Dream Interpretation Udilova 

Temples of Armenia. Why is the Armenian Church called Apostolic and Gregorian?

Armenian Gregorian "Apostolic Church" ( Further AGAC) - one of the communities that calls itself Christian, but whether it is such will be considered further. We often hear that the Armenians were the first to accept the faith at the state level, but let us ask from whom did they accept the faith? From the Jerusalem and Byzantine Churches and, however, they failed to keep it intact! In addition, at the same time, edicts were issued in the Roman Empire that completely legalized Christianity, so there is no reason for the pride of the AGAC. For many centuries there has been no church unity between us, this does not exclude good neighborly relations, however, the schism and heresies of the AGAC run counter to the principle of preserving Unity of Faith handed down to us by the apostles and pointed out by the Word of God: « One God, one Vera, united baptism"(Ephesians 4:5). Since the 4th century, the AGAC has separated from the fullness of the ancient Orthodox local Churches (Constantinople, Jerusalem, Antioch, Alexandria, etc.), accepting first by mistake, and then consciously, the Monophysite and Monothelite and Miaphysite heresies and went into schism from all the others. Until now, we have this unhealed wound in such a way that we can't pray and take communion together until the true teaching about God is restored in the AGAC. The hostages of this misfortune of heresy and schism are ordinary Armenians, unfortunately, often far from the subtleties of theology. You should know that it is impossible to be both Orthodox and included in the Armenian “church” at the same time, just as it is impossible to be simultaneously saved and lost, truthful and a liar. You have to choose between true and false. Before talking about the Armenian direction of Monophysitism, let's talk about what Monophysitism is and how it arose.

Monophysitism - this is an incorrect doctrine about Christ, the essence of which lies in the fact that in the Lord Jesus Christ only one nature, and not two (Divine and human), as taught by the Word of God and the Orthodox Church.

Orthodox Church confesses in Christ one person(hypostasis) and two natures – divine and human abiding unmerged, inseparable, inseparable, unchanging. Monophysites same (including AGAC) in Christ they acknowledge one face, one hypostasis and one nature. As a result, the Monophysites do not recognize the Ecumenical Councils starting from the 4th (and there are seven of them in total).

Most of the saints, therefore, they insult, condemn and do not accept. Monophysitism is not only a complete denial of the real human flesh of Jesus Christ the Son of God, but any slightest transfer, shift or distortion from the human nature of Christ towards His Divinity. The AGAC, after many hesitation, remained a confessor of the heresy of Monophysitism, which for them consists not in the denial of the Incarnation, but in stubborn insistence on the absorption by the deity of Christ of His human nature - which is a lie against Christ and a heretical teaching. It's all about this particular arrangement of accents in the Christology of the God-Man Jesus Christ. After that, neither the symbol of the Armenian faith, in which the Incarnation of Christ is confessed in Orthodoxy, nor the statements of individual fathers about the presence of the flesh of Christ have any meaning. The Armenian Church is twice Monophysite: by its own confession of heresy and by communion with Monophysite churches (for according to the teaching of the Church, whoever communicates with a heretic is himself a heretic). In AGAC there is no k.-l. officially approved condensed statement of the fundamentals of the doctrine. Three Creeds are used in the AGAC: 1) a short Creed used in the rite of proclamation. 2) "middle" in the rank of the Divine Liturgy of the AGAC, 3) a lengthy Symbol, read by the priest at the beginning of the morning service. Phrase from the third voluminous Symbol "one face, one appearance, and united in one nature" completely heretical, and all lies and heresy are from the devil, which is unacceptable, especially with regard to God. This heresy leads to a lie about the God-man Christ, to the idea of ​​the impossibility of imitating Christ "because He is more God, and humanity is swallowed up in Him." That. humanity is humiliated in Christ and motivations for imitation of Christ are torn and grace is not given.

One delusion led to others. So only in the 12th century. icon veneration is finally recognized, during the sacred service, the AGAC consumes unleavened bread according to the Jewish custom and perform animal sacrifices (matah), allow cheese and milk food on Saturday and Sunday during fasting. And from 965, the AGAC began to re-baptize Armenians who converted to it from Orthodoxy.

Main disagreements with Orthodoxy:

– in the AGAC they recognize the body of Christ not as consubstantial with us, but “incorruptible and passionless, and ethereal, and n created, and heavenly, who did everything that is characteristic of the body, not in reality, but in the imagination”;

– The AGAC believes that in the act of the Incarnation, the body of Christ “transformed into the Divine and became consubstantial with it, disappearing in the Divine like a drop of honey in the sea, so that after that there are no longer two natures in Christ, but one, entirely Divine,” they confess in Christ two natures before the union, and after the union they profess a single complex, merging both - the Divine and the human, and as a result they call it a single nature.

