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Armenian Church
The Armenian Apostolic Church, sometimes incorrectly called the Armenian Orthodox Church is the world's oldest national church and one of the original churches, having been founded in 301. The Apostolic Church separated from the then-still-united Roman Catholic/Byzantine Orthodox church in 451, after the Council of Chalcedon (see Oriental Orthodoxy). The earliest accounts of the introduction of Christianity into Armenia date from the 1st century A.D. when it was first preached by two Apostles of Jesus, St. Bartholomew and St. Thaddeus. The Armenian Apostolic Church has been around since the days of the apostles and therefore has a rightful claim to be one of the oldest denominations in Christianity. Armenia was the first country to adopt Christianity as its official religion, in 301, when St. Gregory the Illuminator converted Tiridates the Great (the King of Armenia) and members of his court. Christianity was strengthened in Armenia by the translation of the Bible into the Armenian language by the Armenian theologian, monk and scholar Saint Mesrop Mashtots. The Armenian church has been labeled monophysite because it rejected the decisions of the Council of Chalcedon, which condemned monophysitism. The Coptic Orthodox Church also separated after the Council of Chalcedon. The Armenian church does not hold to monophysite doctrine, however, but confesses the two natures of Christ. The Armenian church also rejects the juridical authority of the pope and the doctrine of purgatory but it does however pray for the dead. The Armenian Apostolic Church is headed by a Catholicos (the plural is Catholicoi). (The Armenian Apostolic Church should not be confused, however, with the Armenian Catholic Church, which is an Eastern Rite church under the authority of the Pope in Rome.) At present, the Catholicos of All Armenians is his Holiness Karekin II (sometimes spelled as Garegin), who resides in the city of Echmiadzin, west of Yerevan. A second Catholicos, His Holiness Aram I Catholicos of Cilicia, who resides in Antilyas in Lebanon, leads churches belonging to the Holy See of Cilicia. The division stems from frequent relocations of the Church headquarters under Ottoman Rule and was further reinforced during the period in which Armenia was part of the Soviet Union. However, the Catholicos of All Armenians claims theoretical sovereignty over the Catholicos of Cilicia. Liturgically, the Church has much more in common with the Latin rite, especially as it was at the time of separation, than other Orthodox rites. For example, their bishops wear vestments almost identical to those of Western bishops. They usually do not use a full iconostasis, but rather a curtain (which was also used in the West at the time of separation). Today there are large Armenian Apostolic congregations in many countries outside Armenia, including the United States, France, Russia, Lebanon, Syria, and others. Of particular importance is the Armenian Apostolic Church of Iran (see also Christians in Iran) where Armenians are the largest Christian ethnic minority.
Armenian Church
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