The World Council of Churches (WCC) has spoken out in support of the Armenian Apostolic Church (AAC), which has been engaged in a years-long cold war with the Armenian government. The WCC also said it was concerned about “undue influence” in internal church matters.
Relations between the AAC and the government have been poor since Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan came to power in 2018. Communications deteriorated even more sharply following Armenia’s defeat in the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war.
The conflict escalated further in late May 2025, when Pashinyan and his allies accused Karekin II of violating his vow of celibacy and began publicly referring to him by his birth name, according to The Armenian Report. Pashinyan subsequently called for the Catholicos to resign, and efforts to replace him became part of the ruling Civil Contract party’s election platform.
During the course of the conflict, between a third and half of the denomination’s bishops have been arrested, supporters have said, while the head of the AAC has been barred from leaving the country. Critics have accused Pashinyan of acting like a Soviet-era dictator.
For his part, Pashinyan has said he’s attempting to save the AAC from “anti-Christian” and “anti-state” elements. Senior AAC leaders have been accused of supporting the violent overthrow of a democratically elected government and of condoning calls for the assassination of government ministers.
One of the most high profile arrests was that of Archbishop Mikael Ajapahyan, who was sentenced to two years in jail in September 2025 for supposedly encouraging the overthrow of the government by undemocratic means.
Armenian prosecutors justified his imprisonment by pointing to a number of statements made by the archbishop appearing to call for a coup. In one instance, the archbishop told News.am, “I called for a coup to save the country from this madman, they are not saving it, they are also guilty of all this. This is not just a call, it must be done.”
In the most recent development Karekin II, head of the AAC, appeared in court on Aug. 7, alongside six senior clerics. They are accused of defying a court order requiring the denomination to reinstate Bishop Gevorg Saroyan, who is now known by his secular name, Arman Saroyan, following his defrocking, whom Karekin had removed from office and subsequently laicized.
If convicted, they reportedly face up to two years in prison. The Aug. 7 hearing, held at a court in Vagharshapat, home to the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, ended shortly after it began when Judge Hakob Manukyan recused himself from the case, according to The Armenian Report.
Karekin II himself addressed the broader dispute in a statement cited by Azatutyun: “We regret to note that our Holy Church and its clergy are being persecuted by the authorities, with illegal and fabricated criminal cases leading to detention and restrictions on the freedom of several of our clergy, national benefactors, and other individuals devoted to the church.”
In a joint statement, the WCC’s central committee moderator, Bishop Heinrich Bedford-Strohm, and general secretary Jerry Pillay, said, “WCC, as a global fellowship of churches, affirms the vital role of the Armenian Apostolic Church in the spiritual, cultural and historical life of the Armenian people and in the wider Christian family.
“As WCC, we express our concern about undue interference in inner church matters. We uphold the Armenian Church and its people in prayer and support during this time.”
This article was originally published at Christian Today