Father Sebeos Khalachyan Refuses to Conduct Baptism Under the Sponsorship of CP Member Narek Grigoryan

Father Sebeos Khalachyan, the spiritual leader of the Armenian Diocese of Russia and New Nakhichevan, as well as the Nizhny Novgorod community, has refused to conduct a baptism under the sponsorship of Narek Grigoryan, a member of the ruling Civil Contract party. As a result, they were forced to choose another sponsor for the baptism to take place.

"The spiritual guidance of a minor is the responsibility of their godparent. That is the role of a godparent, to be a spiritual parent, a spiritual educator, a spiritual example, and a guardian of the soul's salvation. I do not know how many of the godparents we know come to church with this thought in mind. For the sake of truth, it should be noted that often we do not examine their true Christian beliefs, humbly thinking that we are not the ones to judge or scrutinize," said Father Sebeos Khalachyan after the incident.

“It is time we have a standard by which we decide if a particular individual, no matter how much they claim to be a child of the Armenian Church, truly fits that description, especially those who are breaking down our house... Regardless of the testimony they provide that they are Christians, it must be clarified,” said Father Serob.

“I prohibited him from being a godparent. I suggested lovingly to baptize that child, to confer holy chrismation, to perform the forty-day rites, but on one condition: the godparent must be at least a respectable person filled with reverence, who acknowledges the apostolic order of the Armenian Apostolic Church, who admits that I have the authority passed down from the apostles to baptize, to bless, to share communion, and so on. Certainly, an incident occurred, inappropriate words were uttered, and that representative repeatedly insisted, saying ‘May His Holiness the Catholicos forgive me,’ while invoking the name of the Catholicos, promising that he would throw the Catholicos out by the neck. Did I have the right to allow him to be a godparent? Did I have the right to allow such a disrespectful individual to bear the honor that a godparent holds in our church? Let them answer me,” Father Sebeos clarified.