Cilician Catholicos Appeals for Aid to Syria

Catholicos Aram (Keshishian) of the Armenian Orthodox Church of Cilicia, which cares for the Armenian Diaspora in Syria, has appealed to humanitarian organizations to expedite the provision of aid to the country's population, which is suffering as conflict between the Syrian government and rebel movements both claims lives and destroys crops. More here.

Catholicos Aram Blesses Church Foundation Stone in Las Vegas

As part of his ongoing pastoral visit to the western United States Catholicos Aram I (Keshishian) of the Armenian Orthodox Church of Cilicia has participated in the blessing of the foundation stone of the new church of the Armenian Orthodox parish in Las Vegas, Nevada. The service was concelebrated by Archbishop Moushegh (Mardirossian) of the Western American Prelacy of the Church of Cilicia. More here.

Catholicos Aram Visits USA, Leads Ecumenical Service in Los Angeles Area

Catholicos Aram I (Keshishian) of the Armenian Orthodox Church of Cilicia has begun a pastoral visit to the western United States, meeting with clergy and representatives of the various Orthodox churches in the region and leading a prayer service for peace in Egypt and the Middle East with representatives of the Antiochian, Armenian, Coptic, and Syriac Orthodox Churches as well as Evangelical Protestant and Roman Catholic churches at Sts. Mary and Athanasius' Church in the Los Angeles area. More here.

Cilicia Catholicos to Visit Western USA

Catholicos Aram I (Keshishian) of the Armenian Orthodox Church of Cilicia will shortly begin a pastoral visit to the Armenian Orthodox parishes under his jurisdiction in the western United States. More here.

Festal Services with Armenian Orthodox Catholicos to be Broadcasted Live

On this year's commemoration of the Dormition and Assumption of the Mother of God according to the Armenian calendar (13 August) the festal Divine Liturgy celebrated by Catholicos Aram I (Keshishian) of the Armenian Orthodox Church of Cilicia will be broadcasted live on television. More details on the upcoming broadcast can be found here.

Coptic, Syriac, and Armenian Orthodox Meet in Cairo to Discuss Political, Ecumenical Issues

The standing committee of the Oriental Orthodox Churches in the Middle East, comprised of representatives of the Coptic and Syriac Orthodox Churches and the Armenian Orthodox Church of Cilicia, has met in Cairo, Egypt, to discuss their relations and their shared positions in Middle Eastern and global ecumenical dialogues. More (in Arabic) here and here.

Catholicos Aram Welcomes Syrian President's Address

Catholicos Aram I (Keshishian) of the Armenian Orthodox Church of Cilicia has indirectly stated his support for the recent statement of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, also expressing his hope that political stability would return to Syria. More here.

Catholicos Aram Commemorates Victims of Battle of Sardarabad

On the last Sunday in May, following the Divine Liturgy, Catholicos Aram I (Keshishian) of the Armenian Orthodox Church of Cilicia celebrated a memorial for all the soldiers who died fighting to establish the first Republic of Armenia in the 1918 Battle of Sardarabad. More here.

Catholicos Aram Meets with Emir of Kuwait

As part of his ongoing pastoral visit to Kuwait Catholicos Aram I (Keshishian) of Sis has met with the Emir of Kuwait, Sabah Jabr al-Sabah, and his prime minister. During the meeting Catholicos Aram asked that Emir Sabah allow Kuwaiti Christians to own land so that the Armenian Orthodox parish in Kuwait City could build its own church. More here.

Catholicos Aram Visits Kuwait

Catholicos Aram I (Keshishian) of the Armenian Orthodox Church of Cilicia has begun a visit to Kuwait to visit the Armenian Orthodox community there and participate in the the 50th anniversary celebrations of Kuwait City's Armenian school. More here.

Muslim-Christian Summit in Lebanon

Patriarchs Ignatios IV (Hazim) and Ignatios Zakka I (Iwas) of Antioch, Catholicos Aram I (Keshishian) of Sis, and other hierarchs of the Antiochian and Syriac Orthodox Churches have participated in a Christian-Muslim conference at the patriarchate of the Maronite Catholic Church in Bkerke, Lebanon, to discuss the growing divisions in Lebanese society. More here.

Armenian Genocide Commemorated in Antelias

Thousands gathered in Antelias, Lebanon, on Pascha to celebrate the Lord's Resurrection and commemorate the one and a half million victims of the Armenian Genocide, of whom many of the members of the Armenian Diaspora in the Levant are descendants. The memorial service for the martyrs was served by Catholicos Aram I (Keshishian) of Cilicia. More here.

Muted Holy Week, Pascha Celebrations in Syria

This year's Holy Week and Paschal commemorations were muted in Syria due to the ongoing political unrest in the country, which opposes the dictatorship of President Bashar al-Assad, but also threatens the security of the country's religious minorities, among them large numbers of Antiochian, Armenian, and Syriac Orthodox Christians. Public processions and celebrations were voluntarily canceled by the leaders of the Orthodox Churches in Syria to avoid worsening the unrest. More here.

Photo of the Day: Catholicos Aram Washing the Feet on Holy Thursday

Catholicos Aram I (Keshishian) of Cilicia washing the feet of a seminarian in Antelias, Lebanon, as part of this past Holy Thursday's services. More here.

Photo of the Day: St. Gregory's Day in Antelias

Pictured is Catholicos Aram I (Keshishian) of Sis and Cilicia on this past Saturday's feast of the imprisonment of St. Gregory the Illuminator. He is pictured blessing the assembled faithful with the hand of St. Gregory.

Maronite Catholic Patriarch Meets with Armenian Orthodox Catholicos in Lebanon

The new primate of the Maronite Catholic Church, Lebanon's largest Christian religious organization, has visited the seat of the catholicate of the Armenian Orthodox Church of Cilicia in Antelias, Lebanon. More here.

Armenian Secretly Executed in Iran

Iran secretly executed five Iranians, among them an Armenian Orthodox man and his Jewish wife, this past month in Iran. Although the government later confirmed the news of the executions it has refused to turn the executed over to their families for burial. More here.

Supreme Spiritual Council of the Echmiadzin Catholicate Meets

The Supreme Spiritual Council of the Armenian Orthodox Church of Echmiadzin met this past week, with hierarchs from Armenia and throughout the world taking part under the leadership of Catholicos-Patriarch Karekin II (Nersessian) of All the Armenians. In addition to the internal affairs of the Catholicate the Council also discussed relations between the Catholicate of Echmiadzin and the Catholicate of Cilicia, ongoing issues in the life of the Armenian Orthodox Church of Constantinople (as well as the upcoming 550th anniversary of its foundation), and the upcoming visit of Catholicos Karekin to Georgia this June. More here.

Catholicos Aram Receives Mount Lebanon Metropolitan

Catholicos Aram I (Keshishian) of Sis of the Armenian Orthodox Church received Metropolitan Mor Theophilos (Saliba) of Mount Lebanon of the Syriac Orthodox Church today to discuss the situation of the Malankara Orthodox Church, which has been divided by a schism between 'autocephalists' and 'autonomists' on and off for nearly a century. More here.

Armenian Orthodox Churches Discuss Baptismal Service

The liturgical committee of the Armenian Orthodox Churches of Echmiadzin and Cilicia have met to discuss the various forms of the mystery of baptism currently in use in the Armenian Rite and the development of a single service for use throughout the Armenian Orthodox Church worldwide. More here.