What is the religion in Armenia? Official religion: Armenia. What is the difference between Orthodoxy and Armenian Christianity

Most historians believe that the Armenians officially became Christians in 314, and this is the latest date of the supposed. Numerous followers of the new faith appeared here long before the proclamation of the Armenian Church as a state institution.

The faith of the Armenian people is considered to be the first apostolic, that is, received directly from the disciples of Christ. Despite dogmatic differences, the Russian and Armenian churches maintain friendly relations, especially in matters of studying the history of Christianity.

Before the adoption of Christianity in ancient state paganism reigned on the banks of Sevan, leaving meager monuments in the form of stone sculptures and echoes in folk customs. According to legend, the apostles Thaddeus and Bartholomew laid the foundation for the destruction of pagan temples and the establishment of Christian churches in their places. In the history of the Armenian Church, one can single out the following milestones:

• I century: the sermon of the apostles Thaddeus and Bartholomew, which determined the name of the future Church - Apostolic.
• Mid-2nd century: Tertullian's mention of "a large number of Christians" in Armenia.
• 314 (according to some sources - 301) - the martyrdom of the holy virgins Hripsime, Gaiania and others who suffered on Armenian soil. The adoption of Christianity by the king of Armenia Trdat III under the influence of his servant Gregory, the future saint Illuminator of Armenia. The construction of the first temple of Etchmiadzin and the establishment of the patriarchal throne in it.
• 405: Creation of the Armenian alphabet for the purpose of translating Holy Scripture and liturgical books.
• 451: Battle of Avarayr (war with Persia against the imposition of Zoroastrianism); Council of Chalcedon in Byzantium against the heresy of the Monophysites.
• 484 - removal of the patriarchal throne from Etchmiadzin.
• 518 - division with Byzantium in matters of religion.
• XII century: attempts to reunite with Byzantine Orthodoxy.
• XII - XIV centuries - attempts to accept the union - to unite with the Catholic Church.
• 1361 removal of all Latin innovations.
• 1441 - return of the patriarchal throne to Etchmiadzin.
• 1740 - detachment of the Syrian community of Armenians, whose religion became Catholicism. The Armenian Catholic Church has spread in Western Europe, there are parishes in Russia.
• 1828 - the entry of Eastern Armenia into the Russian Empire, the new name is the "Armenian-Gregorian Church", a branch of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, which remained on the territory of the Ottoman Empire.
• 1915 - extermination of Armenians in Turkey.
• 1922 - beginning of repressions and anti-religious movement in Soviet Armenia.
• 1945 - the election of a new Catholicos and the gradual revival of church life.

At present, despite the friendly relations between the Orthodox and Armenian churches, there is no Eucharistic communion. This means that their priests and bishops cannot serve the liturgy together, and the laity cannot be baptized and receive communion. The reason for this is differences in creed or dogma.

Ordinary believers who are not students of theology may not be aware of these barriers or may not consider them important. For them, ritual differences are more important, the cause of which is history and national customs.

In the III-IV centuries, disputes about faith were as popular as political battles are now. To resolve dogmatic issues, Ecumenical Councils were convened, the provisions of which formed the modern Orthodox dogma.

One of the main topics of discussion was the nature of Jesus Christ, who He was, God or man? Why does the Bible describe His suffering, which should not be part of the divine nature? For Armenians and Byzantines, the authority of the Holy Fathers of the Church (Gregory the Theologian, Athanasius the Great, etc.) was indisputable, but the understanding of their teachings turned out to be different.

The Armenians, among other Monophysites, believed that Christ is God, and the flesh in which He dwelt on earth was not human, but divine. Therefore, Christ could not experience human feelings and did not even feel pain. His sufferings under torture and on the cross were symbolic, apparent.

The teaching of the Monophysites was analyzed and condemned at the I.V. Ecumenical Council, where the doctrine of the two natures of Christ - divine and human - was adopted. This meant that Christ, while remaining God, accepted the present at birth. human body and experienced not only hunger, thirst, suffering, but also the mental anguish inherent in man.

When the Ecumenical Council was held in Chalcedon (Byzantium), the Armenian bishops could not take part in the discussions. Armenia was in a bloody war with Persia and on the verge of destroying statehood. As a result, the decisions of the Chalcedon and all subsequent Councils were not accepted by the Armenians, and their centuries-old separation from Orthodoxy began.

The dogma about the nature of Christ is the main difference between the Armenian Church and the Orthodox. Currently, theological dialogues are being held between the ROC and the AAC (Armenian Apostolic Church). Representatives of the learned clergy and church historians are discussing what contradictions arose due to a misunderstanding and can be overcome. Perhaps this will lead to the restoration of full communion between confessions.

Both Churches also differ in their external, ceremonial side, which is not a significant obstacle to the communion of believers. The most notable features are:

There are other features in worship, the vestments of clergy and church life.

Renegation of Armenians

Armenians who wish to convert to Orthodoxy will not have to be baptized again. The rite of accession is performed over them, where a public renunciation of the teachings of the Monophysite heretics is supposed. Only after this, a Christian from the AAC can proceed to the Orthodox Sacraments.

There are no strict regulations in the Armenian Church regarding the admission of the Orthodox to the Sacraments; Armenians are also allowed to take communion in any of the Christian churches.

Hierarchical arrangement

The head of the Armenian Church is the Catholicos. The name of this title comes from the Greek word καθολικός - "universal". The Catholicos leads all local churches, standing above their patriarchs. The main throne is located in Etchmiadzin (Armenia). Currently, the Catholicos is Karekin II, the 132nd head of the church after St. Gregory the Illuminator. Below the Catholicos are the following sacred degrees:

The Armenian diaspora in the world has about 7 million people. All these people are held together by folk traditions associated with religion. In places of permanent residence, Armenians try to erect a temple or a chapel, where they gather for prayer and holidays. In Russia, churches with characteristic ancient architecture can be found on the Black Sea coast, in Krasnodar, Rostov-on-Don, Moscow and other large cities. Many of them are named in honor of the Great Martyr George - the beloved saint of the entire Christian Caucasus.

The Armenian Church in Moscow is represented by two beautiful churches: the Resurrection and the Transfiguration. Transfiguration Cathedral- cathedral, i.e. the bishop constantly serves in it. Nearby is his residence. Here is the center of the Novo-Nakhichevan diocese, which includes all the former republics of the USSR except the Caucasian ones. The Church of the Resurrection is located at the national cemetery.

In each of the temples you can see khachkars - stone arrows made of red tuff, decorated with fine carvings. This expensive work is performed by special masters in memory of someone. The stone is delivered from Armenia as a symbol of the historical homeland, reminding every Armenian in the Diaspora of his sacred roots.

The oldest diocese of the AAC is located in Jerusalem. Here it is headed by the patriarch, who has a residence at the church of St. James. According to legend, the temple was built on the site of the execution of the Apostle James, nearby was the house of the Jewish high priest Anna, in front of whom Christ was tortured.

In addition to these shrines, the Armenians also keep the main treasure - the third part of Golgotha ​​granted by Constantine the Great (in the Church of the Resurrection of Christ). This property entitles the Armenian representative along with the Jerusalem Patriarch to participate in the ceremony of the Holy Light ( Holy Fire). In Jerusalem, a daily service is performed over the Tomb. Mother of God belonging in equal shares to Armenians and Greeks.

The events of church life are covered by the Shagakat TV channel in Armenia, as well as the English and Armenian-language Armenian Church YouTube channel. Patriarch Kirill with the hierarchs of the Russian Orthodox Church regularly take part in the celebrations of the AAC, connected with the centuries-old friendship of the Russian and Armenian peoples.

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,d 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 portal “Orthodoxy and World” about the pre-Chalcedonian churches, one of which is 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 1, but this is a change in style that does not affect the essence of the Monophysite dogma. 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 Etchmiadzin and Cilician Catholicosates 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 Sevirus 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 6th 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 appearance 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 the present time all the Monophysites, as the theological dialogue shows, act from more or less the same dogmatic positions: this is a Christology close to that 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 the 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 accepted 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, since they contain ambiguities in 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 belonging to nature, as in Orthodox theology, or it is assimilated into 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 determined: 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 social service, pastoral practice, various problems of social and church life, but does not show 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.

V. Armenian Church

1. Country and people

The country, which in all languages ​​is called Armenia (self-named also Hayastan), was once a union of Armenian tribes (Khai, Armens, Ararts, etc.), occupying the territory of the disintegrated state of Urartu and the country of Hayas. For centuries, the Armenians sought to preserve their national independence, but due to their geographical position, they were constantly under the rule of the Medes, the Greeks, the Romans, Persians, Byzantines, Arabs and Turks. In the VI century. BC Darius I Hystaspes, having broken the resistance of the Armenians, annexed their country to the Persian monarchy. After the fall of the Achaemenid dynasty, the Armenian lands were partially conquered by Alexander the Great, after whose death, as a result of civil strife, two Armenian kingdoms were formed in Great and Lesser Armenia, which at first were part of the Seleucid state as vassal regions. After the defeat of the Seleucids by the Romans at the Battle of Magnesia (190 BC), the rulers of Greater Armenia and Sophene declared their independence, becoming the founders of the Artashesid and Shakhuni dynasty. Tigran II (95–56), grandson of Artashes I (189–161), expanded the territory of the Armenian kingdom from the Kura and the Caspian Sea to the Jordan and the Mediterranean Sea and from the middle reaches of the Tigris and Euphrates to the Cilician Taurus. After the defeat inflicted by the Romans on Mithridates VI Eupator, an ally of Tigran II, the Armenian king concluded a peace treaty with Pompey, abandoning Syria and Asia Minor lands in order to preserve Greater Armenia (65 BC). However, Rome continued to move east. Then the allied Parthian-Armenian troops defeated the Romans in the 1st century AD, and the peace treaty in Randei, confirming the sovereign rights of the Armenian kings, again recognized the borders established in accordance with the treaty of 65 BC. During this period, Armenia It was considered an independent state under the nominal protectorate of two great powers - Rome and Parthia.

2. Emergence Armenian Church

The first information about the appearance of Christianity in the country is vague. According to tradition, the first evangelizers of the faith of Christ were the apostles Thaddeus and Bartholomew, who arrived at the house of Foragmus after the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1–2). Apostle Thaddeus preached in Armenia for 17 years. His relics were buried in Maku (Artaz region), where there is still a monastery of the Apostle Thaddeus. There is a legend that at the Artaz see, seven subsequent bishops maintained succession until the 3rd century, and according to another legend, the apostle Bartholomew, after exploits in India and Persia, arrived in Armenia, built many churches along the river. Araks, founded a monastery near the village of Van and died as a martyr (68) in southeastern Armenia.

The spread of Christianity in Armenia is evidenced by Tertullian, Blessed Augustine, Faustus of Byzantium (4th century) in his “Historical Library”, Agafangel, an Armenian writer of the 5th century, in his “History of the reign of Tiridates and the preaching of St. Gregory the Illuminator” and others. The most famous Armenian historian, who considered himself a student of Isaac the Great and Mesrop, is Moses Khorensky. However, his chronology is considered inaccurate, there are other traditions that contain evidence that the Christian faith penetrated this country very early, taking deep roots here. Eusebius of Caesarea and the Syriac Chronicle tell us that Thaddeus of tradition is actually Addaeus (Addai), Bishop of Edessa, and therefore Christianity entered here either from Edessa or from Nizibisi, which at that time were the main centers for the spread of Christianity. A letter from Dionysius of Alexandria (248–265), written in 252 to the Armenian Bishop Merudjan (230–260), who, according to the Armenian list of Catholicoses beginning with Thaddeus, is the tenth bishop of the Armenian Church, also confirms that Christianity was introduced from Syria. At the end of the 1st and the beginning of the 2nd centuries, Christianity in the country was spread by the apostolic men Elisha, Amphilochius, Urban, Nerses and Aristobulus, who labored in this country, squeezed on both sides by two pagan powers - Rome and Persia. Eusebius in his Church History says that the reason for the military campaign of Emperor Maximian was the confession of the faith of Christ by the Armenians and the unwillingness to worship pagan gods. The Persians undertook repeated persecutions of Christians under Chosroes I and Tiridates the Great. Thus, Gregory the Illuminator did not spread Christianity, but was already working at the end of the 3rd and beginning of the 4th centuries. over the spread and organization of the Armenian Church.