In addition, Monophysitism is almost always accompanied by a Monophilite and Monoenergetic position, i.e. the teaching that in Christ there is only one will and one action, one source of activity, which is the deity, and humanity turns out to be its passive instrument. This is also a terrible lie against the God-man Jesus Christ.

Does the Armenian direction of Monophysitism differ from its other types?

— Yes, it is different. There are currently only three:

1) Siroyakovites, Copts and Malabarians of the Severian tradition. 2) Armenian Gregorian AGAC (Etchmiadzin and Cilicia Catholicasates). 3) Ethiopian (Ethiopian and Eritrean "churches").

The AGAC in the past differed from the rest of the non-Chalcedonian Monophysites, even Sevir of Antioch was anathematized by the Armenians in the 4th century. at one of the Dvina cathedrals as an insufficiently consistent Monophysite. The theology of the AGAC was significantly influenced by aphthartodocetism (the heretical doctrine of the incorruptibility of the body of Jesus Christ from the moment of the Incarnation).

At present, interest in the history of Armenian Christological thought is shown rather by some Armenians, deliberately transferred from the AGAC to Orthodoxy , moreover, both in Armenia itself and in Russia.

A dogmatic dialogue with the AGAC today is hardly possible at all, they are ready to discuss issues of social service, pastoral practice, various problems of social and church life, but he shows no interest in discussing dogmatic questions. Unfortunately, the representatives of the AGAC placed themselves outside the Church of Christ, which turned it into a self-isolated and separated from the Universal Church, a one-national church that has communion in faith only with Monophysite heretical churches.

How are those baptized in the AGAC (and other Monophysites) today accepted into the Orthodox Church?

— Through repentance and a special rank. This is an ancient practice, and this is how non-Chalcedonites were received in the era of the Ecumenical Councils.

In 354, the first Council of the Armenian Church was held, condemning Arianism and reaffirming the adherence to Orthodoxy. AT 366 year the Church of Armenia, which was before in canonical depending on See of Caesarea Byzantium, received autocephaly (independence).

In 387, Greater Armenia was divided, and soon its eastern part was annexed to Persia in 428, and the western part became a province of Byzantium. In 406, Mesrop Mashtots created the Armenian alphabet, which made it possible to translate the liturgy, Holy Scripture, and the works of the Church Fathers into the national language.

Representatives of the Armenian Church were present at the I and II Ecumenical Councils; decisions were also made III. But now the IV Ecumenical Council, held in 451 in the city of Chalcedon, passed without the participation of the Armenian bishops, and for this reason they were not aware of the exact resolutions of this Council. Meanwhile, the Monophysites arrived in Armenia and spread their delusions. True, the decrees of the Council soon appeared in the Armenian Church, but, due to ignorance of the exact meaning of the Greek theological terms, the Armenian teachers at first fell into a mistake without intent. However, the Armenian council in Dovin in 527 decided to recognize in Christ one nature and, thus, unequivocally put the AGAC among the Monophysites. The Orthodox faith was officially rejected and condemned. So the Armenian Church fell away from Orthodoxy. However, a significant part of Armenians remained in communion with the Ecumenical Church, passing into the subordination of the Patriarchate of Constantinople.

In 591, Armenia was divided due to the attack of the Persians. Most of the country became part of the Byzantine Empire, and in the city of Avan (located northeast of Yerevan, now part of the city) was formed Orthodox catholicosate. He was opposed monophysite catholicosate, located in the city of Dvin, on Persian territory, and the Persians artificially supported it so that there would be no unity with the Byzantine Orthodox Armenians, however, there were also many Orthodox Armenians on Persian territory. During the Byzantine-Persian War of 602-609. the Orthodox Catholicosate was abolished by the Persian invaders. The Monophysite Catholicos Abraham initiated the persecution of the Orthodox, forcing all clerics to either anathematize the Council of Chalcedon or leave the country.

Repression not eradicated Orthodox faith among Armenians. In 630, the Council of Karin was held, at which the Armenian Church officially returned to Orthodoxy. After the Arab conquests in 726, the AGAC again fell away from the Ecumenical Church into Monophysitism. Orthodox Armenians again began to move to the territory of Byzantium, under the omophorion of the Patriarch of Constantinople. Those that remained in the regions of Armenia bordering Georgia ended up under the jurisdiction of the Georgian Church. In the ninth century Orthodox were the population and princes of the Taron region and the majority of the population of the regions of Tao and Klarjeti.

Through the efforts of St. Photius of Constantinople, as well as Bishop Theodore Abu Qurra of Harran, under Prince Ashot I in 862 at the Shirakavan Cathedral The Church of Armenia returned to Orthodoxy, however, thirty years later, by the decision of the new Catholicos Hovhannes V, again veered towards monophysitism.

