Catholicos

Last updated: May 29, 2026

The Catholicos of All Armenians is the supreme spiritual leader of the Armenian Apostolic Church , based at the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin . The current Catholicos is Garegin II, who has held the position since 1999. A second Catholicosate, the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia, is based in Antelias, Lebanon, and serves as an independent jurisdiction for portions of the Armenian diaspora.

Groong episodes touching on the Catholicos cover a broad range: the role of Garegin II in responding to the 2020 Nagorno Karabakh war, his public statements during periods of political crisis in Armenia, and the deepening friction between the Catholicosate and the Pashinyan government. The government’s push to reform and reduce the institutional influence of the church has placed the Catholicos at the center of a political struggle that intensified markedly in 2025 with the arrest of multiple senior clergy.

Groong episodes that include this tag

Below are all Groong episodes tagged with Catholicos.

Joel Veldkamp - Armenia’s Prayer Breakfast and the Crackdown on the Church | Ep 490, Nov 27, 2025 [EP490]

Posted on Thursday, Nov 27, 2025 | Category: Armenia, Politics, Armenian Church, Artsakh, Nagorno Karabakh, Human Rights, Artsakh Blockade, Russia, Azerbaijan, China, Genocide

Guest:

Topics:

  • Clergy Arrests in Armenia
  • Church Under Pressure
  • Prayer Breakfast Controversy
  • Western Silence on Repression
  • CSI’s Findings in Yerevan

Episode 490 | Recorded: November 25, 2025

#ArmenianChurch #ReligiousFreedom #ClergyArrests #ChristianSolidarityInternational #HumanRightsInArmenia

Garen Jinbachian - OSCE Human Dimension Conf, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and The West | Ep 489, Nov 26, 2025 [EP489]

Posted on Wednesday, Nov 26, 2025 | Category: Armenia, Artsakh, Political Prisoners, Artsakh, Nagorno Karabakh, Human Rights, Azerbaijan, Armenian Church, Georgia, Genocide, Turkey, Iran, Lebanon | Series: cog

Guest:

Topics:

  • Azerbaijan’s war crimes and impunity
  • Sham trials of Artsakh leaders
  • Silence of the OSCE and the West
  • Armenia’s growing political repression
  • Attacks on the Armenian Church

Episode 489 | Recorded: November 23, 2025

Garen Jinbachian - OSCE Human Dimension Conf, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and The West | Ep 489, Nov 26, 2025 [EP489]

Posted on Wednesday, Nov 26, 2025 | Category: Armenia, Artsakh, Political Prisoners, Artsakh, Nagorno Karabakh, Human Rights, Azerbaijan, Armenian Church, Georgia, Genocide, Turkey, Iran, Lebanon

Guest:

Topics:

  • Azerbaijan’s war crimes and impunity
  • Sham trials of Artsakh leaders
  • Silence of the OSCE and the West
  • Armenia’s growing political repression
  • Attacks on the Armenian Church

Episode 489 | Recorded: November 23, 2025

Hayk Mamijanyan - Freedom of Expression at Risk in Armenia, Vagharshapat, RPA Strategy | Ep 487, Nov 19, 2025 [EP487]

Posted on Wednesday, Nov 19, 2025 | Category: Armenia, Artsakh, Political Prisoners, Artsakh, Nagorno Karabakh, Armenian Church, Geopolitics, European Union, Iran | Series: cog

Guest:

Topics:

  • Freedom of Expression at Risk in Armenia
  • Vagharshapat Municipal Outcomes
  • Republican Party Election Strategy
  • Stand in Support of Independent Media and Journalism in Armenia

Episode 487 | Recorded: November 18, 2025

Hayk Mamijanyan - Freedom of Expression at Risk in Armenia, Vagharshapat, RPA Strategy | Ep 487, Nov 19, 2025 [EP487]

Posted on Wednesday, Nov 19, 2025 | Category: Armenia, Artsakh, Political Prisoners, Artsakh, Nagorno Karabakh, Armenian Church, Geopolitics, European Union, Iran

Guest:

Topics:

  • Freedom of Expression at Risk in Armenia
  • Vagharshapat Municipal Outcomes
  • Republican Party Election Strategy
  • Stand in Support of Independent Media and Journalism in Armenia

Episode 487 | Recorded: November 18, 2025

Benyamin  Poghosyan - Ukraine War update, Pashinyan’s Persecution of Church and Opposition intensifies | Ep 483, Nov 2, 2025 [EP483]

Posted on Tuesday, Nov 4, 2025 | Category: Armenia, Politics, Ukraine, Russia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, Artsakh, Nagorno Karabakh, USA, Armenian Church, Artsakh Blockade, China, Economy, Genocide, India, Iran, Middle East, NATO | Series: video, wir

Guest:

Topics:

  • Ukraine war status and U.S.–Russia dynamics
  • Church–state tensions and religious prosecutions
  • Opposition arrests, trials, and civil liberties
  • Border demarcation, enclaves

Episode 483 | Recorded: November 3, 2025

Benyamin  Poghosyan - Ukraine War update, Pashinyan’s Persecution of Church and Opposition intensifies | Ep 483, Nov 2, 2025 [EP483]

Posted on Tuesday, Nov 4, 2025 | Category: Armenia, Politics, Ukraine, Russia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, Artsakh, Nagorno Karabakh, USA, Armenian Church, Artsakh Blockade, China, Economy, Genocide, India, Iran, Middle East, NATO

Guest:

Topics:

  • Ukraine war status and U.S.–Russia dynamics
  • Church–state tensions and religious prosecutions
  • Opposition arrests, trials, and civil liberties
  • Border demarcation, enclaves

Episode 483 | Recorded: November 3, 2025

Arthur Khachatryan - Euronest, Aliyev Transit Move, Gyumri Mayor Arrest, Pashinyan vs. Church | Ep 481, Oct 26, 2025 [EP481]

Posted on Friday, Oct 31, 2025 | Category: Armenia, Politics, Azerbaijan, Armenian Church, Georgia, Turkey, Russia, Artsakh, Nagorno Karabakh, Artsakh Blockade, European Union, Ukraine, NATO | Series: wir

Guest:

Topics:

  • Euronest session takeaways
  • Aliyev’s transit move and TRIPP
  • Gyumri mayor arrest fallout
  • Pashinyan’s push to control the Church

Episode 481 | Recorded: October 29, 2025

Arthur Khachatryan - Euronest, Aliyev Transit Move, Gyumri Mayor Arrest, Pashinyan vs. Church | Ep 481, Oct 26, 2025 [EP481]

Posted on Friday, Oct 31, 2025 | Category: Armenia, Politics, Azerbaijan, Armenian Church, Georgia, Turkey, Russia, Artsakh, Nagorno Karabakh, Artsakh Blockade, European Union, Ukraine, NATO

Guest:

Topics:

  • Euronest session takeaways
  • Aliyev’s transit move and TRIPP
  • Gyumri mayor arrest fallout
  • Pashinyan’s push to control the Church

Episode 481 | Recorded: October 29, 2025