In 226, as a result of a coup d'état in Persia, the Sassanids came to power, dreaming of expanding their western borders. A long struggle between the Armenian people and the Persians begins - a struggle that was of a religious and political nature. But among the Armenian princes there was not enough unity in the fight against a common enemy, and one of them, Ashak, the father of the future Enlightener of Armenia, killed the Armenian king Khosroi, for which he and his entire family paid with their lives. Gregory himself, barely escaping from death, was sent as a two-year-old child (233) to Caesarea in Cappadocia, where he received an education and became a Christian. Tiridates, the son of King Khosroes killed by Ashok, defeated the Persians in 262, and at the celebrations on the occasion of the victory he learned that Gregory, who had returned to Armenia by that time, was a Christian, moreover, a relative of the murderer of his father. Gregory is thrown into prison, where he languishes for 15 years. However, thanks to the miraculous healing of Tiridates from an incurable disease, through the prayers of St. Gregory, the king not only became a Christian himself, but also declared Christianity the state religion (301) . He saw that Christianity could serve as a means of uniting the Armenians in the struggle for the national independence of the country. Therefore, he sent Gregory (302) to Caesarea in Cappadocia, from where he, having been ordained by Archbishop Leontius, accompanied by Greek clergy, returned already as a bishop and head of the Armenian Church. The first chair of the Catholicos was Ashtishat on the Euphrates. During his earthly life, St. Gregory, with apostolic zeal, took care of the Christianization of Iveria and the Caspian regions, at the same time strengthening the faith of Christ in Armenia itself, as St. Athanasius the Great says in his word on the Incarnation. The ecclesiastical language during this period was Greek and Syriac, and the Armenian Church was the metropolis of the Caesarean Church. This is confirmed by the signature under acts I Ecumenical Council Leontius, Archbishop of Caesarea of ​​Cappadocia, Pontus of Galatia, Paphlagonia, Pontus of Polemaicus, Lesser and Greater Armenia. Gregory's son and successor Aristakis (325-333) was present at the same council along with four other bishops. It should be noted here that Gregory, by his own example, introduced marriage among the bishops, making the right of succession on the Catholic throne of the Armenian Church hereditary. True, this custom was condemned as Jewish by the 33rd rule of the Council of Trullo (691), nevertheless, at least until the 5th century, a married priest was not forbidden to take the episcopal rank.

Gregory's successor (†330) was his second son Aristakis (325–333), who was killed by Prince Archelaus, and then his eldest son Vertanes, who, according to Armenian historians, annexed the Church of Iveria to his jurisdiction (333–341). However, paganism was still strong and after the death of Tiridates immediately led the fight against Christianity. The successor of Vertanes, Catholicos Iusik (341–347), was tortured for denouncing King Tigranes and soon died. After the pious but weak-willed Parnerzekh (348–352), Gregory's great-grandson Nerses the Great (353–373), who grew up in Caesarea, was ordained bishop there by Eusebius of Caesarea, became Catholicos. A strong-willed, talented and devoted archpastor, at the Ashtishat Council (361) he proposed a number of reforms that the Church needed. He made it a duty to fulfill church canons, built monasteries, temples, schools, took care of the poor and sick, put under control not only his personal life, but also the life of Tsar Arshak. The latter, indignant at the Catholicos, put him in a fortress, electing an anti-Catholicos in his place.

At this moment, Armenia is subjected to devastating raids by the Persian king of the Sasanian dynasty, Shapur II (309-379). Arshak was taken prisoner by the Persians, and his son Vav (369-374) became the Armenian king, who first released and then poisoned Nerses because he denounced his impious deeds. By order of Vav, who expelled the Persians with the help of the Romans, Isaac I of Monazkert (373-377) was elected Catholicos, whose successor was Zaven of Monazker (377-381). During this period, the Church took care of its internal affairs and therefore was unable to send its representatives to the Second Ecumenical Council.

3. Further history of the independent Church

Finally, the war between the Greeks and the Persians ended with the division (387) of Greater Armenia between Persia and the Byzantine Empire. The last got 1/5 of the country. King Arshak IV remained in the Greek part, and the Persians placed Khosroes IV (395-400), whose residence was in Dvin. The Catholicos Aspurakes also remained in the Persian part. However, the management in the western part through the Greek procurator and in the eastern part through the Persian governor (marzpan) irritated the Armenians, who were striving for the country's complete independence. This caused not only national liberation movements, but also internal church disputes that ended in a break with the Caesarean Church. In 387, the son of Nerses Isaac was elected to the throne of the Catholicos, who, by royal order, was ordained not by the Archpastor of Caesarea, but by local bishops. St. Basil the Great spoke out against this disobedience, and Catholicos Isaac made repeated attempts to restore the former relations of both Churches, but national and political factors contributed to the weakening of Armenia's relations with Caesarea and the creation of an independent Armenian Church. Since then, the Armenian Catholicos received the title of patriarch with a chair in Vagharshat (Etchmiadzin).

This period is characterized by the fact that the Armenians were aware of the need to create their own national script, which would become the property of the entire Armenian people. It should be noted that the divine service, performed in Greek, required a special institution of translators to translate the text of Holy Scripture, prayers and to explain the rites to believers. Therefore, Isaac the Great (387-439), being a connoisseur of Greek literature, sought to reform his church along the Byzantine model. Many reforms entered church life during the period of Isaac's patriarchate. His remarkable assistant was the secretary of the royal court, a disciple of Saint Nerses Mesrop Mashtots, who compiled the Armenian alphabet from 36 letters and laid the foundations of the new Armenian language (406). With the help of these two great men, 100 translators were mobilized, previously trained to translate the Holy Scriptures. They translated the Bible, liturgical books from the Church of Caesarea, the works of Saints Basil the Great, Cyril of Alexandria, Athanasius the Great, John Chrysostom, and others. In 439, the Armenian liturgy was created on the basis of the Byzantine liturgy. Armenian writing was studied in the schools of Greater and Lesser Armenia, in the Greek Church, in Georgia, Aghvania, gradually spreading to the north and west of Vagharshapat. However, the Persians, dissatisfied with the introduction of the national Armenian script, imprisoned Isaac, as a result of which he could not attend the III Ecumenical Council, and then forced him to retire to Roman Armenia, where he died (439) six months before the death (440) of Mesrop Mashtots .

At the III Ecumenical Council, Nestorius was condemned, and his followers, expelled to the east of the Byzantine Empire, tried to sow the seeds of heretical teaching. Saint Isaac, after his release from prison (435), convened the Ashtishat Council, at which he anathematized Nestorius, Theodore of Mopsuest and Diodorus of Tarsus. However, the members of the council decided to send the priests Averius and Leontius to the Patriarch of Constantinople Proclus (434-446) in order to consult with him regarding their decision. Proclus spoke out in defense of the opinion of Babyla of Edessa, who fought against Nestorianism in Syria, including his decision in the so-called "Armenian Tomos". This written response of Patriarch Proclus, accepted by the Armenians as a symbol, had a great influence on the theological development of the Armenian Church, which, having become an implacable opponent of Nestorianism, then created in itself a predisposition to deviate into Monophysitism.

At the end of the 4th and the beginning of the 5th century, the Church was under the yoke of the Persians, who sought to assimilate the Armenians and convert them to their faith. For decades, the Armenians resisted, and when the yoke became unbearable, all - the clergy, the nobility, and the common people - rose up against their enslavers. This struggle was led by the Armenian national hero Vartan Mamikonyan, who, however, was defeated and killed in the Avarey valley on May 26, 451, that is, in the year of the convening of the Council of Chalcedon. Catholicos Joseph I (440-454), along with other clerics, was taken to Persia and died there as a martyr (454). The reasons for the defeat were the refusal of the Byzantine emperor Marcian to help the Armenians, so as not to break the peace with the Persians, and the lack of unanimity among the Armenian princes. But the Armenians transferred their hatred for the Byzantine emperor, who left them at the most critical moment of the war with the Persians, to the decisions of the Council of Chalcedon. In addition, the Nestorians spread rumors that the Council of Chalcedon contradicted the Council of Ephesus (431), which adopted the formulation of St. Cyril of Alexandria “one incarnate nature of God the Word”, adopted by the Armenians. Thus, the Armenian Church, which had already condemned the three teachers of Nestorius, having not received an invitation to the IV Ecumenical Council, apparently because it was considered the metropolis of the Church of Caesarea of ​​Cappadocia, and perhaps because it was outside the boundaries of the Byzantine Empire, looked at Chalcedon with distrust . In a country where Persian terror reigned, constant persecution of Christians and Mazdaism (a trend of Zoroastrianism) was planted, the Church sought to preserve what it had accumulated over the short history of Christianity, and the fear of Nestorianism with a low theological level of the clergy, distrust of the Greeks who refused to help fellow believers brothers in the fight against the Persians, contributed to the fall of the Armenians into Monophysitism. The situation was aggravated by the difficulty of translating Greek theological terms, because among the Armenians the concepts of “nature” and “hypostasis” were conveyed in one word pnution. The symbol read during ordination shows that Christ has “one united nature” ( miavial mi pnution), however, on the question of the method of connecting natures, there were two different directions: Julian and Sevirian, who defended the incorruptibility or perishability of the body of Christ up to the Monazkert Cathedral (726).

The uprisings in Armenia, Kartli and Azerbaijan (481-484) against the Sassanids forced the Persians to recognize the inviolability of the rights and privileges of the Armenian nobility and the Church. Armenia became a semi-independent and self-governing country. However, the place of Persian Mazdaism is occupied by the influence of Byzantium, which at that time was on the side of Monophysitism. Thanks to the Uniate policy of the Monophysite emperors Basiliscus (circular epistle of 475), Zeno (Enoticon of 482) and Anastasius (disputes about divine sufferings 491-518), the ideas of the IV Ecumenical Council penetrated into Armenia, although it was forbidden to talk about it. The councils in Vagharshapat (491) and Dvina (506) condemned Nestorius, Eutyches, Dioscorus, the Monophysites, the mixophysite and the “Nestorian” decision of the Council of Chalcedon, which allegedly confessed two persons in Christ, and thereby anathematized the IV Ecumenical Council.

Thus, the Armenians rejected the decisions of the Council of Chalcedon and adopted Monophysitism because, having condemned Nestorius, the council passed over in silence his teachers Iva of Edessa, Theodore of Mopsuest and Theodoret of Cyrus, who had already been condemned by the Armenian Church. Other reasons for the separation of the Armenian Church from the Ecumenical were: the misunderstanding of the terms “nature” and “hypostasis”, the constant wars of the Persians and Greeks, and the fear of Byzantine influence in the event that the decisions of Chalcedon were adopted by the Armenians. Despite this, the Armenian Church did not potentially break away from the Orthodox Church, since it was present at the subsequent Ecumenical Councils, although its participation or non-participation in these councils did not meet with unanimous approval among the members of the church.

