth for  us Armenians; or whether the Armenian Apostolic church is in dire need for reformation for the well fare the Armenians and longevity of Armenia.

After all, our existence as a distinct people is all about having sovereign Armenian, for our own temporal  and spiritual welfare..