In the 11th century in Armenia, the number of departments consisting of in communion with Constantinople, in this period Orthodoxy began to prevail among the Armenians. After the invasion of the Seljuk Turks in the second half of the 11th century Orthodox Armenians came under jurisdiction Georgian Patriarch, and after a century and a half their bishops are already referred to and perceived as "Georgian".

The last attempt to return the Armenian Church to Orthodoxy was made in 1178. Her hierarchs at the Council convened by Emperor Manuel Komnenos recognize the Orthodox confession of faith. The death of Emperor Manuel prevented the reunion. In 1198, an alliance between the crusaders and the Armenian king of Cilicia led to the conclusion of a union between the heretical Roman Catholic and Armenian churches. This union, which was not accepted by the Armenians outside Cilicia, ended in a split in the Armenian Church, as a result of which the Armenian Catholic Church arose in 1198. Today, the majority of Armenians living in Armenia belong to the AGAC.

Saint Ignatius Brianchaninov, who was at the Caucasian cathedra, knew perfectly well the state of affairs in the Armenian Church and the opinions of many Armenians, drawn to the Orthodox faith. He said with great regret and sorrow that the AGAC is very close to the Orthodox faith in many ways, but does not want to abandon the heresy of Monophysitism that divides us. There is only one reason for this - pride, which from many centuries of wrong confession and from single nationality The Armenian Church (which brought a sense of national exclusivity and contradicts the Gospel) only got stronger, grew and increased pride Armenian religion. About falsity proud the path of national exclusiveness, God says in Scripture: “There is neither Greek nor Jew, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free, but all and in all Christ.” (Col. 3:11). As you know, God proud resists and does not give them His saving grace (1 Pet. 5:5) That is why we do not see in the AGAC such saints as Seraphim of Sarov, the Matrona of Moscow and many other great saints who are born by the Orthodox Church.

St. John Chrysostom, a saint recognized by all, says: “to make divisions in the Church is no less evil than to fall into heresy… sin split not washed away even by martyr's blood. Therefore, with sorrow and pain, we are waiting for our Armenian brothers from sin heresy and schism fearing the eternal death of those souls who are not attentive to the personality and teachings of Christ's Unity of Faith (see Eph. 4:5).

“I beseech you, brethren, beware of those who produce divisions and temptations, contrary to the teaching that you have learned, and turn away from them; because such people serve not to our Lord Jesus Christ, but to your belly, and kindness and eloquence deceive the hearts of the simple." (Rom. 16:17)

So, the AGAC refers to communities that are not too far away from us, but are not in complete unity either. Due to certain historical circumstances, but, by the way, not without some human sin, after the IV Ecumenical Council of 451, she was among those communities that are called Monophysite, who did not accept the truth of the Church that in a single hypostasis, in a single person, incarnated The Son of God combines two natures: Divine and true human nature, inseparable and inseparable. It so happened that the AGAC, once a part of the one Ecumenical Church, did not accept this teaching, but shared the teaching of the Monophysites, who recognize only one nature of the incarnate God-Word - Divine. And although it can be said that now the sharpness of those disputes of the 5th-6th centuries has largely receded into the past and that the modern theology of the AGAC is far from the extremes of Monophysitism, nevertheless, there is still no complete unity in faith between us.

For example, the holy fathers of the Fourth Ecumenical Council, the Council of Chalcedon, which condemned the heresy of Monophysitism, are for us the holy fathers and teachers of the Church, and for representatives of the AGAC and other "ancient Eastern churches" - persons either anathematized (most often), or at least not using doctrinal authority . For us, Dioscorus is an anathematized heretic, but for them - "like a saintly father." At least from this it is already clear which traditions the family of local Orthodox churches inherits, and which ones are those that are called ancient Eastern. There are quite noticeable differences between the ancient Eastern churches themselves, and the measure of Monophysite influence is very different: for example, it is noticeably stronger in the Coptic churches (with all due respect to Egyptian monasticism, one cannot fail to see among the Copts, especially among Coptic modern theologians, a completely distinct Monophysite influence), and its traces in the AGAC are almost imperceptible. But it remains a historical, canonical and doctrinal fact that for a thousand and a half years there has been no Eucharistic communion between us. And if we believe in the Church as the Pillar and ground of the truth, if we believe that the promise of Christ the Savior that the gates of hell will not prevail against Her has not a relative, but an absolute meaning, then we must conclude that either the Church alone is true, and the other not completely, or vice versa - and think about the consequences of this conclusion. The only thing that cannot be done is to sit on two chairs and say that the teachings are not identical, but in fact they coincide, and that the 1,500-year divisions stem solely from inertia, political ambitions and unwillingness to unite.

It follows from this that it is still impossible to take communion in turn in the AGAC, then in the Orthodox Church, and one should decide, and for this, study the doctrinal positions of the AGAC and the Orthodox Church.