Emperor Justinian, during whose reign (527-565) there were two Greco-Persian wars (527-532 and 540-561), in an effort to protect the eastern borders of the empire, patronized the Armenians, built churches, monasteries for them, condemned Theodore of Mopsuestsky at the V Ecumenical Council, Theodoret of Cyrus and Yves of Edessa. After the victory of the emperor Mauritius (582-602) over the Persians in the battle of Nisibia (589), according to the peace treaty (591), a part of Armenia to Lake Van went to Byzantium. The emperor was also interested in reconciliation with the Armenians. He arranged interviews with the Armenians at the councils convened repeatedly. After the refusal of Catholicos Moses II to attend the council in Constantinople (his chair was on the Persian territory in Dvin), Mauritius, uniting the bishops of Greek Armenia, elected Catholicos John III (595-616), who in 611 during one of the campaigns of Chosroes II Parvez (590-628) was taken captive to Asia Minor, and the Greeks no longer appointed a catholicos. The gap between the Armenian Catholicos Abraham, the successor of Moses II, and the Georgian Catholicos Kirion, whom the Armenians anathematized at the Dvin Cathedral (596), belongs to the same period. Emperor Mauritius failed to reconcile them.

Moses of Khorensky and many other Armenian historians make the spread of Christianity in Georgia dependent on the Armenian Church, arguing that St. Gregory, at the request of St. Equal-to-the-Apostles Nina, sent missionaries and a particle of the Holy Cross to Georgia.

At first glance, it may indeed seem probable that the Georgian Church was under the jurisdiction of the Armenian, because Vertanes, the son and successor of St. Gregory, made his 15-year-old son Gregory the Catholicos of Iveria and Albania. Nerses the Great sent for feeding Georgian Church his deacon Job. Mesrop Mashtots, who invented the Armenian alphabet, created a similar one for the Georgians, working on translating the Holy Scripture into their language. Finally, the Georgian bishops were present at the Council of Vagharshapat (491), which condemned the IV Ecumenical Council.

However, it should not be forgotten that at the time of the emergence of Christianity, Georgia was not a single state, but represented a number of more or less independent principalities, so the possibility of subordinating some Georgian provinces to Armenian Catholicoses is not ruled out, although this does not mean at all that the entire Georgian people, even if temporarily, was in this dependence. If we assume that Georgia adopted the Christian faith from the Armenians (the ancient historians Rufinus, Theodoret, Socrates, Sozomen do not say anything about this), then how to explain the long-term dependence of the Georgian Church either on Constantinople or on Antioch? After all, it is known that the Armenian Catholicoses were subordinate to the Archbishop of Caesarea.

The Persians, who captured the eastern part of Georgia in 498, also could not bring the Georgians under the jurisdiction of the Armenian Church, because then it must be assumed that the Georgian Church gradually fell under the Monophysite delusions.

Most likely, confusion took place here, and the agavan, that is, the Caspian Albanians, who were present at the aforementioned Vagharshapat Cathedral, were mistaken for Georgians.

In any case, relations between Georgians and Armenians can be called relations of good neighborliness. However, after the Council of Dvina in 596, which condemned the Georgians for accepting the IV Ecumenical Council, there was a final break between the Armenian and Georgian Churches.

The Persian Shah Khosroy II, who conquered (607) Mesopotamia, Syria (611), took Damascus (613), Jerusalem (614) and went to the Bosphorus in 619, understood that, having taken the side of the Monophysites, he would acquire a reliable ally in face of the Armenians. Therefore, in 616, he convened a council with the participation of the Jerusalem Patriarch Zechariah and two Armenian bishops and, having decided to put an end to dogmatic differences, ordered all subject Christian peoples to profess the Armenian faith.

Emperor Heraclius (610-641), during his first campaign against the Persians (622), invaded Armenia and took Dvin in 623, and after the second campaign, defeating the Persians at the ruins of Nineveh (627) under a peace treaty (628) of Byzantium with Persia , returned the empire of Armenia, Mesopotamia, Syria and Egypt. In an effort to ensure a peace that would be based on religious and political unity, Heraclius convened a council in Erzurum (633) with the participation of Greek and Armenian bishops, where the authority of the Council of Chalcedon was recognized, the decisions adopted under the Catholicoses Nerses II, Moses II and Abraham were anathematized, The theopaschite (the doctrine of the sufferings of the Godhead on the Cross) expression “crucified for us” was removed from the Trisagion, and the feasts of the Nativity of Christ and Theophany were separated. However, this union was short-lived, because Islam was already emerging in the East (630). The Arabs invaded (633) Persia, conquered Palestine, Syria, Mesopotamia (634–640), Dvin (640), Egypt (641), and in 648 they were already in Cilician Armenia. During this period, Armenia was subjected to devastating raids by the Greeks, Khazars, Arabs, and at the same time, the Byzantine emperors - Constants II (641-668) with Catholicos Nerses III in Karin, and Justinian II (685-695) with Catholicos Isaac III in Constantinople - sign reunification acts. However, the Monazkert Cathedral (650) spoke out against the Uniate tendencies of the Byzantine emperors, condemning, along with the Cathedral of Chalcedon, the cathedral in Karina. The Trullo Council (692) condemned some of the liturgical customs of the Armenian Church, to the great chagrin of the Armenians, who, together with the Catholicos Isaac III, who returned from the council, abolished this union.

At the very beginning of the 8th century, the Arabs finally subjugated Armenia, but its dependence was of a vassal nature. Armenia with Kartli and Caspian Albania constituted a governorship (emirate) with a center in Dvina. Thanks to this, Armenia enjoyed peace for almost two hundred years (until 859), as a result of which crafts and trade developed. At the same time, the large princely family of the Bagratids gradually secured vast areas in the center of the country and, feeling strong enough, led the people's liberation movement, which was crowned with a victory (862) over the Arabs. Ashot Bagratuni was proclaimed "prince of Armenian princes", and then the king of Armenia (885). He founded his capital in Ani (100 km from Etchmiadzin). The Bagratid dynasty ruled Armenia and Georgia for two centuries (856-1071), after which Armenia, divided into small principalities, came under the rule of the Seljuk Turks, led by Alp-Arslan, who devastated the country, turning the cathedral of Ani into a mosque. Thus, Greater Armenia, the original hearth of the Armenian nation, ceased to exist as a political unity.

The location of the Armenian Church also influenced its daughter churches in Iveria and Caspian Albania. The Armenian Catholicos Vertanes, the son of St. Gregory the Illuminator, made his eldest son Gregory the “Catholicos of Iveria”, as a result of which close relations between the two Churches began, which broke off under the Catholicos of Iveria Kirion (608). Lower Iberia, having recognized the IV Ecumenical Council, became independent during this period, and Upper Iveria, which was under the jurisdiction of the Patriarch of Antioch, gained independence in the next period, namely under Emperor Constantine IX Monomakh (1042–1055).

During this period, there are attempts on the part of the Armenian Catholicoses to harmonize the dogmatic position of their Church with the Orthodox. The most prominent archpastor of the Armenian Church was Catholicos John III the Philosopher (719-729), who in his correspondence with Patriarch German I of Constantinople (715-730) supported the teachings of St. Cyril of Alexandria and Pope Leo the Great, and at the Monazkert Cathedral in 719 (or 726) adopted The Council of Chalcedon, although it limited itself to the expression of St. Cyril of Alexandria “one incarnate nature of God the Word” due to the difficulty in the lexical formulation of the dogma. Catholicos Nerses IV (1166–1173) later wrote about him: “He, full of divine zeal, spoke out against the Monophysites.” The same catholicos, expressing the point of view of the Armenian Church in the issue of Christology, said: “Recognizing that in Christ Jesus there are two natures in one Person is contrary to the truth, provided that this unity is not divided into two.”

Under Patriarch Photius the Great of Constantinople (858–867 and 877–886), attempts were also made to reconcile. Catholicos Zacharias (855–877), after corresponding with the Patriarch of Constantinople, convened a council in Shirakavan (862), which was attended by the Metropolitan of Nicaea, sent by Photius. Patriarch Photius himself admitted that “the Armenian country contains a purely Orthodox Christian faith” (Message to the Eastern Patriarchal Thrones). The Patriarch of Constantinople Nicholas the Mystic (912-925) wrote to the Armenian prince Sabat, son of Ashot, urging him to accept the Orthodox confession, but demanded that the Armenian Catholicos arrive in Constantinople for an interview and consecration. It was about subordinating the Armenian Church to Constantinople, so Prince Sabat (913-925) temporarily put an end to the relations between the two Churches. Catholicos Vagan of Syuniysky (968-969), with his special zeal for icon veneration and for the decisions of the Council of Chalcedon, turned against himself the supporters of Monophysitism. A council was convened in Ani (969), which deposed Vahan and elected Stephen III of Sevan (969-971). There was a division into two catholicosates: the western one with Stefan and the eastern one with Vagan (in Akhtamar on Lake Van).

The successful campaigns of the emperors John I Tzimiskes (969-976) and Basil II the Bulgar-Slayer (976-1025) in Mesopotamia, Syria, Lebanon and the Caucasus ensured Byzantine influence in the occupied countries for some time. Vassal dependence on Byzantium was also recognized by the rulers of Abkhazia, Aspurakan and Ani. However, a new threat was approaching from the east - the Seljuk Turks, who had recently converted to Islam. Being unable to resist, the Armenian princes, together with the people, begin to move to the west. At the time of the capture of Ani by the Turks, the largest migration of Armenians took place, who, under the leadership of Prince Ruben from the Bagratid family, settled on the spurs of the Taurus mountain range and in the Cilician valley, between Antioch and Adana. Here the kingdom of Lesser Armenia was founded (1095-1375). Feudal states of Seljuk rulers were formed in native Armenia. Of the Armenian kingdoms, Syunik and Tashir-Dvoraget continued to exist, which during the reign of the Georgian king David the Builder (1089-1125) strengthened their friendly ties with Georgia and through Trebizond with Russia. The husband of the Georgian Queen Tamara (1184-1213), Prince Yuri Bogolyubsky (son of Andrei Bogolyubsky) played a big role in the liberation of Armenia from the Turkish yoke.

Over time, the Cilician state grew so much that under King Leon II the Great (1182-1219) it represented a significant force for the Greeks and Turks. Here came the Frankish barons who joined the first crusade (1097). Dissatisfied with the aggressive policy of Byzantium, the Armenians greeted them with jubilation. The influence of Rome begins on the Armenians, who gradually adopted some Latin customs in the field of law, church organization, liturgical texts, rites and vestments. However, some of the Armenian Catholicoi, whose see was in Rum-Kala, rather sought an alliance with the Greeks than with Rome, while the clergy of old Armenia opposed this agreement.

4. Theological dialogue between Byzantium and Armenia

Emperor of Constantinople Manuel I Komnenos (1143-1180) had negotiations with the Catholicos Gregory III, and then with his successor Nerses IV (1166-1173), who gained fame as a great theologian and orator. Being unable to go to Cilicia himself, the emperor sent the state master monk Theorian there to hold a discussion with the Armenians. There were three phases of the dialogue in total.

