| Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia Holy See of Cilicia | |
|---|---|
| Classification | Oriental Orthodox |
| Primate | CatholicosAram I |
| Headquarters | Antelias,Lebanon PreviouslySis,Turkey |
| Territory | Cilicia |
| Possessions | Middle East,Europe,North America,South America,Oceania, andAfrica. |
| Founder | TheApostlesBartholomew andThaddeus |
| Independence | Apostolic Era |
| Recognition | byArmenian Apostolic Church as an autocephalous church |
| Members | 300,000[1] |
| Official website | Armenian Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia |
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TheArmenian Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia (Armenian:Կաթողիկոսութիւն Հայոց Մեծի Տանն Կիլիկիոյ) is anautocephalousOriental Orthodox church.[2] Since 1930, theCatholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia has been headquartered inAntelias,Lebanon.Aram I is the Catholicos ofCilicia since 1995.
The origin of the Armenian Church dates back to the Apostolic age and according to the ancient tradition was established bySt. Thaddeus andSt. Bartholomew. In 301 AD, Christianity was officially accepted by the Armenians as the state religion.[3]
The city of Sis (modern-dayKozan, Adana, Turkey) was the center of the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia for more than six centuries, starting in 1293 when the Catholicosate moved fromHromgla to Sis. The monastery of St. Sophia of Sis, home of the Catholicosate, dominates the town in early 20th-century photographs.During theArmenian genocide, in 1915, the Armenian population in Cilicia was mostly destroyed.[4]
In 1441, a new Catholicos of All Armenians was elected inHoly Etchmiadzin in the person of Kirakos I Virapetsi of Armenia. At the same time the retiring Catholicos in SisGregory IX Mousabegian (1439–1446) remained as the Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia. Therefore, since 1441, there have been two Catholicosates in the Armenian Apostolic Church. The Catholicos of All Armenians resides in theMother See of Holy Etchmiadzin.
In 1922 theAmerican Committee for Relief in the Near East established an orphanage in Antilias for survivors of the genocide. It continued operating until 1928. After the foundation's Executive Committee was petitioned in 1929 by Sahak II, in 1930 the now-vacant buildings of the orphanage were leased to the Cilicia Catholicosate for a period of five years to be used as a seat for the Catholicosate and a seminary for training priests and teachers. The foundation also agreed to contribute $6000-$7000 yearly towards running costs.[5]
Due to intrasectarian disputes within the Armenian community in the United States dating back to the 1930s and 1940s, the Lebanese Cilician See established its presence in the United States of America in 1957. These disputes were political and resulted in the segregation of approximately a few hundred thousand Armenians. Archbishop Khoren of Lebanon was sent by the Supreme Patriarch Zareh I to the United States as a representative of the Holy See of Cilicia. The segregated part of the Armenian community in the United States became members of the Lebanese Holy See of Cilicia, as they had been barred from attending Armenian churches before. This expansion of the Holy See of Cilicia led to an increase in its power and amount of churches.[6]
The Catholicossate has its own publishing house and has a number of publications, most notably the monthly "Hask" (inArmenian Հասկ), the official organ of the Holy See of Cilicia.
It also publishes the annual "Hask Armenological Review" (inArmenian Հասկ Հայագիտական Հանդէս) onArmenian studies.
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Source:[8]
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