Church defends Vienna summit amid pressure, false claims
Panarmenian.net
The Press Office of the Patriarchal Delegation of the Armenian Apostolic Church (AAC) in Central Europe and Scandinavia has issued a statement responding to distorted claims circulating ahead of the upcoming Episcopal Assembly in Austria.
According to the statement, these efforts are aimed at creating a negative atmosphere prior to the assembly and exerting psychological pressure to cancel it at any cost, as reported by Pastinfo.
“We have seen clearly misleading and false statements from self-proclaimed ‘truth-tellers’ such as Arman Babajanyan in interviews, which seek to deceive the public,” the statement reads.
Austria is the seat of the Patriarchal Delegation for Central Europe and Scandinavia, where the AAC is officially recognized as the fourth-oldest religious community. It is a member of Austria’s Ecumenical Council of Churches, currently chaired by Bishop Tiran Petrosyan of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, remarkably serving a second term, an unprecedented occurrence in the Council’s history.
The AAC’s headquarters, the Holy Hripsime Cathedral, is located in Vienna, adjacent to which operates the Hovhannes Shiraz Saturday School with around 200 students. Unlike Armenia, Austrian public schools not only allow but encourage the teaching of Armenian Church history, with state-paid instructors.
The AAC also has communities in three other Austrian states besides Vienna. Additionally, the Armenian Catholic Mekhitarist Congregation is active in the capital.
Addressing recent references to criminal elements in Austria, the Church emphasized: “As a democratic stronghold, Austria applies the full force of the law not only against criminal actors but also against fraudsters like Arman Babajanyan, who has forged diocesan seals, and any officials who might try to interfere in religious rituals, if such exist.”
The Church also announced that Austria’s State Security Service will guarantee the safety of all participants throughout the assembly, including from elements trying to cancel the event and “mouthpieces of Armenian authorities.”
The Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin previously clarified that the canonical validity of the Episcopal Assembly is not dependent on its location. It rejected attempts to derail the assembly abroad with baseless accusations.
The Armenian Democratic Liberal Party (Ramgavar) also supported the decision to hold the gathering in Austria, citing recent unlawful detentions of clergy in Armenia that make safe travel there difficult for participants.