The first dialogue took place between Theorian and Nerses IV[ in Rum-Kala from 1170-1172. according to the main dogmatic difference. During this discussion, Nerses acknowledged: “The perfect Deity assumed the perfect human nature, soul, mind and body from the Ever-Virgin Mary and became the new of two natures united in one Hypostasis. There was no division or transformation into humanity or humanity into the Divine. Therefore, we do not divide, according to Nestorius, one Christ into two persons and do not merge, according to Eutychius, into one nature, but we say two natures, according to Gregory the Theologian (in a letter to Clydonius, who writes against Apollinaris and others like him)<…>For Christ was double in nature, but not in hypostasis. And now, according to the tradition of the Holy Fathers, we anathematize those who say "the nature of the Word, incarnated through transformation or change, alone." But we teach about one nature in Christ, not merging according to Eutyches and not belittling according to Apollinaris, but we teach according to Cyril of Alexandria, as he wrote in his book against Nestorius (One incarnate nature of the Word)<…>We accept the great Fourth Holy Council in Chalcedon and the Ecumenical Council and those holy Fathers whom it recognizes, and those whom it anathematizes, that is, Eutyches and Dioscorus, Sevirus and Timothy Elur and all those who bothered him with their chatter, we also anathematize” . When Feorian read and explained to him the content of the Chalcedon definition, Nerses exclaimed: “I have nothing contrary to it Orthodox faith not found". However, the Catholicos, fearing a reaction among the population, sent two letters through Feorian to the emperor, one intended only for the emperor, with a purely Orthodox statement of faith, and the second ambiguous, so as not to arouse suspicion among the Armenians of sympathy for the Greeks.

By order of the emperor, Feorian again (1172) arrived in Armenia, accompanied by the Armenian monk John. Nerses convened a council of Armenian bishops, who suspected the Catholicos of making the decisions of the Council of Chalcedon. Byzantine representatives reported the conditions for the connection put forward by the emperor and the Patriarch of Constantinople Michael III (1170–1178). They consisted in anathematizing Eutyches, Dioscorus, Severus, Timothy Elur, in confessing the Lord as one Hypostasis in two natures, in accepting the Trisagion without the Theopaschite “crucify for us”, in accepting the Greek church calendar, in celebrating the Eucharist on leavened bread and on wine diluted with water. , in the adoption of the seven Ecumenical Councils and in the preparation of holy peace for olive oil. The Armenian Catholicos henceforth was to be supplied by the Byzantine emperor. In the heat of the controversy, the Greeks gave away the secret, reporting the contents of a secret letter from Nerses IV to the emperor. Nerses was forced to dissolve the cathedral and soon (1173) died.

In the second phase of negotiations (1173–1193), when Nerses IV's nephew Gregory IV became Catholicos, the head of the Armenian Church asked Emperor Manuel to reduce the number of conditions to two, because most of the conditions required the abolition of the local customs of the Armenians. The Emperor agreed.

The Armenians had to anathematize those who said that there is one nature in Christ, that is, Eutyches, Dioscorus, Severus, Timothy Elur and all their like-minded people. They must confess our Lord Jesus Christ as one Son, one Lord, one Person, one Hypostasis, consisting of two perfect natures, united inseparably, inseparably, unchangingly, unmerged, God and man, and in two natures of one and the same Lord Jesus Christ, having two natural wills - Divine and human, not contradicting one another, but concordant with the will of the human will of the Divine ... Together with Emperor Manuel, Patriarch Michael of Constantinople also answered, under whose chairmanship the Council of Constantinople was held at that time. Having received a conciliar decision in a letter dated January 10, 1177, Catholicos Gregory IV convened in Rum-Kala (1179) a council of 33 bishops, who, in two response messages to the emperor and the patriarch, recognized the confession of the Greeks as Orthodox, accepted it and anathematized Nestorius and Eutychius. This council finally recognized two natures in Christ. “We note,” the Acts of this council say, “that the Holy Fathers did not speak of one nature of Christ, but of two united, by energy and will in one Person, performing either the actions of the Divine, or the actions of humanity. Therefore, we do not disagree with the teaching of the Holy Fathers.” However, Emperor Manuel († 1180) did not wait for this message, and after his death, unrest and rebellions began in Constantinople, which forced the Armenian question to be postponed for some time.

The third phase of negotiations reached its apogee at the Armenian Council of Tarsus (1196–1197) under Archbishop Nerses of Tarsus. Greek bishops also participated here. The council responded to all the conditions put forward by the Greeks, as for the anathematization of Eutyches, Dioscorus, Severus and Timothy Elur with their associates, he announced: “Eutychius has already been anathematized by the Armenians. If Dioscorus and his adherents have the same faith, then there is no difficulty in anathematizing them in the same way. However, Nerses noticed that the name of Dioscorus was not on the list of heretics sent to the Armenians by St. Herman, Patriarch of Constantinople. To the demand that the Armenians confess in Jesus Christ only one Person in two natures, two wills and two actions, the council answered: “This is the faith of the Fathers. The expression “one nature” (m…afЪsij) used by Armenians should be understood in the Orthodox sense of Cyril, Athanasius and two Grigorievs…”. With regard to councils V, VI and VII, the Armenians replied: “If the other three councils agree with the first four, we also accept them.” At this council the teaching of the Armenian Church was clearly stated. Nerses of Tarsus expressed the opinion that the dogmatic differences of both Churches are only in words, and that in essence both Churches profess the same thing. However, the excessive claims of the Armenians and the Byzantines in matters of administrative and jurisdictional led these negotiations to a complete failure. Opponents of Nerses reported him to King Leon II as a dangerous innovator. Nerses died in 1198, the same year that Leon II turned to the West, asking Pope Celestine III (1191–1198) and Emperor Henry VI of Germany to recognize him as King of Cilician Armenia for effecting an ecclesiastical union with the Western Church. Later attempts to connect with the Greeks were also unsuccessful.

5. Relations with Rome

The capture of Constantinople by the crusaders (1204) ruled out any possibility of an agreement between the Byzantines and the Armenians, although unsuccessful negotiations from the state of Nicaea were undertaken by Patriarch Herman II (1228–1240) and Patriarch Isaiah (1321–1334).

The development and course of political events contributed to the fact that the newly created Armenian kingdom in Cilicia established relations with the crusaders, whom they considered their patrons and helpers in the fight against numerous enemies. Back in 1098, the Armenians helped Godfrey of Bouillon to take Antioch, and as a reward for this they expanded the borders of Armenian Cilicia almost to Edessa. However, the border of the crusaders after the first crusade, stretching along the entire eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea, divided Cilicia in half, so that the Armenians who were in the territory captured by the crusaders experienced a special influence of the Roman Church. In the end, Catholicos Gregory III gave in to the claims of the popes. After participating in the Antioch (1141), and then in the Jerusalem (1143) councils of the Roman Church, he sent a delegation to Pope Eugene III (1145-1153), agreeing to introduce the ritual customs of the Roman Church, for which he was awarded the highest gifts from the pope - miter, ring and episcopal baton. Catholicos Gregory VI in his letter to Pope Innocent (1198) called the Roman Church the mother of all Churches, and on January 6, 1199, in the Trinity Cathedral in Tarsus, Archbishop Konrad Wittelsbach of Mainz crowned Prince Leon II with the royal crown. So Cilician Armenia, despite the attempts of Emperor Alexius III Angel to keep it under Byzantine influence, was subordinated to the Roman Church. The Armenians were dismayed by this rather strange ecclesiastical union. Catholicos Vesag of Ani (1195–1204) and Anania of Sebaste (1204–1206) opposed him. However, the three Councils of Sis (1204, 1246 and 1251) made thirty-one rules of a liturgical and canonical nature, which the Armenian Catholic Church still adheres to, and adopted filioque. And although Catholicos James I did not send his representatives to the Council of Lyon (1274), nevertheless, fifteen consecutive Catholicos of the See of Sis (1293-1441) observed their dependence on the Holy See. This, however, is explained by the fact that the crusades of Friedrich (1228) and Louis IX (1248) strengthened the position of the Latins in the east, and, consequently, their influence on the Armenians. Even the Mongols led by Genghis Khan, who conquered (1225-1239) Transcaucasia and defeated the Iconian Sultanate in the battle of Kyosedago (1243), did not dare to attack Cilicia.

However, this alliance of the Armenians with the Catholics aroused strong suspicions on the part of the Turks. First, the Seljuks of Rum (1257–1263) started a war with Cilicia, and then the Egyptian Mamluks, led by Sultan Baibars (1260–1277), entered Asia Minor and defeated the Armenians. In 1299, Rum-Kale was destroyed and Catholicos Gregory VIII was forced was to move to Sis Cilicia. During this period, the Latinization of Armenia by the Franciscan and Dominican monks continued. The councils convened at Sis (1307) and Adana (1313) adopted many of the customs of the Roman Church. The Council of 1342 dealt with the dogma of the Ascension of the Mother of God to heaven, while the days of the Armenian state were already numbered. In 1375, the Turks inflicted a final defeat on the Rubenid-Gatumins dynasty, the last representative of which Leon V (1374-1393) died in exile in Paris.

However, the Armenian nation, scattered throughout Anatolia, Egypt, India, Russia and Poland, continued to exist. The Church became the only guardian of national traditions and the only refuge of the long-suffering people, although it itself lost its unity, as a result of which several patriarchs arose. In order to save the Armenian Church, it was decided to transfer the chair of the Catholicos from Sis to Etchmiadzin (1441), which was under the rule of the Persians. The Akhtamar Catholicos also kept aloof. Mahmut II, having captured Constantinople (1453), established two jurisdictions - the Greek Patriarch (for all Orthodox Greeks, Bulgarians, Serbs, Croats, Syrians, Melchites and Arabs) and the Armenian Patriarch (for Monophysites, Armenians, Syrians, Chaldeans, Copts, Georgians and Abyssinians). The Jerusalem Patriarchate was founded even earlier (1311) as a result of the Jerusalem Armenians' refusal of the Council of Sis (1307).

After the transfer of the see of the Catholicos to Etchmiadzin under Gregory IX (1439–1446), Catholicos Constantine VI was in Sis, who sent two Armenian bishops to the Florence Cathedral with a letter expressing their readiness to accept the decisions of this council. According to the Uniate bull signed on November 22, 1439, the Armenians had to observe the Nicene-Tsaregrad Creed with filioque, the doctrine of two natures and wills in Christ, the primacy of the pope, the doctrine of purgatory, and the Roman calendar. However, this agreement was short-lived, because the Armenians adhered to a conciliatory policy with Rome in the event that they saw some political advantage; otherwise, they remained true to their traditional teachings. However, the Armenians of the West continued to be supporters of the alliance with Rome. Since the 13th century, there were many Armenians in Poland, who forced the Catholicos of Etchmiadzin Melchizedek (1616), who arrived in Lvov, to commit an act of allegiance towards Rome (1629). An Armenian archdiocese was founded, directly dependent on the Holy See and existed until 1945. In Cilicia, also as a result of the Uniate actions of the Catholicoses, the Armenian Catholic Patriarchate was founded under Patriarch Gregory XIII (1572–1585), whose chair was first in Sis.