Of course, it is impossible to formulate the theological doctrine of the AGAC in a short answer, and you could hardly expect it.

(By mother.arch. Oleg Davydenkov and Orthodox. Encycl.)

Description:

Armenian Apostolic Church(full name Armenian Holy Apostolic Orthodox Church) is one of the oldest Churches in the world, to which the vast majority of the inhabitants of the Republic of Armenia, the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, as well as the majority of Armenians living in the diaspora in many countries of the world belong. Belongs to the family of the Ancient Eastern Pre-Chalcedonian Churches.

The dioceses and parishes of the Armenian Church are scattered across the five continents of the world and unite, according to various estimates, from 7 to 9 million believers.

The supreme body of the Armenian Church is the Church-National Council, which consists of clergy and secular persons. At the Council, the Supreme Spiritual Primate of the Armenian Apostolic Church is elected, which is His Holiness Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians.

The Supreme Spiritual Council under the Catholicos currently consists of 2 Patriarchs, 10 Archbishops, 4 Bishops and 5 Laity.

Spiritual center of the Armenian Apostolic Church -.

The Armenian Apostolic Church unites two administratively independent Catholicosates - Echmiadzin and Cilicia, and two Patriarchates - Jerusalem and Constantinople, which do not have subordinate sees and are spiritually dependent on the Supreme Patriarch and the Catholicos of all Armenians.

The Catholicoses of the Armenian Church have the exclusive right to consecrate the holy myrrh (the celebration of chrism takes place once every seven years) and to ordain bishops. Episcopal ordination is performed by the Supreme Patriarch and the Catholicos of All Armenians or the Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia, co-served by two bishops. A bishop elevated to the rank of Catholicos is anointed by several (from 3 to 12) bishops. The competence of the Catholicoses includes the blessing of new church laws, the establishment of new holidays, the establishment of new dioceses and other issues of church administration.

Echmiadzin Catholicosate

There are dioceses in Armenia, Nagorno-Karabakh, Georgia, Azerbaijan (currently not replaced), Russia, Ukraine, Iraq, Iran, Egypt, Bulgaria, Great Britain, Greece, Romania, USA, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay under the jurisdiction of the See of Etchmiadzin , Australia and New Zealand, as well as Armenian communities in Western Europe, Africa and India.

Cilician Catholicosate

The throne of the Most Holy Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia (since 1995 - Aram I Keshishian) is located in the city of Antillas near Beirut (Lebanon). It has jurisdiction over dioceses in Lebanon, Syria, Cyprus and a vicariate in Kuwait.

Jerusalem Patriarchate

Under the leadership of His Beatitude Patriarch of Jerusalem, Primate of the Apostolic See of St. James (since 1990 - Torkom II Manukyan), there are Armenian communities in Israel, Jordan and Palestine. The Patriarch takes care of the holy places belonging to the Armenian Church in Palestine. In his submission are 2 vicariates (Amman and Haifa) and 2 rectors (Jaffa and Ramla).

Patriarchate of Constantinople

The role of the Throne of Constantinople significantly decreased after the genocide of 1915. Today, the flock of the Patriarchate of Constantinople consists of several tens of thousands of Armenians living in Turkey. Under the control of His Beatitude the Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople and all Turkey is the Patriarchal region - Turkey, which also includes vicariates: Rumelihisary, Kayseri, Diyarbakir, Iskenderun. There are more than 30 churches.

In connection with the illness of the Patriarch of Constantinople (since 1998 - Mesrob II Mutafyan), his duties are performed by Archbishop Aram Ateshyan.

The main shrines of the Armenian Church are kept in Etchmiadzin:

  • The holy spear (Geghard), which pierced the rib of Jesus Christ, according to legend, was brought to Armenia by the Apostle Thaddeus;
  • The right hand of St. Gregory the Illuminator is a symbol of the power of the Supreme Patriarch and the Catholicos of all Armenians. During the chrismation, the Catholicos consecrates the chrism with the Holy Spear and Hand of St. Gregory;
  • a particle of the tree of Noah's ark, which stopped "on the mountains of Ararat" (Genesis 8:4) - was found at the beginning of the 4th century. Bishop Jacob of Nisibinsk.

Divine services of the Armenian Church are conducted in the ancient Armenian language (grabar). On January 1, 1924, a transition to a new calendar style took place, however, the dioceses within Georgia, Russia and Ukraine, as well as the Jerusalem Patriarchate, continue to use the old style (Julian calendar).

