Under the auspices of His Holiness Catholicos Aram I, the 106th anniversary of the First Independence of the Republic of Armenia was marked on Sunday, May 25, 2024, at the St. Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral in Antelias. H.E. Archbishop Torkom Donoyan celebrated the Divine Liturgy and delivered a sermon. During the ceremony, His Holiness presided over thanksgiving prayers for the First Armenian Republic and the requiem service for the souls who had fallen in the battle for independence.
Following the service, a special ceremony was held in the atrium of the Catholicosate. His Holiness addressed the audience with a speech and received congratulations on the occasion of his name day. Notably, on the 50th anniversary of the Independence in 1968, His Holiness was given the name Aram, in honor of Aram Manougian, the founder of the First Republic of Armenia.
It is worth mentioning that scouts from Artsakh, now displaced in Armenia due to Azerbaijan’s aggression and invasion of Artsakh, marched into the atrium and presented His Holiness with the Artsakh flag, brought from their homeland. They expressed their wish and prayed that it would soon be flown in the Arstakh skies by His Holiness.
