His Holiness Karekin II Receives Canadian Bishops
29.08.2005
On August 26, His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, received the delegation of Canadian Church leaders visiting Armenia on the occasion of the 1600th Anniversary of the Creation of the Armenian Alphabet. They were accompanied by His Grace Bishop Yeznik Petrosian, Director of the Department of Inter-Church Relations, and His Grace Bishop Bagrat Galstanian, Primate of the Armenian Diocese of Canada.
His Holiness welcomed the guests to the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin and introduced the high-ranking leaders of the prominent Churches in Canada to the history and mission of the Armenian Church. The Pontiff of All Armenians stated, "Your presence here, in the spiritual center of all Armenians, strengthens and assists our Church on the path of achieving our sacred mission. Your unprecedented visit to Armenia is the living testimony of the warm and close relations that exist between our sister Churches, not only on the level of spiritual leaders and heads of churches, but also within and throughout our diocesan and parochial structures. Your visit is also a wonderful expression of the positive ties between Armenia and Canada that have developed since our independence nearly fifteen years ago. It is joyful for us that the fraternal solidarity, cooperation and Christian love are prevalent throughout all of our diasporan communities, wherever Armenians have settled and created." The Catholicos further presented the guests with a brief overview of the social, educational and spiritual work being done by the Church in various spheres of life, and expressed his appreciation to Bishop Bagrat for his devoted and fruitful service to the Church and his faithful flock.
Additionally, the Catholicos of All Armenians spoke of the recognition and condemnation of the Armenian Genocide by the Canadian parliament in 2004, and expressed his high appreciation to the Church leaders for their support and solidarity in the political process, as well as for their personal participation and prayers offered during the 90th Anniversary Commemoration events in Canada earlier this year.
His Eminence Archbishop Andrew Hutchison, Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada; His Eminence Archbishop Sotirios, Greek Orthodox Metropolitan of Canada; His Excellency Archbishop Brendan O'Brien, President for the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops and Prof. Dr. Richard Schneider, President of the Canadian Council of Churches each in turn thanked His Holiness for the invitation to visit Armenia on a pilgrimage and for the warm reception and hospitality they have been receiving. In the course of the meeting, the participants also spoke of the challenges facing the Christian Churches in the 21st century and discussed possible spheres of further cooperation and unification of efforts in the future.
Very Rev. Fr. Sasoon Zumrookhdian, Vicar of the Diocese of Gougark, also attended the meeting.
In the afternoon, following their meeting with His Holiness, the Canadian Church leaders visited the Tsitsernakaberd Memorial to the Armenian Genocide in Yerevan, where they laid a wreath dedicated to the solemn memory of the 1.5 million victims of the first genocide of the 20th century.
