Alen Simonian Will Not Attend Divine Liturgy Conducted by Fr. Aram in Hovhannisyan

The President of the National Assembly, Alen Simonian, will not be attending the Divine Liturgy conducted by Stepan Asatryan at Hovhannisyan. "I don’t know, I won’t be participating, I have matters to attend to," Simonian told reporters.

Simonian considers the Mother See of Holy Echmiadzin to be an illegitimate institution. He called on the Catholicos to resign. "Let him go, he will leave anyway," the Speaker of the National Assembly added.

It should be noted that on October 21, Fr. Aram Asatryan was declared defrocked by the Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, His Holiness Garegin II. The defrocked cleric will now be classified among the laity, under the name of Stepan Asatryan.

He is required to cease his activities in Hovhannisyan; however, Stepan Asatryan has decided to conduct the Divine Liturgy there this Sunday. This move has energized members of the ruling party, with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announcing that he will participate in the liturgy conducted by Asatryan this coming Sunday.