CATHOLICOS ARAM I
Great House of Cilicia
Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia
Born in 1947, in Beirut, Lebanon, His Holiness Catholicos Aram I studied at the Armenian Theological Seminary, Antelias, Lebanon and the Ecumenical Institute of Bossey, Geneva, Switzerland. He received his M.Div. from the Near East School of Theology, his S.T.M. jointly from the American University of Beirut and Near East School of Theology, and his PhD from Fordham University in New York. He also holds several honorary degrees. His major areas of specialization are philosophy, systematic theology, and Near Eastern church history.
Catholicos Aram I was ordained as a celibate priest in 1968 and obtained the title of Vartabed (Doctor of the Armenian Church) in 1970. In 1979, after serving for one year as Locum Tenens, he was elected Primate of the Armenian Orthodox Community in Lebanon; the next year he received episcopal ordination. In June 1995, His Holiness was elected Catholicos (the Head of the Church) by the Electoral Assembly of the Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia (35 clergy and 115 lay representatives), and was consecrated one week later.
Called to serve as Primate of the Armenian Community of Lebanon during the Lebanese Civil War, His Holiness reorganized parishes and schools, restructured and reactivated church-related institutions, and renewed community leadership.
For many years His Holiness Catholicos Aram I has regularly lectured on armenological, theological, and ecumenical subjects at the Armenian Seminary and Haigazian University in Beirut. He has also given numerous public lectures in various universities, academic and cultural centers, and at public events and international gatherings.
His Holiness was appointed in 1972 as the Catholicosate’s representative for ecumenical relations and he served in this position until 1995. His Holiness has played a major role in the world-wide ecumenical movement:
– He was a founding member of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), in 1974. From the beginning he has served on the Council’s Executive Committee and played a leading role in the major initiatives of the Council.
– As delegate of his church, he attended the Nairobi (1975), Vancouver (1983), Canberra (1991), Harare (1998) and Porto Alegre (2006) Assemblies of the World Council of Churches (WCC), and several international conferences.
– In 1975, he was elected as a member of the Faith and Order Commission of the WCC, and in 1983 as a member of its Standing Committee. At the Vancouver Assembly (1983), His Holiness was elected as a member of the Central Committee of the WCC.
– At the Canberra Assembly (1991), he was elected Moderator of the Central and Executive Committees of the WCC, the highest position of this global fellowship of churches, which comprises more than 350 churches from different confessions, cultures, nations and regions. He is the first Orthodox and the youngest person to be elected to the position of Moderator. After serving as Moderator for seven years, His Holiness was unanimously re-elected at the Harare Assembly (1998). The re-election of His Holiness, which was based on his “strong leadership, firm commitment, theological knowledge and administrative experience”, was unprecedented in the history of the WCC.
– Catholicos Aram I is a founding member of the Oriental Orthodox-Eastern Orthodox Theological Dialogue, Oriental Orthodox-Reformed Theological Dialogue, and the Orthodox-Evangelical Dialogue. He has played an important role in initiation of Oriental Orthodox-Roman Catholic and Oriental Orthodox-Lutheran Theological Dialogues. His Holiness is an honorary member of Pro Oriente.
– His Holiness was instrumental in creating, in 1996, the fellowship of the Three Heads (Coptic, Syrian, Armenian) of the Oriental Orthodox Churches in the Middle East.
– His Holiness is president of the Middle East Council of Churches since November 2007.
As a strong supporter of inter-religious relations, dialogue and co-operation, His Holiness Aram I has played a significant part in promoting common values, mutual understanding and peaceful co-existence among religions. In this context he:
As a result of his strong commitment to peace with justice, and human rights, His Holiness:
With his vision and commitment and with his hard work, His Holiness Aram I has made the Catholicosate of Cilicia of the Armenian Church “a living center of reflection, dialogue and action”.
The CV of His Holiness appears in Who’s Who in the World, in the International Directory of Distinguished Leaders and in many other regional and international directories, dictionaries and publications.
Source: www.armenianorthodoxchurch.org