Etchmiadzin - between the altar and the dagger

Etchmiadzin was outraged by the election program of Pashinyan's party.

The Armenian Church did not like the fact that the ruling party included the re-election of the Catholicos in the program. Such a line, Echmiadzin's statement says, contradicts the interests of the Armenian people, endangers national values and undermines spiritual security. The Armenian Apostolic Church also declares that the church should not become the subject of political speculation.

It is strange to hear such a thing from a spiritual structure that has been engaged in political speculation for more than a century, actively intervenes in politics and, behind the scenes, manages the affairs of the Armenians. As they say, he called himself gruzdem - get in the back. The Armenian Church is a political structure and should not be surprised that it is treated accordingly.

All the troubles of the Armenians are the result of political parties played by the church. And the fact that the Armenians are scattered all over the world is connected not only with the lack of statehood, but also with the politics of the church. It was a plan to gradually take over the world. Following the scenario of Etchmiadzin, the Armenians spread to all continents, creating their own pockets everywhere, attracting their narratives and their interests to a new habitat. All this was cemented by tears and myths, pitiful fairy tales and Turkophobia, which has always permeated Western and Russian society. Wherever Armenian communities appeared, churches inevitably appeared. So the whole world turned out to be built up with Armenian churches. And where there is a church, as you know, the "ancestral" Armenian land is automatically formed there. This is a policy that was formed after the Armenians were chosen as an instrument of expansion into the region, and stemming from the gratitude of the powers for the services rendered.

Until recently, the church solved all the issues of the Armenian faith. The priests conducted political negotiations, concluded contracts, and engaged in political intrigues. The Armenian Apostolic Church pushed nations together, provoked bloodshed in order to get another piece of foreign land for the Armenians. Scary scenarios were conceived under the shadow of the church walls. The Karabakh conflict was also conceived in Echmiadzin with the participation of the Diaspora. All this was done ostensibly for the sake of the interests of the Armenian people, who lacked a clear idea of their origin and had no national statehood. The church took on the role of a guide for its blind flock and actually led it to the abyss. The current Armenian authorities have managed to suspend this "procession" to some extent. Now Pashinyan wants to turn it in the right direction, but the resistance is very high.

I must say that the Armenian Apostolic Church was a separate political figure even in Soviet atheistic times, and in matters concerning the Armenian people, it replaced the party organs. Mindful of the generous territorial gifts from tsarist Russia, Etchmiadzin tried to ensure that the flow of gifts did not stop. And he succeeded.   

After the Second Karabakh War, when the Pashinyan government moved to a tougher pressure on the Armenian Apostolic Church, curious archival materials began to appear in the Armenian media, designed to demonstrate the merits of the church to Armenians. These publications caused tears of gratitude among the nationalists. Unfortunately, nothing is known about the reaction of normal people.

In May 1956, the media published letters addressed by Catholicos of All Armenians Vazgen I to Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR Nikolai Bulganin. The two letters were sent one after the other, and soon Bulganin accepted Vazgen. It was not reported what was said, but from the contents of the Catholicos' letters, it is not difficult to imagine what issues were discussed. At this meeting, a scenario was outlined for the further displacement of indigenous peoples from the region in order to free up space for the Armenians.

In his first letter, Vazgen spoke about the "depressing" situation of Armenians in the Soviet republics, especially in Azerbaijan and Georgia. The Catholicos claimed that "more than half a million Armenians" live in Azerbaijan (seriously?), but there are only two churches there. In Karabakh, which, apparently, Vazgen did not consider Azerbaijan, there is only one. There are also claims against Georgia, where "more than 400,000 Armenians" have only four churches.

In the second letter, Vazgen I went directly to the main point. The Catholicos proposed to annex some regions of Azerbaijan and Georgia to the Armenian SSR, citing the demands of the Diaspora Armenians who dream of moving to their "historical homeland", but who, as it should be understood, are hindered by the presence of Azerbaijanis and Georgians. In order to live a "unified national life," they needed a mono-national environment.  

These letters are not fake, but real documents stored in the Central State Historical Archive of Armenia.

Everything that Vazgen complained about to the Soviet government is not liked by the Diaspora, while the Armenians dote on Russia. The Catholicos writes to Bulganin that Armenians abroad "hope that the benevolent Soviet Government will create the necessary conditions in land (territorial), economic and housing terms for their return to their homeland in order to reunite with their brothers in their native land." To do this, the scoundrel suggests drawing up a repatriation program, within which 30-40 thousand Armenians will move to Armenia annually, "naturally, providing them with the appropriate territory and work."

