The Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin has described the failure to commemorate the Catholicos of All Armenians and the diocesan bishop during Holy Mass as a violation of church canons that undermines the unity of the Armenian Apostolic Church.
Armenia Today reported the statement from Etchmiadzin’s press service on December 16, 2025. This is a retrospective analysis of that report, not a new event on October 22, 2026.
In Etchmiadzin’s assessment, arbitrarily or deliberately omitting the hierarchs’ names distorts the understanding of the sacrament. Such an act may indicate doubt about the canonical validity of the service, withdrawal from ecclesial communion and rejection of the authority of the church leadership.
The report also cited remarks by Nikol Pashinyan. The prime minister had previously said that the National Security Service had instructed clergy not to commemorate Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians, at liturgies he attended. For several months, Pashinyan had maintained that the Catholicos had violated church canons and should leave office.
Etchmiadzin explained that commemorating the names has both ceremonial and canonical significance. It is part of the order of Holy Mass, expresses the fullness of the sacrament and affirms the local community’s membership in the Universal Church. By pronouncing the bishop’s name, the priest also affirms ecclesiastical obedience and fidelity to the Church’s teachings.
The Armenian Apostolic Church traces this tradition to the 10th century. It cites commentaries by the Armenian theologian, writer and church figure Khosrov Andzevatsi, also known as Khosrov the Great. These writings portray the bishop as the guardian of orthodoxy.
For Etchmiadzin, commemorating the Catholicos and the diocesan bishop connects an individual service to the apostolic and universal tradition of the Armenian Apostolic Church. The church leadership therefore regards the omission of the hierarchs’ names not as a formal change to the rite, but as a matter of canonical unity.