Bishop Gevorg Saroyan files lawsuit against Etchmiadzin

The now former Primate of the Masis Diocese in Ararat Province, Bishop Gevorg Saroyan (secular name Arman Saroyan), has filed a lawsuit against the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin.

By decree of Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II, Bishop Saroyan was dismissed from his position as Primate of the Masis Diocese on January 10. According to a statement released by the Mother See’s Information Department, the decision was based on allegations of abuse of authority, failure to fulfill pastoral duties, and acts of coercion and pressure against clergy within the diocese.

In his lawsuit, Bishop Saroyan is demanding that the Catholicos’s January 10 patriarchal decree be declared invalid and that he be reinstated as Primate of the Masis Diocese. The suit is very rare or even unprecedented in recent memory, as the church traditionally resolves disputes internally rather than in state courts. 

Bishop Saroyan is one of ten bishops who have publicly called for the Catholicos to resign. He has also held meetings with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and has regularly issued public statements critical of the Catholicos.