‘The Armenian Apostolic Church is the only institution to have survived from the Middle Ages to the present day. It is the only national structure that has withstood the trials of the centuries and survived to the present day. Over time, it has acquired many characteristic features. Compared with other apostolic churches, the Armenian Apostolic Church has always been distinguished by the representation of the laity within its supreme body, the National Assembly of the Church. Over time, the National Assembly of the Church, for example, has become a body representing national interests and has in a way taken over some of the functions of the Armenian national parliament, particularly since the end of the Middle Ages,’
historian Mikayel Malkhasyan presented in his speech.
The conference ‘The Church at the Origins of the State’ was recently held in Yerevan. During this round table, historians discussed the relationship between the Church and the State at the Middle Ages to the Third Republic.
According to historians, the Armenian Church is the structure that preserves the idea of the State. It laid the foundations of the Armenian state from the end of the Middle Ages to the modern era. In practical terms, it is this structure that has transmitted the idea of the national state from generation to generation. Historians consider unfounded the thesis that the Church has hindered the formation of the State throughout history.
The main objective is to convey the opinions of experts. In his speech, the historian Mikayel Malkhasyan presented the Armenian Church as a structure that preserves the idea of the State, a structure that laid the foundations of the Armenian State at the end of the Middle Ages and in modern times.
He points out that, in practice, it is the Church that has transmitted the idea of a nation-state to generations of Armenians:
‘During the liturgical sermon, the people learned that they had their own king, for example.’
It should be remembered that the campaign against the Holy See, His Holiness the Catholicos and the high clergy, particularly in recent days, has caused great concern among historians and historiographers.
The organisers have stressed that the aim of the conference is not a political discussion:
‘Nevertheless, the times we live in oblige us to organise such meetings to resolve urgent problems.’
The historians and researchers taking part in the ‘The Church at the Origins of the State’ conference not only highlighted the role of the Armenian Church at different periods in history, but also discussed the measures that need to be taken to avoid the current catastrophe.
Main source: shoghakat.am