The court has ruled that the lawsuits seeking to invalidate the decisions of the Catholicos of All Armenians to defrock former clergymen Stepan Asatryan (formerly Father Aram Asatryan) and Aramayis Takhmazyan (formerly Father Tadeh Takhmazyan) are not subject to examination under civil procedure.
The ruling was issued by the Armavir Regional Court of First Instance of General Jurisdiction, with Judges Sima Abovyan and Hovhannes Melkonyan presiding over the respective cases, Sputnik Armenia reports.
The court terminated proceedings in both cases and lifted the interim measures previously imposed to ensure that Asatryan could continue serving as pastor of St. Hovhannes Monastery and Takhmazyan as pastor of the church in Talin.
Stepan Asatryan and Aramayis Takhmazyan filed lawsuits against the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church in February. They sought to invalidate the decisions of Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II and secure reinstatement to their pastoral positions.
A report titled “On the crisis in the church resulting from the activities of the de facto head of the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church and several senior clergymen, and ways to resolve it” has been recently published. According to the report, its preparation stems from the Armenian government’s 2026–2031 program, and it was drafted on the instructions of the Armenian prime minister. The report was prepared by the Public Relations and Information Center, a state non-commercial organization.
As a first step, the report proposes establishing a Reform Coordination Group comprising clergy and laypeople and publishing a procedure for expanding its membership. The second proposed step is the “removal of the de facto head” of the Armenian Apostolic Church.
