Struggle against Holy Etchmiadzin is a blow to national identity: Catholicos Karekin II

Overlooking Ararat, Holy Etchmiadzin has been leading the Armenian nation on the path of salvation for centuries, remaining an indestructible rock of our true faith and a great witness of Christian Armenia, the Armenian Patriarch said in his speech.

YEREVAN, September 29 - Sputnik. Fighting against Holy Etchmiadzin means fighting against the Armenian identity and very existence, damaging the Armenian statehood and depriving the Armenian nation of its spiritual component, Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II said in his speech at the rededication ceremony of the Cathedral of Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin.

“Any step to devalue the mission of Holy Etchmiadzin means an attempt to weaken our nation, to undermine the foundations of independent and sovereign life, of which the Armenian Church is a proponent. Our Motherland is strong and the unity of our people is strong and unbreakable by the warm filial love and aspiration of Armenians all over the world towards Holy Etchmiadzin,” he said.

The Catholicos urged to protect the Armenian history from falsifications and distortions, to educate in faith, with the brave spirit of enlightened fathers, for the sake of a victorious future.

His Holiness added that the newly consecrated temple will give new firmness to the Armenian faith, strength to the hands, clarity to the mind and optimism to the hearts, and with this the nation must face new challenges and catastrophic threats.

Many police officers have lined the road from Yerevan to Echmiadzin since morning. Sputnik Armenia correspondent reports that journalists were warned that the Security Service would not let them into the temple, although earlier it was planned to shoot inside the church.

Recall, on September 28, the Consecration of Peace ceremony was held in Echmiadzin, and today the ceremony of re-consecration of the Cathedral (which had been restored for several years) is underway.

On September 27, the service of Renovation of the Cathedral was held, as well as the anointing of the corners of the Cathedral. According to tradition, the Armenian Apostolic Church holds the Consecration of Peace once every seven years. This time the ceremony was postponed from last year due to Azerbaijan's aggression against Nagorno-Karabakh.

Reprinted from https://am.sputniknews.ru/