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THE ARMENIAN APOSTOLIC CHURCH IS HELD HOSTAGE
The continuing culture of corruption and abuse of power at the
Catholicosate level of the Armenian church becomes more than evident
when we consider the impact the resignation letter of the Primate of
France, His Eminence Archbishop Norvan Zakarian, has been having on
the psyche of the current and future generations of the clergy.
Let us begin our analysis of the present state of affairs of the
Armenian Church by introducing Archbishop Norvan Zakarian, in order
to provide a context for understanding the unjust victimization and
severity of penal threats levied by Catholicos Karekin II against
this devoted and humble servant of God.
Archbishop Norvan Zakarian was born in Beirut, Lebanon, in 1940. After
graduating from the local parochial elementary school, he attended
the seminary of the Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia. Thereafter,
he pursued his higher education at the St. James' Brotherhood Seminary
in Jerusalem. In 1967, he went to France to continue his theological
studies. Archbishop Serovpe Manoukian, the former Primate of France,
recognized the exceptional character of this young seminarian and
ordained him as celibate priest in 1968.
In appreciation of his many years of service in the Church, His
Holiness Catholicos Vazken I ordained him a bishop in 1982. Bishop
Zakarian has had a long and distinguished track record of selfless
and obedient service to his parish and church. Moreover, he played
an instrumental role in creating and establishing the Armenian
Church Diocese of France. He was the force behind the movement that
transformed that dream into reality.
In 2007, by a majority of the votes of the Diocesan Assembly he was
elected as the first Primate of the newly-created Diocese of France,
followed by his nomination as a member of the Supreme Spiritual Council
of the Holy See of Etchmiadzin and appointment as Pontifical Legate
to the Armenian communities of Western Europe.
Those who have come to know Archbishop Zakarian have consistently
regarded him as a model clergyman, always willing and able to
serve the needs of his parishioners, who possesses the intellectual
integrity of the highest caliber-predicating any number of important
achievements. This is truly a dedicated man of the cloth, who has
become the pride of the Church and has won the hearts and minds of
the faithful.
Archbishop Norvan Zakarian is currently being targeted for
ostracization and vilified by vengeful wrath and subsequent shunning
by the Catholicos for not supporting the priest Vatche Hairabedian,
a known convicted criminal. Archbishop Zakarian summarizes his
disappointment at Karekin II's behavior and verbal invectives in
his letter, stating, "For a while now, I have come to realize that
insulting me and hurting my feelings somehow gives you pleasure. Your
accusations addressed to me, indeed, surprise me. You probably do
not realize you are squashing the moral integrity of a human being
beneath your feet."
The phrase, "for a while now" leads one to believe that this volley
of threats is not singular in nature, but just the latest attempt
to humiliate and defrock him by a disgruntled and vindictive head of
the church. In fact, the Archbishop iterates in his four-page letter
addressed to the members of the Supreme Spiritual Council many other
instances of his public chastisement by the Catholicos. We must ask
ourselves if this is the just and proper show of appreciation for
his 45 years of dutiful service to the Church and nation. Granted,
as Christians we can only expect recognition for our good deeds from
the Almighty. However, is it not only reasonable to expect not to be
persecuted and undermined for such deeds? How can such indefensible
behavior by the highest authority of the Church be justified and what
message does it send to the new, aspiring generation of seminarians
vowed to serve the Church?
A specific incident in a public location, disclosed by Archbishop
Norvan Zakarian, attests to the extent of the injury inflicted on him
by His Holiness Karekin II, who, upon visiting the Diocese in France,
launched into a tirade, declaring, "I will take away your hood...I will
take away your cloak...I will make you stand before your parishioners
and have them witness your punishment. You will not be able to perform
conduct any ceremonies such as baptisms, matrimony or funeral."
Archbishop Zakarian has expressed his frustrations with the leadership
of the Church by reiterating that the Armenian Church has long stood
for love, grace, and compassion, whereas the current powers have
instilled a culture of fear and intimidation.
Indeed, this is a very sad state of affairs, but these revelations are
nothing new. Other high and low ranking priests have been targeted
as well, yet the turmoil and abuse of power continues. His Holiness
Aram I, of the Catholicosate of Cilicia, suffers from the same
megalomaniacal psychopathy, who has declared on several occasions to
his young priests, "...anyone who does not listen and obey my orders,
I will smash him and cast aside like a dirty rag and will humiliate
him, and will make him suffer". Young priests, the world over, are
attesting to this kind of humiliation today. How is it feasible to
attract young people to come and serve the Church under such dreadful
conditions? Indeed, it is not!