Among the features of the Armenian worship and church calendar:

  • On January 6, the feast of the Epiphany is celebrated, uniting the Nativity of Christ and Epiphany;
  • in the Sacrament of the Eucharist, unleavened bread and undiluted wine are used;
  • when singing the Trisagion, after the words “Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal”, the words “Crucify us” or others are added;
  • Armenians are baptized with three fingers, touching their foreheads, below the chest, on the left, and then on the right side of the chest, and at the end they put their palm on the chest;
  • the so-called Advanced Lent (Arajavorats) is celebrated, coming three weeks before Lent;
  • on the days of major holidays, animals are sacrificed (matah), which has a charitable character.

More about the Armenian Apostolic Church (articles from the "Orthodox Encyclopedia"):

Website: http://www.armenianchurch.org/ Subsidiary organization: Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin Primate: The Armenian Church is one of the oldest Christian communities. In 301, Armenia became the first country to adopt Christianity as a state religion. For many centuries there has been no church unity between us, but this does not interfere with the existence of good neighborly relations. At the meeting held on March 12 with the Ambassador of the Republic of Armenia to Russia O.E. Yesayan, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill noted: “Our relations go back centuries... The closeness of our spiritual ideals, a single moral and spiritual system of values ​​in which our peoples live, are a fundamental component of our relations.”

Readers of our portal often ask the question: “What is the difference between Orthodoxy and Armenian Christianity”?

Archpriest Oleg Davydenkov, Doctor of Theology, Head of the Department of Eastern Christian Philology and Eastern Churches of the Orthodox St. Tikhon Theological University, answers the questions of the Orthodoxy and World portal about pre-Chalcedonian churches, one of which is the Armenian Church.

– Father Oleg, before talking about the Armenian direction of Monophysitism, tell us about what Monophysitism is and how it arose?

– Monophysitism is a Christological doctrine, the essence of which is that in the Lord Jesus Christ there is only one nature, and not two, as the Orthodox Church teaches. Historically, it appeared as an extreme reaction to the heresy of Nestorianism and had not only dogmatic but also political reasons.

Orthodox Church confesses in Christ one person (hypostasis) and two natures - divine and human. Nestorianism teaches about two persons, two hypostases and two natures. M onophysite but they have fallen into the opposite extreme: in Christ they recognize one person, one hypostasis, and one nature. From a canonical point of view, the difference between the Orthodox Church and the Monophysite churches lies in the fact that the latter do not recognize the Ecumenical Councils, starting with the 4th Chalcedon, which adopted the definition (oros) of the two natures in Christ, which converge into one person and into one hypostasis .

The name "Monophysites" was given by Orthodox Christians to the opponents of Chalcedon (they call themselves Orthodox). Systematically, the Monophysite Christological doctrine was formed in the 6th century, thanks primarily to the work of Severus of Antioch (+ 538).

Modern non-Chalcedonites are trying to modify their teaching, they argue that their fathers are accused of Monophysitism unfairly, since they anathematized Eutychus, but this is a change in style that does not affect the essence of the Monophysite doctrine. The works of their contemporary theologians testify that there are no fundamental changes in their doctrine, significant differences between the Monophysite Christology of the 6th century. and no modern. Back in the VI century. the doctrine of the “single complex nature of Christ” appears, which was composed of deity and humanity and possesses the properties of both natures. However, this does not imply the recognition in Christ of two perfect natures - the nature of the divine and the nature of man. In addition, Monophysitism is almost always accompanied by a Monophilite and Monoenergetic position, i.e. the teaching that in Christ there is only one will and one action, one source of activity, which is the deity, and humanity turns out to be its passive instrument.

– Does the Armenian direction of Monophysitism differ from its other types?

- Yes, it is different. There are currently six non-Chalcedonian churches (or seven, if the Armenian Catholicasates of Etchmiadzin and Cilicia are considered as two, de facto autocephalous churches). The ancient Eastern churches can be divided into three groups:

1) Syro-Jacobites, Copts and Malabars (Malankara Church of India). This is the monophysitism of the Severian tradition, which is based on the theology of Severus of Antioch.

2) Armenians (Etchmiadzin and Cilicia Catholicasates).

3) Ethiopians (Ethiopian and Eritrean churches).

The Armenian Church in the past differed from other non-Chalcedonian churches, even Sever of Antioch was anathematized by the Armenians in the 4th century. at one of the Dvina cathedrals as an insufficiently consistent Monophysite. The theology of the Armenian Church was significantly influenced by Aphthartodoketism (the doctrine of the incorruptibility of the body of Jesus Christ from the moment of the Incarnation). The emergence of this radical Monophysite doctrine is associated with the name of Julian of Halicarnassus, one of the main opponents of Severus within the Monophysite camp.

At present, all the Monophysites, as the theological dialogue shows, act from more or less the same dogmatic positions: this is a Christology close to the Christology of Severus.