In 1742, the Armenian Catholic Bishop of Aleppo Abraham Peter I was proclaimed Patriarch of the Armenian Catholics of Cilicia by Pope Benedict XIV with a see in Sis, and then (1750) in Baomar (Lebanon). However, in 1758 the pope appointed an Armenian Catholic bishop in Constantinople, subordinate to the papal vicar in that city, who later (1830) was elevated to archbishop with jurisdiction over all of Asia Minor and Armenia. During the period of the Greek Revolution, thanks to the intervention of the French ambassador at the Sublime Porte, the Turks allowed the Armenian Catholics to have their representative in Constantinople. For the Armenian Catholics, their own political power was thus established, so that, having freed themselves (1831) from the former dependence of the Gregorians, they had their own commissioner for civil affairs ( narira), while the archbishop was their spiritual head. In 1867, Catholicos Hassun Peter IX combined both of these titles in himself, and after the cathedral convened in Baomar (Lebanon) that year, on the basis of a bull of Pope Pius IX, he received the title of patriarch and transferred his see to Constantinople (1867–1928) . The Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople was governed on the basis of the Armenian charter worked out in 1860 . However, the adoption by Peter IX of the decisions of the First Vatican Council caused a war between his supporters and opponents (Hassunites and anti-Hassunites), and Peter was forced to flee to Rome, where he died as a cardinal (1884). After that, many returned to the Armenian-Gregorian Church.

Hassun Peter was succeeded by Stefan Peter X, and then by Azariy (1884–1899), who condemned the provision of 1890, according to which the Turks had the right to sanction any church act, but adopted the “Armenian National Regulation” of 1888, which granted significant rights to the laity in the issue of church government. However, disputes among the Armenian Catholics of Constantinople continued. In 1910, the laity opposed the election of Paul V, Peter XIII (†1931), to the patriarchal throne, fearing his reforms. During this period of the "Asia Minor catastrophe" in Rome (1911), a meeting was held at which eighteen bishops compiled a canon on liturgical and administrative matters. For a number of years, the Armenian Catholic Patriarch was forced to live in Rome, and then (1928) his see was transferred to Beirut, while an archbishop was appointed to Constantinople. The successor of Paul VPeter XIII was Patriarch Avid Peter XIV (Arpiaryan), who was replaced by Gregory XIV Peter XV Aghajanyan (December 3, 1937 - August 1962), who later became a cardinal (1946). Now the head of the Armenian Catholics is Patriarch John Peter XVIII (Kasparyan).

The church has a patriarchate in Beirut. The dioceses are: Khaleb, Constantinople and Marda, Baghdad (there are up to 2000 Armenian Catholics in Iraq, while Gregorians - up to 15000), Alexandria (in Egypt there are up to 3500 Armenian Catholics, and 18000 Gregorians), Isfahan (1000).

Until the Second World War, there was an archbishop in Lviv, and apostolic representatives in Greece and Romania, in 1921 an apostolic representative was appointed in Tbilisi. About 5,000 Armenians live in the US, there are Armenians in India, but they are subject to the local Catholic hierarchy. Founded at the beginning of the 18th century The brotherhood of Mekhitarist monks, having settled in Venice in order to strengthen the ties between Armenians and Rome, launched a large preaching and publishing activity in Poland, Transylvania and Turkey. Now there are about 100,000 Armenian Catholics who are spiritually nourished by 120 priests, 104 monks and 184 nuns.

6. Armenian Church and Protestants

Since the beginning of the 19th century, interest in the ancient Eastern Churches arose in the West. The Protestants sought to establish relations with the Armenians through the Mekhitarist monks, who had a printing house at their disposal, through Armenian students studying in Europe, or through direct communication. In 1813, the British Bible Society distributed the Holy Scriptures in Armenian among the Armenians. The American Presbyterians who arrived in Constantinople (1839) began proselytizing among the Armenians, so that Patriarch Matthew of Constantinople (1835–1846) was forced in 1845 to issue a district message, which found the support of the Ottoman government, forbidding the entry of Protestants. However, by the intervention of England and America, Patriarch Matthew (1846) was deposed from the throne, and the Turkish government recognized (1847) the Armenian Protestant community. Following this, Protestant missionary work began to spread rapidly throughout the Middle East, so that in the first quarter of the 20th century, the Protestant confession had about 80,000 members throughout Turkey. The bulk of the Protestant Armenians concentrated in Harput, Ayntab and Merzifun. Many Armenians studied at the American College "Robert College" in Roumel Guichard (near the Bosphorus), founded in 1863.

7. Armenian-Gregorian Church after the XII century

In 1236 the Mongols took Ani. Eastern Armenia, politically isolated from Western, defended its borders together with the Georgians from the invaders. However, by 1239 Transcaucasia was conquered by the Mongols. A national liberation movement begins within the country. A century and a half later, Timur's hordes devastated Georgia and Armenia, but after the collapse of the Mongol Empire (1455), a period of calm sets in. As a result of the Battle of Chaldiran, the state of the Ak-Koyunlu horde, disintegrated into destinies, was captured by the Ottomans, led by Sultan Selim I (1514), and then Suleiman I (1520-1566), and thus in the first half of the 17th century Armenia found itself between Turkey from the West and Persia from the East. The Turks systematically plundered the country, the Persians also sowed destruction. Arriving at the very beginning of the 17th century led by Shah Abbas (1586-1628) in the country, they devastated it, destroyed part of the population and took many away to Persia, where they founded the city of New Julfa not far from Isfahan. During this period, most of the Armenian lands were the Yerevan Khanate, which was under the rule of Persia, while western Armenia was divided into pashaliks, in which Kurdish and Turkish sheikhs and beks committed violence against the local population with impunity. Armenians fled to Western Europe and Russia. In 1673, they turned to Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, asking for protection from the Persians. They appealed to both Peter I (1701) and Catherine II (1762-1796), but to no avail. The Armenians began to think about how to carry out the struggle in alliance with Georgia after the Armenian prince Melik David (†1728) led a successful revolution.

By the middle of the 18th century, the position of Persia in Transcaucasia was shaken, and Georgia, taking advantage of this, made the khanates of Yerevan and Gandzha its tributaries. By a special decree of 1768, Empress Catherine II promised to accept the Armenians under her protection. The Armenian Church, together with its people, began a new history. In 1773, Catholicos Simeon I (1763-1780), an ardent opponent of Catholicism, appointed Bishop of Argutinsky as his representative and diocesan bishop of the Armenians in Russia. Russian government decrees allowed the Armenians to freely worship and build churches not only in Armenia, but also in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Astrakhan and other cities.

After the successful completion of the Russian-Turkish wars, Russia's positions on the Black Sea coast were strengthened, the Russian-Georgian treaty was concluded in Georgievsk (1783). The Persian Shah responded with a devastating campaign against Karabakh and Georgia. During the years of the Russian-Persian (1804-1813) and Russian-Turkish (1806-1812) wars, the Armenians were on the side of Russia, helping her in every possible way in the struggle against the Persians and Turks. The second Russian-Persian war, which began in 1826, ended with the Treaty of Turkmenchay (February 10, 1828), according to which the Yerevan and Nakhichevan khanates were annexed to Russia, forming the Armenian region, where more than 40 thousand Armenians from Persia moved. As a result of the second Russo-Turkish war (1828–1829), when, under the Treaty of Adrianople (September 2, 1829), Russia returned Kars, Ardagan, Bayazet, Erzurum to Turkey, 90,000 Armenians moved to the east under Russian rule. During Crimean War(1853-56) and the national liberation movement in the Balkans, the Armenians helped the Russians in every possible way in the struggle against Turkey. In 1877–1878 Bayazet, Alashkert, Ardagan, Kars, Erzurum were liberated from the yoke of Turkey. However, the terms of the Treaty of San Stefano (February 19, 1878), according to which these regions went to Russia, were revised by the Berlin International Congress (June 1878), and Kars, Ardagan and Batum remained in Russia. All this caused the persecution of the Armenians by the Turkish government, which dreamed of their destruction as a nation. Thousands of refugees left for America, Europe and other countries at the end of the last and the first quarter of this century.

During this period, in Etchmiadzin, under the Catholicos, there was already a Synod (since 1828), which elects two candidates for the patriarchal throne and submits it to the Russian emperor for approval. Until the October Revolution, the Armenian Church carried out the “Regulations” of 1836, which consisted of 141 articles.

In December 1917, by a decree of the Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR, "Turkish Armenia" received the right to free self-determination. In Armenia, the government was headed by the Dashnaks. In 1918, Turkey, having broken the Brest Treaty, occupied a significant part of Armenia. After the defeat of Denikin's troops, and then the Turkish troops that invaded Armenia in 1920, on the initiative of the Dashnaks, Armenia was forced to agree to the conditions of Ankara and Alexandropol, and in December 1920 became a small state with a territory of 30 thousand square meters. km. From December 1922, as part of the RSFSR, it became part of the USSR.

During this period, the Armenian Church, together with the people, fought for its independence, being a reliable guardian of national traditions, the only consolation of Armenian Christians in the years of trials. The Armenians can be quite proud of the fact that despite their multiple dispersion around the globe, they never converted to Islam, firmly holding on to the faith of their fathers.

At the head of the Armenian-Gregorian Church in Etchmiadzin during this period were such Catholicoses as Gevorg V Surenyan (1911–1930), Khoren Muradbegyan (1933–1938), and after the period of widowhood of the throne (1938–1945) - Gevorg VI (1945–1954 ), who had previously been the locum tenens of the patriarchal throne. Currently, the Supreme Catholicos of all Armenians is Karekin, the 131st Catholicos on the throne in Etchmiadzin.

After the Second World War, many Armenians, including the Uniates, returned to their homeland. In 1946/47, about 37 thousand Uniate Armenians returned from the countries of the Middle East, then 3 thousand left Persia, where up to 5 thousand Armenian families had previously lived, in 1962 400 Gregorian Armenians returned from Cyprus, and in November 1964, 1,000 Armenians arrived from Aleppo.

8. The Armenian Church at present. Control.

In the modern hierarchical system of the Armenian Church, the highest authority is two catholicoses and two patriarchs, who lead the Armenian flock in various parts of the world. These are the Catholicos of all Armenians in Etchmiadzin, Cilicia in Antalyas (Lebanon), the Patriarchs of Constantinople and Jerusalem. However, due to historical events, the traditions of the Armenian Church and its customs, the Catholicos who kept the right hand of St. Gregory, the Enlightener of the Armenians, always had the advantage. After the Council of Florence, the relics of the Saint ended up in Etchmiadzin, where, according to legend, the apostles Thaddeus Bartholomew preached, and where Saint Gregory himself founded the Armenian Church. The Catholicos of Etchmiadzin, due to constant raids, was forced to change the place of his see, which was located in Ashtishat, Vagharshapat, Dvin, Akhtamar, Arkin, Ani, Jaminta (near ancient Amasya), Rum-Kale and Sis. Now, being in Etchmiadzin (since 1441), the Catholicos bears the title of “Servant of God, Great Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians”. Although other catholicoses and patriarchs are not subordinate to him, however, he has the primacy of honor, his spiritual jurisdiction extends to all Armenians. A catholicos is always a bishop, but during his ordination a rite is performed, reminiscent of ordination, during which the hand of St. Gregory is placed on his head. At the same time, twelve bishops also lay their hands on his head and then anoint him with holy ointment. The Etchmiadzin Catholicos has the privilege of ordaining the Patriarchs of Constantinople and Jerusalem.

Now the Catholicos is Karekin, elected in 1996, who lives in the Etchmiadzin monastery. The synod consists of seven archbishops, two bishops and two vardapets. The Synod has a monastic council and a publishing committee.

The following dioceses are under the jurisdiction of the Echmiadzin Patriarchate: Ararat led by Bishop Komitas, Shirak (Leninakan), Georgian (Tbilisi) with Bishop George, Azerbaijan (Baku) with Bishop Yusik and Novo-Nakhichevan-Russian (Moscow) with Bishop Parkev. A total of 60 priests, an academy and a seminary with 50 students in Etchmiadzin. Education: three years in the seminary and three years in the academy.