Let us make it clear: our concerns are not so much with particular
individuals, --although the actions of the current leadership is
at best deplorable,-- but with the lack of brotherly love among all
priests and absence of the manifestations of love that was taught to
us by Jesus Christ. Concomitantly, we should be distressed by the
lawlessness within the hierarchy of Church because at the heart of
the matter is a representative institution, for, of, and by the people.
Where there is no law, there is infamy and the law of jungle, and
hence one loses the ability to listen to public opinion and the
ability to conquer conflict or bridge differences, especially among
ensuing generations, who are now privy to the turmoil in and moral
turpitude of the Church.
The Church can once again become a beacon of moral and constructive
behavior, but only when the ranks of the concerned faithful servants
of God abide by His Word and begin acting accordingly. Alas, I am not
referring the cowards or those who have sold their souls to please
the authorities and gain temporal, worldly awards and decorations.
Adding insult to injury, non-elected members of the Supreme Spiritual
Council of Etchmiadzin have rendered decisions which exemplify their
obsequious nature and servile obedience to the morally bankrupt
authority of the Church.
His Holiness Karekin II, in his letter to Archbishop Zakarian, states,
" We were surprised to read your letter and the accusations that you
make. It is your duty to prove to the Supreme Spiritual Council in
session that your accusations are founded and that you have evidence to
prove your allegations". At prima facie, it seems utterly ridiculous
to demand substantiation for something that occurred at a public
location and was witnessed by dozens of officials, but there we are
at an absurd point of having to prove that the rant of Catholicos
Karekin II at the Orly airport of Paris, France, actually took place.
Isn't this latest demand a clear case of the abuse of power and rule
with impunity by the head of the Church?
Who among us is going to have the courage to stand up and declare the
truth? For, as the Bible says, "there is nothing hidden that shall
not be revealed" (Matt. 10:26).
VOSGAN MEKHITARIAN 10:11 05/11/2013 Story from Lragir.am News:
http://www.lragir.am/index/eng/0/society/view/31241
The continuing culture of corruption and abuse of power at the
Catholicosate level of the Armenian church becomes more than evident
when we consider the impact the resignation letter of the Primate of
France, His Eminence Archbishop Norvan Zakarian, has been having on
the psyche of the current and future generations of the clergy.
Let us begin our analysis of the present state of affairs of the
Armenian Church by introducing Archbishop Norvan Zakarian, in order
to provide a context for understanding the unjust victimization and
severity of penal threats levied by Catholicos Karekin II against
this devoted and humble servant of God.
Archbishop Norvan Zakarian was born in Beirut, Lebanon, in 1940. After
graduating from the local parochial elementary school, he attended
the seminary of the Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia. Thereafter,
he pursued his higher education at the St. James' Brotherhood Seminary
in Jerusalem. In 1967, he went to France to continue his theological
studies. Archbishop Serovpe Manoukian, the former Primate of France,
recognized the exceptional character of this young seminarian and
ordained him as celibate priest in 1968.
In appreciation of his many years of service in the Church, His
Holiness Catholicos Vazken I ordained him a bishop in 1982. Bishop
Zakarian has had a long and distinguished track record of selfless
and obedient service to his parish and church. Moreover, he played
an instrumental role in creating and establishing the Armenian
Church Diocese of France. He was the force behind the movement that
transformed that dream into reality.
In 2007, by a majority of the votes of the Diocesan Assembly he was
elected as the first Primate of the newly-created Diocese of France,
followed by his nomination as a member of the Supreme Spiritual Council
of the Holy See of Etchmiadzin and appointment as Pontifical Legate
to the Armenian communities of Western Europe.
Those who have come to know Archbishop Zakarian have consistently
regarded him as a model clergyman, always willing and able to
serve the needs of his parishioners, who possesses the intellectual
integrity of the highest caliber-predicating any number of important
achievements. This is truly a dedicated man of the cloth, who has
become the pride of the Church and has won the hearts and minds of
the faithful.