Speaking about the Armenians, it should be noted that the consciousness of the modern Armenian Church is characterized by pronounced adogmatism. If other non-Chalcedonites of the church show considerable interest in their theological heritage and are open to Christological discussion, the Armenians, on the contrary, are little interested in their own Christological tradition. At present, interest in the history of Armenian Christological thought is rather shown by some Armenians who consciously converted from the Armenian-Gregorian Church to Orthodoxy, both in Armenia itself and in Russia.

– Is there a theological dialogue with the Pre-Chalcedonian churches now?

- Conducted with varying degrees of success. The result of such a dialogue between Orthodox Christians and the Ancient Eastern (Pre-Chalcedonian) churches was the so-called Chambesian agreements. One of the main documents is the Chambesian Agreement of 1993, which contains an agreed text of the Christological teaching, and also contains a mechanism for restoring communion between the "two families" of Churches through the ratification of agreements by the synods of these Churches.

The Christological teaching of these agreements aims to find a compromise between the Orthodox and Ancient Eastern churches on the basis of a theological position that could be characterized as "moderate Monophysitism". They contain ambiguous theological formulas that allow for a Monophysite interpretation. Therefore, the reaction in the Orthodox world to them is not unambiguous: four Orthodox Churches accepted them, some did not accept them with reservations, and some are fundamentally against these agreements.

The Russian Orthodox Church has also recognized that these agreements are not sufficient to restore Eucharistic communion, as they contain ambiguities in the Christological teaching. Further work is required to eliminate ambiguous interpretations. For example, the teaching of the Covenants about wills and actions in Christ can be understood both diphysite (Orthodox) and monophysite. It all depends on how the reader understands the relationship between will and hypostasis. Is the will considered as an attribute of nature, as in Orthodox theology, or is it assimilated into a hypostasis, which is characteristic of Monophysitism. The Second Agreed Statement of 1990, which forms the basis of the 1993 Chambesia Accords, does not provide an answer to this question.

A dogmatic dialogue with the Armenians today is hardly possible at all, due to their lack of interest in problems of a dogmatic nature. After the mid 90s. it became clear that the dialogue with the non-Chalcedonites had reached a dead end, the Russian Orthodox Church began bilateral dialogues - not with all the non-Chalcedonian Churches together, but with each one separately. As a result, three directions for bilateral dialogues were identified: 1) with the Syrian Jacobites, Copts and the Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia, who agreed to conduct a dialogue only in such a composition; 2) Etchmiadzin Catholicosate and 3) with the Ethiopian Church (this direction has not been developed). The dialogue with the Catholicosate of Etchmiadzin did not touch upon dogmatic issues. The Armenian side is ready to discuss issues of social service, pastoral practice, various problems of social and church life, but it does not show any interest in discussing dogmatic issues.

– How are Monophysites accepted into the Orthodox Church today?

- Through repentance. Priests are received in their existing rank. This is an ancient practice, and this is how non-Chalcedonites were received in the era of the Ecumenical Councils.

Alexander Filippov spoke with Archpriest Oleg Davydenkov

I am not God knows what theologian.

Or rather, I am not a theologian at all. But every time I read about the foundations of the Armenian Church in the blogosphere, the compiler, editor and author of the book "Applied Religious Studies for Journalists" begins to speak in me.

And now, in connection with the Christmas holiday, I decided to analyze some of the most frequently encountered questions related to the Armenian Apostolic Church - the AAC.

Is the Armenian Church "Gregorian"?

Did the Armenians accept Christianity in 301?

Is the AAC Orthodox?

Are all Armenians the flock of the Armenian Apostolic Church?

Armenian Church is not Gregorian

The name "Gregorian" was coined in Russia in the 19th century, when part of Armenia was annexed to the Russian Empire. It means that the Armenian Church originates from Gregory the Illuminator, and not from the apostles.

Why was this done?

And then, that when the church originates directly from the apostles, this means that its origins go straight to Christ. The ROC, however, can call itself apostolic with a big stretch, because it is known that Orthodoxy came to Russia from Byzantium, and relatively late - in the 10th century.

True, here the concept of the catholicity of the church comes to the “help” of the ROC, that is, its spatial, temporal and qualitative universality, which the parts possess to the same extent as the whole, that is, the ROC, being one of the Orthodox churches, also, as it were, ascends straight to Christ, but let's not delve too deeply into theology - I noted this for the sake of justice.

Thus, by making the Armenian Church “Gregorian”, the Russian Empire (where the church was not separated from the state, and therefore the ROC should have had all the advantages), seemed to deprive it of the grounds to elevate itself directly to Christ. Instead of Christ and his disciples, the apostles, Gregory the Illuminator was obtained. Cheap and cheerful.

Nevertheless, the Armenian Church all this time called itself the Apostolic Church (AAC), it was also called and called all over the world - with the exception of the Russian Empire, then the Soviet Union, well, and now Russia.