In addition, there are dioceses and abroad. In Iran, Tabriz, Tehran and Isfahan. Indian Armenians make up the diocese of India and the Far East. In Iraq there is the Iraqi Diocese with its center in Baghdad (1500 Armenians), where the Armenian oil tycoon Gulbekyan built a huge temple. The Egyptian diocese includes Ethiopia and Sudan. The Greek diocese, consisting of ten thousand Armenians, has ten churches and a theological school in Athens. There are also dioceses in Bulgaria, Romania, Western Europe (Paris), Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Chile, and Venezuela. The Diocese of America and Canada, based in New York, is the largest of all foreign dioceses (100,000). In 1962, about 11,000 Armenians arrived in Canada from Egypt. The Bishop of New York, being the senior Armenian hierarch of the American continent, is elected for four years. The Diocese of California, which also includes Mexico (with its center in Los Angeles), has up to 60,000 Armenians.

The second Catholicos - Cilician - from 1299 had a chair in Sis (not far from Adana), but in 1921, under pressure from the Turks, the Armenians were forced to leave the Turkish Republic and, in an amount of approximately 120,000 people, moved to Syria, where they moved their chair and Catholicos. However, in July 1939, the Alexandretta (Khatai) region belonging to Syria was transferred by the French mandate authorities to the Turkish Empire, and the Armenians living in this territory were forced to move to Syria and Lebanon. Catholicos Isaac II of Cilicia (1903–1939) moved his residence to the Antalyas Monastery (near Beirut), so that since then his successors Peter Sarazdan (since 1940), Garegin Hovsepyan (†1952), Sareh Payaslyan (1956–1962) and, finally, the current ruling Aram (since 1996) have their own pulpit here, uniting more than 600,000 believers in their jurisdiction. The Catholicos of Cilicia is equal in honor to the Catholicos of Etchmiadzin, following him in rank, has the same ecclesiastical privileges to ordain bishops, bless the holy chrism, issue divorces, observe church canons and express a competent opinion on liturgical matters. The Catholicos today has six archbishops and two bishops, of which one is in the USA, and about 130 priests. Its jurisdiction extends to Syria, Lebanon, Cyprus, Greece (since 1958), Persia and some parishes in Europe. There are three monastic schools in Beirut, Latakia and Damascus.

The Cilician Catholicos, in addition to his spiritual power over the Armenians of his jurisdiction, also has secular power, which was given to him on the basis of the constitution of 1860, approved by the Turkish government (1863) in order to regulate the issues of the Armenian population in Turkey. After the separation of Syria and Lebanon into independent states, the governments of these countries, as well as the Balkans, Europe and Egypt, recognized it as a private constitution that regulates the church and national life of the Armenian communities. Since 1941, this constitution was supplemented by two legislative clauses: 1) on the election of the Catholicos and his relationship to the bishops (38 articles) and 2) on the rules of the monastic community and the monastic brotherhood of the Catholicosate, - received the name "Special Cilician Regulations". Incidentally, Article 11 of this “Regulation” gives the Catholicos of Cilicia two votes in the election of the Catholicos of Etchmiadzin, who has the same privilege in the election of the Cilician. Despite the fact that both Catholicos were completely independent in the management of their Churches, relations between them were sometimes strained. Thus, the consecration of the Bishop of Ankara by the Catholicos of Cilicia, which was under the jurisdiction of Etchmiadzin, caused a schism, which was liquidated by the Jerusalem Cathedral of 1652. The Etchmidzian Catholicos Gevork IV (1866–1882), for his part, strove to rule the entire Armenian Church, and the clash that arose from this with The Cilician Catholicos Mekertikh I ended only with the death of George IV, when his successor Mekertikh I Kerimyan (1892–1907) sent a congratulatory message to Isaac II of Cilicia, as a result of which the situation was settled. Both catholicos, seeking to strengthen fraternal ties with each other, adopted a decision (Etchmiadzin in 1925, and Cilicia in 1941) providing for the representation of another catholicosate during the election of candidates for the patriarchal throne. However, this decision caused further difficulties in the future. After the death in June 1952 of the Cilician Catholicos Garegin Hovsepyan, local Armenians voted for the candidacy of Sareh Payaslyan (1956-1962), but Patriarch Vazgen opposed this election. A period of misunderstanding begins between the two Catholicosates. To show its canonical independence, the Catholicosate of Cilicia scheduled elections for February 1956. Then Vazgen arrived in Antalyas without an invitation to participate in the elections, in order to deprive Sareh of any chance of being elected. However, not having achieved his goal, he left for Cairo, where he convened a council of Armenian bishops in his jurisdiction and declared the election of the Cilician Catholicos invalid. By his actions, the Etchmiadzin Catholicos sought to subjugate all Armenians. However, these claims were rejected. Then Vazgen proceeded to elect a new candidate for the throne of Cilicia, Archbishop Kada Akhabagyan (from the Cilician jurisdiction). In the future, events developed in such a way that the Armenian communities of Iran, Greece and the USA (1958-1960) decided to abandon the jurisdiction of Etchmiadzin and go over to the jurisdiction of Antalyas. The Archbishop of Damascus also decided to create his own Armenian Patriarchate in the Middle East. A split began in the seminary in Bikafaya. All this made a strong impression on Serakh, and in February 1963 he died of a heart attack at the age of 49. After the elections to the throne of Khoren I of Cilicia, there is some easing in the relations between the two catholikoses. Nevertheless, representatives of the Cilician Patriarch were not present (1969) in Etchmiadzin at the celebrations of chrismation, which takes place once every seven years.

The third Catholicos was Akhtamar with a cathedra on Lake Van. After the destruction by the Arabs in the IX century. Armenian Catholicos John V (899-931) arrived here and settled on the small island of Akhtamar, consecrating his successor. In 1113, the archbishop of this city refused to recognize Gregory Pahlaguni (1113–1166) as Catholicos, seeking to take the throne himself, but was deposed by the synod. Since then, its jurisdiction has extended only to this island and the surroundings of Lake Van. After the First World War, this catholicosate was abolished.

In addition, there are two more patriarchates: Jerusalem and Constantinople.

Jerusalem was founded in 1311 as a result of the refusal of the monks of the monastery of St. James in Jerusalem to accept the definitions of the Council of Sis (1307). However, the council convened in Jerusalem (1652) reconciled with the Etchmiadzin Catholicos not only the Cilician Catholicos, but also the Patriarch of Jerusalem. From the 18th century The “Apostolic See of the Jerusalem Armenians” could already consecrate chrism for itself, but later this was abolished, as well as the right to ordain a bishop on their own. In 1957, Tigran Nersoyan was elected to the throne, but the Jordanian government forbade him, as an adherent of the Etchmiadzin Catholicosate, to start governing the Church. In August 1958, he, along with the bishop and six priests, was expelled from the country. In March 1960, the locum tenens of the patriarchal throne, Yeghishe II Derderyan, an adherent of the Cilician Catholicosate, was elected. During his trip to America (1964) he collected donations for his impoverished patriarchy. His chair is located in the monastery of St. James. He has a vicar archbishop, two bishops and four vardapets. Its jurisdiction is limited to Palestine. On January 6, 1964, Pope Paul VI paid a visit to Patriarch Yeghishe II of Jerusalem, in whose jurisdiction there are 10,000 believers.

Beginning with the Council of Sis (1307), there was already a bishop in Constantinople for the spiritual needs of the Armenians living there. However, after the fall of Constantinople, Sultan Mahmud II united all the Monophysites under the command of the Armenian Bishop Joachim of Bursa, who was summoned from Bursa to Constantinople and made (1461) patriarch of all Armenians with jurisdiction over all fellow tribesmen living in the Ottoman Empire. During the period of the Ottoman Sultanate, he was the most influential of all the Armenian patriarchs, although he recognized the primacy of the Etchmiadzin Catholicos, following the rank of the Cilician. Until 1828, he was canonically subordinate to the Catholicos of Etchmiadzin, but when Greater Armenia ceded to Russia, the Turkish government made him independent with the title of “Patriarch of all Armenians in Turkey”. Since 1961, Snork Kalustian has been at the head, who is the head of 100,000 Armenians living in Turkey (in the regions of Istanbul, Ankara, Sivas, Malatya and Diyarbekir). In 1954, an Armenian seminary was opened in Scutari, a suburb of Constantinople.

The Catholicos in the Armenian Church is the spiritual head of the faithful Armenians and is elected by the spiritual-secular session, and is confirmed in this rank by twelve bishops, after which he is anointed with chrism. He wears a ring, ordains bishops, sanctifies myrrh, and has veto power in divorces. Bishops are mainly from the unmarried clergy. In the second degree of the priesthood, the first place is occupied by vardapets, who are priest-theologians who have the right to preach and govern special districts where they have the right to carry a pastoral baton. Next come the protopresbyters, then the unmarried priests, followed by the married ones.

9. Dogmatic teaching

The Armenian Church recognizes the first three Ecumenical Councils along with the dogmas established on them. Her creed is the Nikeo-Tsaregradsky with slight modifications, the Athanasian symbol, and the Symbol read during ordination (XIV century). The latter is also called the “Confession of the Orthodox Faith” and is based on the Nicene-Tsaregrad, the Apostolic and the Creed of St. Athanasius. It is read during ordination. In addition to the Creeds, there are so-called confessions, which also express the dogmatic position of the Armenian Church. These are the confession of St. Gregory (+951), the statement of faith of Catholicos Nerses IV, sent to Emperor Manuel I Comnenus, the three confessions of Catholicos Nerses V, the confession of Nerses of Dambras, read at the council in Tarsus (1196).

The Christology of the Armenian Church is contained in its “Confession” in the following words: “We believe that God the Word, One of the Persons of the Holy Trinity, who was born from the Father before the age, descended in time into the Virgin Mary the Theotokos, assumed Her nature and united with His Divinity. Having spent nine months in the womb of the immaculate Virgin, the perfect God became a perfect man with spirit, soul and flesh, one Person and one united nature. God became man without being changed or changed. He was conceived without seed and born without blemish. As His Divinity is without beginning, so His humanity is infinite, for Jesus Christ is the same now and forever and unto the ages of ages. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ walked the earth, was baptized at the age of thirty, and the Father testified from above, saying: "This is My beloved Son." And the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove descended on Him. He was tempted by Satan, but he overcame him. He preached the salvation of people, suffered bodily, experienced fatigue, hunger and thirst. Then He suffered according to His will, was crucified, died bodily and remained alive in His Divinity. His body, united with the Deity, was placed in a coffin. Soul with indivisible Divinity He descended into hell.” In Christology, the Armenians place the main emphasis on the unity of two natures, Divine and human, fearing a dual understanding of the union in Christ. The Father of the Armenian Church, St. John Mandakuni (5th century), opposing duality in the issue of the union of two natures, says that “the Word took on flesh and became a man, thereby uniting with Himself our base flesh, all soul and body, so that the flesh really became the flesh of God Words. Therefore, it is said about the Invisible that He is visible, and about the Incomprehensible - that He suffered, was crucified, buried, and rose on the third day, for He suffered and at the same time was impassive, was mortal and immortal. Otherwise, how could the Lord of Glory be crucified? To show that He is Man and God, the expression "God incarnate" is required. However, during the period of Christological disputes, the Armenians accepted Monophysitism as it was after the Akaki schism (484-519), that is, in the theopaschite form. And at the Council of Dvina (525) they accepted the theopaschitism of Severus of Antioch with the assistance of Emperor Anastasius (491-518), who approved the expression of Peter Gnafevs “crucified for us” in the Trisagion Hymn. Catholicos Nerses IV relates this insertion to the human nature of Christ, but the Armenians do not agree to accept the Council of Chalcedon, suspecting hidden Nestorianism in it. In correspondence with Patriarch Photius of Constantinople, vardapet Isaac responds to the proposal of the former to accept the Council of Chalcedon: “Our fathers rejected the Council of Chalcedon and taught about Christ as the One of two natures, united without confusion or separation. The Chalcedonites divided Him into two natures, two wills, two actions, thus following the false teaching of Nestorius. However, they also portrayed Him as the One, in order to win over the simple-hearted, saying that they were far from the Nestorian heresy. However, Isaac finds the unity of personality without the unity of nature absurd, finding hidden Nestorianism in this. In confirmation, he draws an analogy with a person who consists of a soul and a body, but represents one being, which is addressed as a single and integral organism. In correspondence with Metropolitan Theodore of Metilene, the Armenian theologian Samuil, on behalf of the Catholicos Khachik (X century), compared the union of two natures with the light of a lamp, which unites with the sunlight and cannot be separated from it. In other words, the human essence is inseparably united with the divine and does not act separately according to its own will, for the Strongest surpasses the weakest by its union with Himself and deification.

