“Should I trust in your gossips?” Archbishop Nathan Hovhannisyan (video)
Clergymen are not happy with idea expressed by Hrant Bagratyan on his Facebook page in which he stated that instead of building a church, there are more important things that can be built for the country. According to Archbishop Pargev Martirosyan, the Primate of the Artsakh Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, “That doesn’t make any sense: one builds a school, and another person builds a hospital, someone can build a church, while another one is engaged in business. And there can be also someone who only helps the army.” Archbishop Nathan Hovhannisyan, the Head of the Department of External Relations and Protocol at the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, adds: "If Hrant Bagratyan did the calculations like this during his tenure, then the destruction of the country began.” Archbishop Nathan Hovhannisyan replies to the fact that the church stands beside a government that constantly falsifies elections, "So, what? All international experts were pleased with the recent elections. So, should I trust in your gossips or the international experts?” He also adds about the facts of obtaining votes through bribes: “Show me a place in the world, where there are no such cases.” Primate of the Cyprus diocese, Archbishop Khoren Togramacyan, has not heard anything about the falsification of elections in Armenia, but he assures that if there is a split between the authorities and the people, church should have a “dialogue” with the people. “Church should speak to the people, persuade and encourage them, if needed.” The leader of the Artsakh Diocese also touched upon the question of whether a clergyman should carry weapons by which many people were killed. "We should remember that the weapon also protects the people.”
