With the blessing of His Holiness Catholicos Aram I, candidates for the four ranks of archimandrite defended their theses in front of a panel headed by the Catholicos, on Saturday, October 15th, 2022.

The topics were elaborations of themes drawn from the archives of the Catholicosate concerning correspondences between the Holy See of Cilicia and the Armenian General Benevolent Union (between 1918 and 2005), various correspondences addressed to the Armenian Prelacy of Syria, as well as the resistance battles of Van, Shabin Karahisar, and Svedia.

Following each defense, His Holiness commended their efforts and offered his suggestions to enhance the research and prepare them for potential future publication. He also highlighted the relationship and cooperation between the Holy See and the AGBU throughout history.