For Armenian theologians, the term nature, understood in an abstract sense, that is, in the sense of denoting the properties belonging to the Divinity and humanity in Christ, was more understandable and acceptable than the tomos of Leo the Great about two natures. Hence the rejection of the Council of Chalcedon. For us, the basis of Christology has always been the phrase “And the Word became flesh,” where, so to speak, the subject was always God the Word, and human Nature did not abide in itself in Christ, but was perceived by God and became His own.

The greatest theologian and Catholicos of the Armenian Church, Nerses IV, in his dialogue with Theorian (XII century), emphasized the inseparability and inseparability of this union: “Those who say that one suffered, and the other did not suffer, fall into error, since there was no one else except the Word, who suffered and suffered death in the flesh, for the same Word, being impassible and incorporeal, consented to be subjected to the passions in order to save mankind by His passions.” “We agree with those who profess two natures, not separated, like Nestorius, and not merged, as the heretics Eutyches and Apollinaris teach, but united unmerged and inseparable<…>We do not think of man as soul and body, but as a combination of both. So they say about the nature of Christ that it is one, not merged, but two natures are inseparably connected with one another.<…>However, according to the writings of the Fathers, after union, duality in the sense of separation disappears. Consequently, when one speaks of One nature as an inseparable and inseparable union, and not of a mixture, and when one speaks of two natures as unmerged, inseparable and inseparable, then both remain within the framework of Orthodoxy. Bishop Garegin Sargsyan, speaking about the way the two natures are united in Christ, concludes: one” .

Thus, the Christology of the Armenian Church, due to the lack of suitable terminology for expressing the concept of the union of two natures, remains moderately Monophysite.

The doctrine of the procession of the Holy Spirit is Orthodox, despite the fact that the Latins claim that until the 13th century the Armenian Church adhered to the doctrine of filioque.

The Armenian Catechism clearly sets forth the teaching of the Church on the seven sacraments. Baptism is performed through a triple immersion, then, as with the Orthodox, chrismation is performed. The Divine Eucharist is celebrated on unleavened bread and wine without water. Convened by Catholicos John III (717-729), the council in Monazkert (719 or 726) condemned the use of leavened bread with its 8th canon. Councils in Sis (1307) and Adana (1313) decided to mix wine with water at the liturgy, but the Council of Sis in 1359, chaired by Catholicos Mesrop, again banned the use of water. Communion is performed under both kinds. The sacrament of the priesthood is accomplished through the laying on of the hands of the bishop who is consecrated and the invocation of the Holy Spirit. The celibacy of the episcopate was introduced in the 13th century. Marriage after ordination is permitted only to deacons. The sacrament of confession is performed like the Orthodox. Marriage is considered indissoluble, except in the case of adultery, and only the Catholicos has the right to divorce. The Armenian Church does not accept the doctrine of purifying fire and rejects indulgences, but prays, like the Orthodox Church, for the dead.

1. Canon of Scripture

The invention of the Armenian alphabet by Saint Mesrop Mashtots resulted in the translation of the Holy Scripture into Armenian (412) from the copy of the translation of the Seventy, which was given to him by Patriarch Attik of Constantinople (406-425). Many tend to argue that the Armenian translation of the Old Testament is the most accurate reproduction of the text of the Seventy. The 24th canon of the Partava Council (767) established the canon of Holy Scripture of the Armenian Church that is used today. The non-canonical books of the Old Testament, although included in the canon, are never read in church.

11. Worship

All Armenian services are performed in classical Armenian. The current liturgy of the Armenian Church dates back to the 4th-5th centuries, although it acquired its final form in the 9th century. The ancient Church had at least ten anaphoras and a liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts. Obviously, this is due to the fact that some monasteries enjoyed the privilege of using their own liturgical type. At present, only one liturgy is used, which in essence is the liturgy of Basil the Great translated into Armenian with some modifications as a result of Syrian influence. At the Council of Sis (1342), the liturgies of Basil the Great and John Chrysostom are mentioned as prototypes of the Armenian liturgy.

The early main authors of the Armenian liturgy are St. Gregory the Illuminator (301-325), Catholicos St. Nerses the Great (353-373), Isaac of Parthia, who was Catholicos in 337-439. Saint Mesrop Mashtots (5th century), Catholicos John Mantakuni (478-490) and Moses of Khorensky (5th century). These authors compiled the main prayers and hymns of the service book and other church liturgical collections. The chants of the Nativity of Christ and Baptism are attributed to Moses of Khorensky, the Holy Week and the Cross-Isaac of Parthia. Hymns in honor of the prophets, apostles, Church fathers and Transfiguration were composed by John Mantakuni. Archbishop Stefan of Syuniysky introduced the system of canons into the collection of church hymns and wrote Easter hymns. Gregory of Narek (951–1003) composed prayers and hymns in honor of the Mother of God, for which he was named “Pindar of Armenia”. Until the 15th century, the Armenian liturgy was enriched with various hymns, which have since become part of everyday church use.

During the Great Fortecost and during Lent Aratshavorats Liturgy is not performed from Monday to Friday inclusive.

The manuscripts of the Armenian liturgy, kept in European libraries, date back to the 13th century, and their translations were subsequently printed and published by the Mekhitarist monks in Venice, Constantinople (1706, 1825, 1844), Jerusalem (1841, 1873, 1884) and Etchmiadzin ( 1873).

Everyday rites in the Armenian Church, like those of the Orthodox, are Midnight Office, Matins, the first, third, sixth and ninth hours, Vespers and Compline. The liturgy begins with the exclamation "Blessed is the Kingdom...". The Cherubic Hymn is not sung. After Communion, dismissal, before which an excerpt from the Gospel of John (1:1-18) is read, and in the period from Easter to Ascension - an excerpt from the same Gospel (21:15-20).

• liturgical books

The following liturgical books are in common use: Donashteutz corresponding to the Orthodox Typicon, Cortadedr, the book of the sacrament of the Divine Eucharist, containing the rites for the serving priest and some exclamations of the deacon; Diashots with passages from the Gospel and the Apostles for reading at the Liturgy; Terbrucium, the book of consecrations; Saragen, a book of hymns and prayers at the Liturgy; yamakirk, Book of Hours of the Armenian Church; heishmawrk, Synaxarium with the lives of the saints and teachings for the Lord's feasts; Mashdots, containing the rites of the sacraments and other requirements.

Armenian liturgical books were first printed in 1512 in Venice.

• church music

The modern musical notation rests on an older one, the main creator of which was Babe Hambardzumyan. In the 12th century, Katsiadur from Dara transformed the ancient spelling of vowels and thus made a remarkable contribution to the history of Armenian music. For worship, two musical instrument tsingzga, consisting of two copper discs, which are struck like cymbals, and keshots-liturgical ripids, on which bells are hung in a circle, making melodic sounds. At present, polyphonic singing has already been introduced, which, however, has not changed the nature of ancient Armenian singing. In Etchmiadzin, singing is accompanied by an organ.

• Vestments and sacred vessels

The vestments of the clergy of the Armenian Church are generally similar to the vestments of the Eastern Churches, although somewhat Latinized. The deacon wears a surplice and an orarion, a priest-surplice, an epitrachelion, a belt, handrails, a bell-shaped phelonion, and around the neck a wide collar embroidered with gold, and sometimes with gold or silver icons, a cross, sandals and a Byzantine miter. Bishops wear a Latin miter, omophorion, panagia, ring, staff and cross. The Catholicos, as well as the patriarchs, wear a club. Everyday attire outside the temple consists of a black cassock and a cone-shaped hood on the head, over which unmarried clerics, vardapets and bishops put on a cone-shaped basting.

The sacred vessels are the same as those of all the Eastern Churches.

• church calendar

In Armenia, the chronology began with Hayk, the grandson of Japheth (2492 BC), who, before the legend, was the ancestor of the Armenians. Catholicos Nerses II, abolished the introduced Greek calendar, adopted at the Dvina Cathedral (July 11, 552) his calendar, which began the chronology precisely from the moment of this council. Later introduced Julian calendar, replaced in 1892 by the Gregorian, which in 1912 was adopted by the entire Armenian Church. The church year, like that of the Chaldeans, begins on December 1. Since the 5th century, a weekly cycle of worship has been introduced. Lord's holidays are mobile and motionless. Passover and every holiday depending on it are among the mobile ones. Easter is determined on the basis of the decrees of the Ecumenical Council. The Easter circle includes 24 Sundays, that is, ten before Easter and fourteen after it, ending with the Transfiguration, which is celebrated on the seventh Sunday after Pentecost. The most ancient feast of the Epiphany, which is connected with the Nativity of Christ (January 6), belongs to the fixed holidays. These two holidays were celebrated separately in the 5th century, but after the Dvina Cathedral (525) they are celebrated together. The Circumcision of Christ is celebrated on January 13th, and the Meeting of Christ is celebrated on February 14th.

The main feasts of the Theotokos are as follows: Conception of the Virgin Mary (December 9), Nativity of the Virgin (September 8), Entry into the Temple Holy Mother of God(November 21), the Annunciation (April 7) and the Dormition of the Mother of God (August 15).

In addition to the Exaltation of the Holy and Life-Giving Cross (September 14), as a special national-church celebration, the Finding of the Holy Cross is celebrated, the particles of which, brought from Jerusalem by the Armenian saint Khripsinia and hidden on Mount Varak just before her martyrdom, along with other fifteen virgins, were, according to Armenian tradition, discovered in 652 by the monk Totius and laid in the Etchmiadzin monastery as a shrine for the entire Armenian Church and the Armenian people.

An outstanding place among the saints of the Armenian Church is occupied by St. Gregory, the Enlightener of the Armenians, whose memory is celebrated several times. The main feast takes place the day after the Dormition of the Mother of God. In addition, the event of the appearance of a rainbow to Noah after the flood is celebrated.

If major holidays fall on ordinary days, they are moved to Sunday for greater solemnity.

Of the 365 days in a year, about 277 are days of fasting. Weekly fasts are Wednesday and Friday, the Dvinsky Cathedral (525) established to observe one week of fasting in each month. There is a fast before Epiphany, before Easter (48 days), before the Dormition (5 days). Posts are strict, medium and soft.

