"Zhoghovurd": The government already has two "catholics of the heart" for itself: names

The “Zhoghovurd” daily writes: “According to sources of the “Zhoghovurd” daily, Nikol Pashinyan’s government already has its preferred candidates for the possible successor of the Catholicos of All Armenians. The two main candidates being considered are the Primate of the Western Armenian Diocese of the United States, Archbishop Hovnan Terterian, and the Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia, Aram I, who will remain loyal until they see how the situation will be resolved.

The current government can ensure the new free field and redistributed influence it envisions in the Armenian Apostolic Church after the end of Karekin II's mandate.

Let us remind you that ArmLur.am published a scenario yesterday, according to which the removal of Karekin II is already in progress.

According to our sources, law enforcement officers have already begun individual "visits" of diocesan leaders, including those who signed or did not sign the statement issued after the bishops' meeting.

According to information provided to ArmLur.am, during meetings with them, it is conveyed that "the era of the Catholicos is over," and the next steps of action may be the following:

– Possible house arrest or isolation of Karekin II,

– Arrest of Archbishop Arshak,

– and finally, a resignation letter to be published on social media by Karekin II, from isolated conditions. That is, from captivity.

At the same time, the Mother See continues to remain silent, neither denying nor confirming this information. A number of diocesan leaders have already announced that they did not sign the recently released statement, which has deepened intra-ecclesiastical tensions.

A risky phase in church-state relations

If the developments described by ArmLur.am continue, the coming days could become decisive not only for the future of the current Catholicos, but also for the entire Armenian Apostolic Church.

It is in this context that the names of possible replacements are also beginning to be discussed within government circles, of which, according to sources in the "Zhoghovurd" daily, Archbishop Hovnan Terteryan and Aram I are receiving the most approval.

We will present how law enforcement agencies manage to pressure the leaders of various dioceses and turn them against the Catholicos of All Armenians in the near future, when the complete data becomes known to us.

"Before that, let us emphasize that the Mother See has not responded in any way to our information about new anti-church pressures. It is only known that Pashinyan continues to divide our centuries-old church from within, with the participation and efforts of clergy."