A delegation from the Armenian Church took part in an international conference of clergy and scholars, which explored matters of governance and decision-making among the ancient traditional churches. The series of meetings took place in Rome through the month of November, under the title “Listening to the East: Synodality in the Life and Mission of the Eastern Churches.”
Members of the Armenian Church delegation delivered talks on November 23-26, during the sessions dedication to the Oriental Orthodox family of churches. They attended with the blessing and encouragement of His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians.
The conference was part of an ongoing effort of the Roman Catholic Church under Pope Francis to understand the historic administrative experiences of sister churches, and consider how these might inform future practices of the Church of Rome. As an ecclesiastical term, synod (from the Greek) refers to “journeying together” as a people of God; “synodality,” roughly speaking, describes the extent to which institutional decisions are made collaboratively, involving a peer group of church leaders, along with contributions from a broader spectrum of the people.
Questions addressed in the conference sessions included: Which church decisions are made by the assembly of bishops? How does decision-making bind the respective church patriarchs? How are non-clerics, including men and women of the laity, involved in the process? And, Are perspectives from young people solicited and given consideration?
Contributing to a Dialogue
The “Listening to the East” conference, organized by the Catholic “Pro Oriente” foundation and its Institute of Ecumenical Studies, took place at the Vatican’s St. Thomas Aquinas Pontifical University. Clergy, theologians, and lay delegates from the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Oriental Orthodox churches contributed to the dialogue.
Representing the Armenian Church were Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, the Pontifical Legate of Western Europe; Bishop Armash Nalbandyan, Primate of Damascus; Fr. Garegin Hambardzumyan, director of the preaching center at the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin; Diana Tsaghikyan, doctoral student in Theology; and Ani Ghazaryan-Drisi, who serves on the Faith and Order commission of the World Council of Churches.
The conference sessions were recorded, and a playlist of panel discussions can be found here.
Click the following link to watch Archbishop Barsamian’s keynote speech, and to watch a panel involving presentations on the Armenian Church (pictured above).