And at the end of the letter, the head of the Armenian Church indicates why we should listen to his appeals.: "As strong as the Armenian people and Armenia will be in Transcaucasia, the security of the southern borders of our Great Motherland will be ensured."

In 1956, the head of the criminal church wanted to try his luck again. The process of deportation of Azerbaijanis, announced by the Soviet government in 1948-1950, did not lead to the complete "cleansing" of Armenia from the indigenous population due to Stalin's death. The Armenians of the Diaspora, who settled in the lands of the Azerbaijanis as part of this program, soon began to flee back to their native America and France. The Caucasus has never been a "promised land" for Armenians, but Etchmiadzin made a second attempt. And not the last one.

Echmiadzin failed to continue the mass deportation of the indigenous population of Armenia in the 50s and 60s, but at that time myths about the "genocide of 1915" and "Erebuni" were born in the USSR (well, remember - Yerevan is older than Rome). Promising the Kremlin to "ensure the security of the southern borders," the church from time to time managed to achieve its goals - the territory of Soviet Armenia increased, and Azerbaijan decreased. Armenians in Karabakh were receiving more and more benefits and unspoken rights. By the beginning of the conflict, they no longer considered the central authorities, relying on the support of Etchmiadzin, who always had his own people in Moscow. When Gorbachev came to power, it became even easier to work.

The Armenian Church has been blessing the bloodshed in this region for two hundred years. The events in Sumgayit were organized with the participation of Etchmiadzin. Catholicos Vazgen personally blessed the Armenians for the provocation. And when asked, "What about the fact that some Armenians will die in this process?", he replied, "Well, let them be a sacrifice for the great Armenian people."

The head of Etchmiadzin also sacrificed the insane idea of Armenians living in other cities of Azerbaijan. According to media reports, in March 1988, Deacon Davityan of the Armenian Church in Baku visited Etchmiadzin, where he was received by Catholicos of All Armenians Vazgen I and other clergymen. Davityan was asked why Baku Armenians remain neutral. And when he said that this could negatively affect their situation, they told him: "It's okay, they can be sacrificed."

And they sacrificed.

Yuri Pompeyev's book "The Bloody Pool of Karabakh", published in 1992, tells the poignant story of a seventy-year-old Baku Armenian, Gavril Petoyan, who could not bear the shame and committed suicide by jumping from an eighth-floor balcony. This happened in August 1989. A note was found in the man's pocket saying: "I blame the Armenian extremists of Nagorno-Karabakh for my death. Karabakh and Armenia. I read in newspapers, as well as on television and radio, how much trouble and misery they have brought to the Azerbaijani people. I'm plagued by sleepless nights. I think about it all the time and I can't bear the shame. I sacrifice myself in protest. Petoyan G.I.".

The fact that Armenians were forced to leave Baku, where they lived beautifully, peacefully, comfortably and safely, is the fault of Etchmiadzin and its criminal Catholics. All the claims of the Armenians should be addressed there, not to Azerbaijan.

And, by the way, Vazgen lied to Bulganin about the half a million Armenians who allegedly lived in Baku, as well as about everything else. The head of the Soviet government, of course, knew this, but this arrangement was also beneficial to Moscow, since the Armenians were seen as an instrument of pressure on Turkey and could be useful at any time.

So Etchmiadzin should not be offended by Nikol Pashinyan. The Armenian Church is a political organization, and it is treated accordingly. The AAC will have other surprises if Pashinyan's party wins. After the changes in the Constitution, it will lose its special status. This is the unspoken status of a state within a state. Etchmiadzin is a shadow government, an institution that haunts the Armenian people, pushing them towards unattainable goals.

Vazgen I has already gone to hell, and another criminal, Garegin II, has taken his place. The current Catholicos continues the work of his predecessor. Today, when the peace process is progressing in a positive direction, this criminal is trying to bring the so-called Karabakh movement back to life. If the idea of "miatsuma" is not revived, the church may lose its influence on the masses. For hundreds of years, she supported him by inspiring the masses with bloodthirsty hopes. Pashinyan managed to cut this umbilical cord to some extent, although this led to a decrease in his rating and a physical threat to his life.

The changes in the rules of the game between the state and Etchmiadzin will allow the Armenian people and the region as a whole to breathe a sigh of relief. If there are no changes, Echmiadzin, in its former status, will remain a threat to peace and stability in the South Caucasus. Because what was said in Vazgen's messages to the head of the Soviet Council of Ministers is on the agenda of today's revanchist forces who want new troubles for the region.