Pashinyan’s attacks on the Church serve to divide Armenians and benefit Azerbaijan and Turkey, writes The Christian Post
Armenia today stands at a precarious juncture, grappling with profound internal divisions that threaten its national security and very existence, The Christian Post writes.
While external threats from neighboring Azerbaijan and Turkey are ever-present, the current government, under Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, has been widely criticized for policies and rhetoric that have exacerbated domestic polarization, transforming political disagreements into existential conflicts.
Nowhere is this more evident than in Pashinyan’s current persecution of the Armenian Apostolic Church through a concerted and coordinated campaign of public intimidation and attacks against Armenian priests and clergy. These recent developments have sparked debate and raised concerns among various groups both within and outside the country. While the Armenian government has stated its actions are aimed at ensuring secularism and combating corruption, many Armenians see these actions as politically motivated assaults that impact religious freedom and national stability.
What is more, these attacks only serve to divide Armenians and come straight out of the Turkish and Azerbaijani playbook, where government officials exploit and deepen internal societal divisions to cling onto power.
While the Armenian Church certainly has its flaws, like any other large and influential religious institution, the government’s actions are simply an unconstitutional assault on religious freedom and national identity.
“The Armenian Church holds immense cultural and social importance in Armenia. It is deeply tied to national heritage, spiritual continuity, and the preservation of the Armenian language and history. Attacking it plays right into the hands of Turkey and Azerbaijan, who want nothing more than to see a divided and weakened Armenia. Without the Armenian Church, there can be no Armenia. The sooner the Armenian government realizes that, the better off the nation will be,” the publication states.