By the way, this is another misconception that has become very popular in recent years.

Armenians did not accept Christianity in 301

The doctrine of the Son of God began to spread in Armenia in the first century AD, of course. They even call the year 34, but I met articles that said that this, apparently, was 12-15 years later.

And so it was. When Christ was crucified, after which he died, resurrected and ascended, his apostle disciples went to different parts to spread his teachings. We know that, for example, Peter in his travels reached Rome, where he died, and the famous Vatican church of St. Peter.

And Thaddeus and Bartholomew - two of the 12 first apostles - went to the northeast, to Syria, from where they soon reached Armenia, where they successfully spread the teachings of Christ. It is from them - from the apostles - that the Armenian Church originates. That is why it is called "apostolic".

Both of them ended their lives in Armenia. Thaddeus was tortured: he was crucified and pierced with arrows. And it was on the very spot where the monastery of St. Thaddeus, or, in Armenian, Surb Tadei vank. This is in what is now Iran. This monastery is honored in Iran and every year thousands of pilgrims flock there. The relics of St. Thaddeus are kept in Etchmiadzin.

Bartholomew was also martyred. He brought the hand-made face of the Virgin to Armenia and built a church dedicated to her. In 68, when the persecution of Christians began, he was executed. Together with him, according to legend, two thousand Christians were executed. The relics of St. Bartholomew are kept in Baku, since the place of execution was the city of Alban or Albanopol, which is identified as modern Baku.

So Christianity began to spread in Armenia in the first century. And in 301, King Trdat proclaimed Christianity, which had been spreading throughout Armenia for about 250 years, as the official religion.

Therefore, it is correct to say that the Armenians adopted Christianity in the middle of the first century, and in 301 Christianity was adopted in Armenia as the state religion.

Is the AAC Orthodox?

Yes and no. If we talk about the theological foundations of the teaching, then it is precisely Orthodox. In other words, the Christology of the AAC, according to current theologians, is identical to Orthodoxy.

Yes, because the head of the AAC - Catholicos Karekin II - himself recently declared that the AAC is Orthodox. And the words of the Catholicos are a very important argument.

No - because according to Orthodox doctrine, the decisions of the seven Ecumenical Councils that took place from 49 to 787 are recognized. As you can see, we are talking about a very long history. The AAC recognizes only the first three.

No - because Orthodoxy is a single organizational structure with its own autocephaly, that is, separate, independent churches. 14 autocephalous churches are recognized, there are also several so-called autonomous churches that are not recognized by everyone.

Why are the seven ecumenical councils so important? Because at each one decisions were made that were important for Christian doctrine. For example, at the first council they adopted the postulate that it was not necessary to observe certain Jewish rituals, at the second they adopted the creed (“creed”), at the third and fifth they condemned Nestorianism, at the seventh they condemned iconoclasm and separated the veneration of God and the worship of icons, and so on.

The Armenian Church adopted the decrees of the first three councils. The fourth ecumenical council, which is called Chalcedon, took place in 451. If you are familiar with the history of Armenia, then immediately remember that this year is known for the famous Battle of Avarayr, where Armenian troops led by Vardan Mamikonyan fought against Sasanian Persia for religious and state independence.

And since the clergy played a crucial role during the uprising that ended with the Battle of Avarayr, as well as after it, the clergy did not have the time and desire to send a delegation to the Ecumenical Council.

And this is where the problem turned out to be, because the Council made the most important decision about the nature of Christ. And the question was, is Christ a god or a man? If he was born of God, then he must be a god himself. But he was born from an earthly woman, therefore, he must be a man.

One theologian - Nestorius from the city of Caesarea (Syria) - argued that Christ is both God and man. These two entities coexist in one body due to the fact that it exists in two hypostases, which are in union and together create a “face of unity”.

And the other - Eutyches from Constantinople - believed that Christ is God. And point. There is no human essence in it.

The Council of Chalcedon found a certain middle line, condemning both Nestor's "right-deviating" line and Eutychius's "left-opportunist" line.

The decisions of this council were not accepted by six churches: Armenian Apostolic, Coptic Orthodox, Ethiopian Orthodox, Eritrean Orthodox, Syrian Orthodox and Malankara Orthodox (in India). They began to be called "ancient Eastern Christian churches", or "ancient Orthodox churches".

So, according to this parameter, the AAC is an Orthodox Church.

All Armenians, by definition, are the flock of the AAC, just as all Jews are Jews.

This is also a delusion. Of course, the AAC is the largest and most influential church with two catholicosates in Etchmiadzin and Lebanese Antelias. But she's not the only one.

There is an Armenian Catholic Church. In fact, this is a Uniate church, that is, a church that combines elements of Catholicism and the AAC, in particular, the Armenian rite of worship.

