RELIGION

Priest Vagram MELIKIAN, Egine MKRTCHIAN

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Priest Vagram Melikian, Director, Information Center of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin (Erevan, Armenia)

Egine Mkrtchian, Director, Press Center of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin (Erevan, Armenia)

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Today there are 56 officially registered religious organizations in Armenia and about 10 unregistered ones, which is a lot for a country with a population of slightly over 3 million. This figure looks even more impressive in a country which adopted Christianity 1,700 years ago. What is more, the Armenian Apostolic Church with its long history and deep roots has had a significant influence on the Armenians’ psychology, culture, and traditions.

In this historical context, deviations from the national church are largely due to social and political factors. First, the atheism imposed on the people in Soviet times has generated a post-Soviet upsurge of interest in religion, which occurred at the same time as an upsurge in the republic’s national life. This attracted religious organizations of all hues to Armenia, while the social and economic difficulties caused by the 1988 earthquake and the first years of independence, coupled with the appalling poverty of the local people, supplied all sorts of religious organizations with a pretext for invading the country under the guise of charities. Humanitarian aid attracted people to the new religious trends. As distinct from the Armenian Church which, after decades of persecution, needed new clergymen, these religions were past masters of active, aggressive or, at times, illegal proselytizing.

The 1991 Law on Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organizations, which said in part: “The Republic of Armenia ensures freedom of conscience and religious beliefs of……………..

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