Armenian church art influenced the development of Western art and was the forerunner of all church architectural designs. The square or rectangular parallelepiped of Armenian churches with a cone-shaped drum-roof is the starting point of all later styles, from Byzantine to Gothic and Baroque. For example, the cathedral in Ani is a model for the Gothic church of the Middle Ages, while the church of St. Chrypsimia in Vagharshapat is for the later Baroque style. The correct pyramidal vault rests on semicircles of an ancient pattern (dated to the 10th and 11th centuries). The Armenian Catholic Church of the Annunciation and the Gregorian Church in Cairo are successful examples of the Armenian architectural type.

The Armenian-Byzantine style of the 8th century was obviously the product of a fusion of Armenian, Byzantine, Persian and Arabic architecture. Inside the temple is divided into a narthex, main temple, ending to the east with a salt, on which there is a choir and an episcopal chair, and a holy altar, which is four steps higher than the salt; there is no iconostasis in front of it, but there is a curtain, sometimes decorated with icons. The Holy See is located on the site of the Holy Gates. On the left side of the altar there is an altar for the proskomedia.

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 the 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. IN 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.)

The Armenian Apostolic Church is one of the oldest in the world. It was created in the second or third century AD. For example, Euseus of Caesarea (260-339) mentions the war between the Roman emperor Maximinus and Armenia, unleashed precisely on religious grounds.

Armenian Church in antiquity and today

In the seventh century AD, a rather large Armenian community lived in Palestine. It existed in this period of time in Greece. 70 monasteries of this state were owned by Armenians. In the Holy Land in Jerusalem, the Armenian Patriarchate was founded a little later - in the 12th century. Currently, more than 3,000 Armenians live in this city. The community owns many churches.

How Christianity appeared in Armenia

It is believed that Christianity was brought to Armenia by two apostles - Thaddeus and Bartholomew. Apparently, this is where the name of the church came from - Apostolic. This is the traditional version, documented, however, not confirmed. Scientists know for certain only that Armenia became Christian during the time of King Tiridates in 314 AD. e. After the radical religious reform carried out by him, all the pagan temples in the country were converted into Armenian churches.

Contemporary churches owned by Armenians in Jerusalem

The most famous places of worship in Jerusalem are:

• Church of St. James. Located in the old city, on the territory of the Armenian quarter. In the 6th century, a small church was built on this site. It was erected in honor of one of the significant events of Christianity. It was on this spot that the Apostle James was killed by the people of Herod Antipas in 44 AD. found its way into the New Testament. In the 12th century on the spot old church a new one was built. It exists to this day. There is a small door in the western part of the building. She leads to the room in which the monks still keep the head of Jacob.
• Church of the Angels. It is also located in the Armenian quarter, in its very depths. This is one of the oldest churches in Jerusalem. It was built on the spot where the house of the High Priest Anna once stood. According to the New Testament, it was to him that Christ was brought before being interrogated by Caiaphas. In the courtyard of the church, an olive tree is still preserved, which believers consider a "living witness" of those events.

Of course, there are Armenian churches in other countries of the world - in India, Iran, Venezuela, Israel, etc.

History of the Armenian Church in Russia

In Russia, the first Christian Armenian diocese was formed in 1717. Its center was located in Astrakhan. This was facilitated by the friendly relations that developed between Russia and Armenia at that time. This diocese included all the then existing Christian Armenian churches of the country. Its first leader was Archbishop Galatatsi.

Actually, the Armenian Apostolic Church was established in Russia several decades later, during the reign of Catherine II - in 1773. Catholicos Simeon the First Yerevantsi became its founder.

In 1809, the Armenian diocese of Bessarabia was founded by decree of Emperor Alexander the First. It was this one that controlled the territories conquered from the Turks in the Balkan War. The city of Iasi became the center of the new diocese. After, according to the Bucharest peace treaty, Iasi was outside the Russian Empire, it was moved to Chisinau. In 1830, he separated Moscow, St. Petersburg, Novorossiysk and Bessarabian churches from Astrakhan, forming another Armenian diocese.

By 1842, 36 parish, cathedral and cemetery churches had already been built and opened in Russia. Most of them belonged to the Astrakhan diocese (23). In 1895, its center was moved to the city of New Nakhichevan. By the end of the 19th century, the Central Asian Armenian communities were also united. As a result, two more dioceses were formed - Baku and Turkestan. At the same time, the city of Armavir became the center of the Astrakhan diocese.

Armenian Church in Russia after the Revolution

After the revolution of the seventeenth year, Bessarabia was ceded to the Romanian kingdom. The Armenian churches that existed here became part of the diocese of this state. At the same time, changes were made to the very structure of the church. All communities were united in just two eparchies - Nakhichevan and North Caucasus. The center of the first was located in Rostov-on-Don, the second - in Armavir.

Most of the churches that belonged to the Armenian Apostolic Church, of course, were closed and destroyed. This state of affairs continued until the middle of the twentieth century. One of major events for Armenian Christians was the opening in 1956 in Moscow of the only remaining Armenian church in the city. It was a small church of the Holy Resurrection, built in the 18th century. It was she who became the center of the Armenian Moscow parish.

AAC in the late 20th - early 21st century

In 1966, Catholicos Vazgen I created the Novo-Nakhichevan and Russian eparchies. At the same time, the center of the Armenian Apostolic Church is transferred to Moscow. By the 90s of the last century, the Armenians already had 7 churches operating in large Russian cities - Moscow, Leningrad, Armavir, Rostov-on-Don, etc. Today, many church communities of the former republics of the USSR are subordinate to the Russian diocese. It is worth adding that most modern Armenian churches are real architectural and historical monuments.

Hripsime Church in Yalta

The Yalta Armenian Church was built at the beginning of the 20th century. It is an architecturally interesting building. This compact, monolithic-looking structure is very similar to the ancient temple of Hripsime in Etchmiadzin. This is one of the most interesting sights that Yalta can boast of. Hripsime Armenian Church is a truly impressive building.

The southern facade is equipped with a false entrance, framed by a wide arched niche. A long staircase leads to it, as the temple is located on a mountainside. The building is crowned with a solid hexagonal tent. At the end of the ascent, another staircase is equipped, leading this time to the real entrance, located on the western facade. The interior is also interesting from the inside, painted, and the iconostasis is finished with marble and inlaid. This stone is generally traditional for the interior of buildings such as Armenian churches.

St. Petersburg Church of St. Catherine

Of course, there are churches belonging to this trend of Christianity in other cities of Russia. There are also in Moscow, and in St. Petersburg, and in some other settlements. Of course, both capitals can boast the most majestic buildings. For example, a very interesting building in terms of historical and spiritual value is the building built in 1770-1772. Armenian Church on Nevsky Prospekt in St. Petersburg. This is a very elegant, light building in the style of early Russian classicism. Against the backdrop of strict St. Petersburg buildings, this temple looks unusually elegant and festive.

Of course, the Armenian church on Nevsky Prospekt looks very majestic. However, in height it is inferior to the Moscow church on Trifonovskaya Street (58 m). The interior of the St. Petersburg old church is also truly magnificent. The walls are decorated with stucco cornices, and partly lined with colored marble. The same stone is used for finishing the floor and columns.

Armenian Church in Krasnodar

Not so long ago - in 2010 - a new Armenian church of St. Sahak and Mesrop was built and consecrated in Krasnodar. The building is designed in a traditional style and is made of pink tuff. Quite large, long arched windows and hexagonal domes give it a majestic appearance.

The style of execution of this building is reminiscent of the one that Yalta can boast of. The Armenian Church of Hripsime, however, is somewhat lower and more monumental. However, the general style is clearly visible.

What branch of Christianity does the Armenian Church belong to?

In the West, all Eastern churches, including the Armenian Apostolic Church, are considered orthodox. This word is translated into Russian as "Orthodox". However, the understanding of these two names in the West and in our country is somewhat different. Quite a bit falls under this definition. a large number of offshoots of Christianity. And although according to Western theological canons, the Armenian Church is considered Orthodox, in fact, its teachings differ from Russian Orthodoxy in many ways. As for the ROC, at the level of the ordinary priesthood, the attitude towards the representatives of the AAC as monophysite heretics prevails. The existence of two branches of the Orthodox Church is officially recognized - the Eastern and the Byzantine-Slavic.

Perhaps this is also why the believing Christian Armenians in most cases do not consider themselves either Orthodox or Catholic. A believer of this nationality with equal success can go to pray both in a Catholic and in an Orthodox church. Moreover, the Armenian churches in the world are actually not very numerous. For example, representatives of this nationality living in Russia willingly baptize children in Russian Orthodox churches.

Differences between the Orthodox traditions of the AAC and the ROC

For comparison with Russian Orthodox traditions, let us describe the rite of baptism adopted in the Armenian Church. There are not so many differences, but still they are.

Many Russian Orthodox who first came to an Armenian church are surprised that candles are placed here not on special pedestals in small candlesticks, but in an ordinary box of sand. However, they are not for sale, but simply lie side by side. However, many Armenians, having taken a candle, leave money for it of their own free will. The believers themselves clean up the cinders.

In some Armenian churches, children are not immersed in the font during baptism. Just take water from a large bowl and wash. Baptism in the Armenian Church has another interesting feature. The priest, uttering a prayer, speaks in a singsong voice. Due to the good acoustics of Armenian churches, it sounds impressive. Baptismal crosses also differ from Russians. Usually they are very beautifully decorated with vines. Crosses are hung on the narot (red and white threads woven together). Armenians are baptized - unlike Russians - from left to right. Otherwise, the rite of introducing the baby to the faith is similar to the Russian Orthodox.

Structure of the modern Armenian Apostolic Church

The highest authority in the AC is the Church-National Council. At the moment, it includes 2 Patriarchs, 10 archbishops, 4 bishops and 5 secular people. The AAC includes two independent Catholicosates - Cilicia and Etchmiadzin, as well as two Patriarchates - Constantinople and Jerusalem. The Supreme Patriarch (currently head of the Armenian Church Garegin II) is considered his representative and oversees the observance of church rules. Questions of laws and canons are within the competence of the Council.

The Importance of the Armenian Church in the World

Historically, the formation of the Armenian Apostolic Church took place not only against the background of oppression by the heterodox pagan and Muslim authorities, but also under the pressure of other, more powerful Christian Churches. However, despite this, she managed to maintain her uniqueness and originality of many rituals. The Armenian Church is Orthodox, but it is not for nothing that the term “Apostolic” has been preserved in its name. This definition is considered common to all Churches that do not identify themselves with any of the leading directions of Christianity.

Moreover, there were times in the history of the Armenian Church when many of its authoritative figures considered the See of Rome to be superior. The attraction of the Armenian Church to Catholicism stopped only in the 18th century, after the Pope created his own, separate branch - the Armenian Catholic Church. This step was the beginning of some cooling of relations between these two branches of Christianity. In certain periods of history, there was an inclination of the figures of the Armenian Church towards Byzantine Orthodoxy. It did not assimilate with other directions only due to the fact that both Catholics and Orthodox to some extent always considered it "heretical". So the fact that this Church has been preserved practically in its original form can be considered to some extent God's providence.

The Armenian Church in Moscow and Yalta, as well as other similar places of worship are indeed real architectural and historical monuments. And the very ritualism of this direction of Christianity is original and unique. Agree that the combination of high "Catholic" headdresses and Byzantine brightness of ritual clothing cannot but impress.

The Armenian Church (you can see a photo of the temples belonging to it on this page) was founded in 314. The division of Christianity into two main branches occurred in 1054. Even appearance Armenian priests recalls that once it was one. And, of course, it will be very good if the Armenian Apostolic Church retains its uniqueness in the future.