The most famous congregation of Armenian Catholics is the Mkhitari congregation with the famous monastery on the island of St. Lazarus in Venice. Churches and monasteries of Armenian Catholics exist throughout Europe, including in Rome and Vienna (oh, what kind of liquor do the Viennese Mekhitarists prepare...).

In 1850, Pope Pius IX established the diocese of Artvin for Catholic Armenians. At the beginning of the 20th century, the diocese fell apart, leaving the flock in the care of the bishop, who was in Tiraspol. Yes, yes, Moldovan and Romanian Armenians, as well as Ukrainian ones, were also Catholics.

The Vatican even established an ordinariate for Catholic Armenians in Gyumri. In the north of Armenia, Catholics are called "frang".

There are also Protestant Armenians.

The Evangelical Armenian Church was established in Constantinople in the middle of the 19th century and now has parishes in various countries, uniting in three evangelical unions - the Middle East with its center in Beirut, France (Paris) and North America (New Jersey). There are also many churches in Latin America, Brussels, Sydney and so on.

They say that Protestant Armenians are called “ynglyz”, but I myself have not heard this.

Finally, there are Muslim Armenians. In Istanbul, under the patronage of the Hrant Dink Foundation, a major scientific conference was recently held, dedicated to the Armenians who converted to Islam.

The notion that in reality there is no big difference and, in the end, all the Churches speak about the same thing, to put it mildly, is far from the truth. In fact, the Armenian Apostolic Church has serious grounds to assert that it has retained a special fidelity to the apostolic tradition. Each Church has taken a special name for itself, the Armenian one calls itself Apostolic. In fact, the name of each of the Churches is much longer than just Catholic, Orthodox, Apostolic. Our Church is called the Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Holy Church (Orthodox in the sense of the truth of faith). Look at how many definitions there are, but we most often use one, the closest and dearest to us and the most characteristic.

For centuries our Church had to defend the purity of the dogmas of faith. In 451, not only the Armenian Church, but also other Eastern Orthodox Churches - Coptic, Syrian, Ethiopian - did not accept the decision of the Council of Chalcedon, having significant dogmatic reasons for this. There were serious grounds for fear that Chalcedon was restoring what had been condemned at the Third Ecumenical Council of Ephesus - primarily the heresy of Nestorius.

The main reason for the disagreement is that the Armenians preferred to remain faithful to the theological tradition of the Alexandrian school, founded by the great feat, first of all, Sts. Athanasius the Great and Cyril of Alexandria. Only after the death of the latter was it possible to put into practice the decisions taken by the Council of Chalcedon. The cathedral was not led by the clergy, but by the emperor Marcian himself and the empress Pulcheria. It must be admitted that Chalcedon only confirmed the already existing theological contradictions between the Alexandrian and Antiochian schools. These discrepancies had roots in different spiritual and cultural layers, they arose as a result of a collision of a holistic religious contemplation of the East and differential Hellenistic thinking, unity and dualism of the confession of the Savior, a concrete and generalized perception of the human reality of Christ.

The Armenians remained faithful to the decrees of the three Ecumenical Councils, which, without distortion, determined the faith coming from the apostolic period. We did not have an empire, we did not even have time for a respite, forced to constantly fight for existence. We have not tried to adapt Christology to imperial ambitions, to the service of the empire. Christianity was the main thing for us, for the sake of it we were ready to give what we had - such property was mainly life. As for the churches, with which, unfortunately, we do not have Eucharistic communion, we must take all the best from them. There is much good there, especially in Russian spiritual literature, in amazing testimonies of spiritual life. We have a special spiritual affinity with the Russian people. We constantly pray for the restoration of the Eucharistic unity of the Church of Christ. But until this happens, everyone should be in their own spiritual reality. This does not mean that we forbid our believers from going to Russian Orthodox churches. Thank God, we do not have such fanaticism. You can enter, light a candle, pray. But during the Sunday Liturgy, one must be in one's own Church.

Sometimes a dispute arises when the Armenians themselves can prove that they are not Orthodox. This creates an absurd situation - the person actually claims that his faith is not true. Orthodox in Russia do not consider Armenians to be Orthodox. The same is reflected in our theological tradition - we recognize the Orthodoxy of only five Eastern churches - ours, Coptic, Ethiopian, Syrian, Indian-Malabar. The Churches of Chalcedon, from the point of view of the doctrine of the AAC, are not considered Orthodox. In our theological literature they are simply called the Greek Church, the Roman Church, the Russian Church, etc. True, we can also briefly call our Church Armenian.

Of course, the Churches have their own official name, and in official relations we call them as they call themselves. But, recognizing all the differences between us and the Orthodox Chalcedonites, one cannot shy away from the assertions that we have the Orthodox, in other words, the correct, true faith.

Father Mesrop (Aramyan).

From an interview with Aniv magazine