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The Armenian Apostolic Church (Armenian: Հայ Առաքելական Եկեղեցի, romanized: Hay Aṙaqelakan Ékełetsi)[note 1] is the national church of Armenia. Part of Oriental Orthodoxy, it is one of the most ancient Christian institutions.[6] The Kingdom of Armenia was the first state in history to adopt Christianity as its official religion under the rule of King Tiridates III, of the Arsacid dynasty in the early 4th century.[7][8]
According to tradition, the church originated in the missions of Apostles Bartholomew and Thaddeus of Edessa in the 1st century. St. Gregory the Illuminator was the first official primate of the church. It is sometimes referred to as the Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Church, Armenian Church or Armenian Gregorian Church.[9][10][11]
The Armenian Apostolic Church should not be confused with the fully distinct Armenian Catholic Church, which is an Eastern Catholic Church in communion with the See of Rome.[12]
- ^ Armenian Apostolic Church (Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin) and Armenian Apostolic Church (Holy See of Cilicia) in the World Council of Churches
- ^ "Armenian Apostolic Church". doi:10.1163/2211-2685_eco_a599.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ^ Panossian, Razmik (2006). The Armenians: From Kings and Priests to Merchants and Commissars. New York: Columbia University Press. pp. 43–44. ISBN 9780231139267.
The Armenian Apostolic Church formally became autocephalous - i.e. independent of external authority - in 554 by severing its links with the patriarchate of Constantinople.
- ^ "Catholicos of All Armenians". armenianchurch.org. Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin.
- ^ ""ՀԱՅԱՍՏԱՆՅԱՅՑ ԱՌԱՔԵԼԱԿԱՆ ՍՈՒՐԲ ԵԿԵՂԵՑԻ" ԿԿ - HAYASTANYAYC ARAQELAKAN SURB YEKEGHECI RO". e-register.am. Electronic Register. Government of the Republic of Armenia.
- ^ Augusti, Johann Christian Wilhelm; Rheinwald, Georg Friedrich Heinrich; Siegel, Carl Christian Friedrich. The Antiquities of the Christian Church. p. 466.
- ^ Scott, Michael (2016-11-01). Ancient Worlds: A Global History of Antiquity. Basic Books. ISBN 978-0-465-09473-8.
- ^ Grousset, René (1984) [1947]. Histoire de l'Arménie (in French). Payot. p. 122.. Estimated dates vary from 284 to 314. Garsoïan (op.cit. p. 82), following the research of Ananian, favours the latter.
- ^ "HISTORY". ՀԱՅ ԱՌԱՔԵԼԱԿԱՆ ԵԿԵՂԵՑՈՒ Արևմտյան Եվրոպայի Հայրապետական Պատվիրակություն. Retrieved 2023-01-30.
- ^ "History of the Armenian Church". Armenian Prelacy. Retrieved 2023-01-30.
- ^ "Armenian Apostolic Church (Holy See of Cilicia)". World Council of Churches. January 1962. Retrieved 2023-01-30.
- ^ "Armenian Synod elects new Catholicos-Patriarch of Cilicia". Vatican News. 23 September 2021. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
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