Archbishop Norvan Zakarian is currently being targeted for
ostracization and vilified by vengeful wrath and subsequent shunning
by the Catholicos for not supporting the priest Vatche Hairabedian,
a known convicted criminal. Archbishop Zakarian summarizes his
disappointment at Karekin II's behavior and verbal invectives in
his letter, stating, "For a while now, I have come to realize that
insulting me and hurting my feelings somehow gives you pleasure. Your
accusations addressed to me, indeed, surprise me. You probably do
not realize you are squashing the moral integrity of a human being
beneath your feet."
The phrase, "for a while now" leads one to believe that this volley
of threats is not singular in nature, but just the latest attempt
to humiliate and defrock him by a disgruntled and vindictive head of
the church. In fact, the Archbishop iterates in his four-page letter
addressed to the members of the Supreme Spiritual Council many other
instances of his public chastisement by the Catholicos. We must ask
ourselves if this is the just and proper show of appreciation for
his 45 years of dutiful service to the Church and nation. Granted,
as Christians we can only expect recognition for our good deeds from
the Almighty. However, is it not only reasonable to expect not to be
persecuted and undermined for such deeds? How can such indefensible
behavior by the highest authority of the Church be justified and what
message does it send to the new, aspiring generation of seminarians
vowed to serve the Church?
A specific incident in a public location, disclosed by Archbishop
Norvan Zakarian, attests to the extent of the injury inflicted on him
by His Holiness Karekin II, who, upon visiting the Diocese in France,
launched into a tirade, declaring, "I will take away your hood...I will
take away your cloak...I will make you stand before your parishioners
and have them witness your punishment. You will not be able to perform
conduct any ceremonies such as baptisms, matrimony or funeral."
Archbishop Zakarian has expressed his frustrations with the leadership
of the Church by reiterating that the Armenian Church has long stood
for love, grace, and compassion, whereas the current powers have
instilled a culture of fear and intimidation.
Indeed, this is a very sad state of affairs, but these revelations are
nothing new. Other high and low ranking priests have been targeted
as well, yet the turmoil and abuse of power continues. His Holiness
Aram I, of the Catholicosate of Cilicia, suffers from the same
megalomaniacal psychopathy, who has declared on several occasions to
his young priests, "...anyone who does not listen and obey my orders,
I will smash him and cast aside like a dirty rag and will humiliate
him, and will make him suffer". Young priests, the world over, are
attesting to this kind of humiliation today. How is it feasible to
attract young people to come and serve the Church under such dreadful
conditions? Indeed, it is not!
Let us make it clear: our concerns are not so much with particular
individuals, --although the actions of the current leadership is
at best deplorable,-- but with the lack of brotherly love among all
priests and absence of the manifestations of love that was taught to
us by Jesus Christ. Concomitantly, we should be distressed by the
lawlessness within the hierarchy of Church because at the heart of
the matter is a representative institution, for, of, and by the people.
Where there is no law, there is infamy and the law of jungle, and
hence one loses the ability to listen to public opinion and the
ability to conquer conflict or bridge differences, especially among
ensuing generations, who are now privy to the turmoil in and moral
turpitude of the Church.
The Church can once again become a beacon of moral and constructive
behavior, but only when the ranks of the concerned faithful servants
of God abide by His Word and begin acting accordingly. Alas, I am not
referring the cowards or those who have sold their souls to please
the authorities and gain temporal, worldly awards and decorations.
Adding insult to injury, non-elected members of the Supreme Spiritual
Council of Etchmiadzin have rendered decisions which exemplify their
obsequious nature and servile obedience to the morally bankrupt
authority of the Church.
His Holiness Karekin II, in his letter to Archbishop Zakarian, states,
" We were surprised to read your letter and the accusations that you
make. It is your duty to prove to the Supreme Spiritual Council in
session that your accusations are founded and that you have evidence to
prove your allegations". At prima facie, it seems utterly ridiculous
to demand substantiation for something that occurred at a public
location and was witnessed by dozens of officials, but there we are
at an absurd point of having to prove that the rant of Catholicos
Karekin II at the Orly airport of Paris, France, actually took place.
Isn't this latest demand a clear case of the abuse of power and rule
with impunity by the head of the Church?
Who among us is going to have the courage to stand up and declare the
truth? For, as the Bible says, "there is nothing hidden that shall
not be revealed" (Matt. 10:26).
VOSGAN MEKHITARIAN 10:11 05/11/2013 Story from Lragir.am News:
http://www.lragir.am/index/eng/0/society/view/31241