Pray for us in our holy churches, as we pray for you in conditions of our imprisonment – letter from Archbishop Mikael

Archbishop Mikael Ajapahyan, Primate of the Shirak Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, has written a letter from the Izmirlian Medical Center.

“While a group of traitors to the Homeland and the Church continue their raids and armed seizures of the temples of the Armenian Church, calling them ‘services’ and allegedly caring for the well-being of the Church, for the second Sunday now they deprive a high-ranking clergyman, imprisoned by an unlawful order, of a fundamental right of a prisoner—namely, the right to participate in religious rites.

Eleven working days proved insufficient for the henchmen of the chief criminal to ensure the celebration of the Holy Liturgy by any priest in the Izmirlian Medical Center, as a result of which I will soon be deprived of the opportunity to receive Communion both at the Sunday Liturgy on January 4, as well as at the New Year service on January 1 and the Christmas services on January 5–6.

In this context, all that remains for me is to leave to God’s judgment the actions of those who commit yet another illegality and injustice together with their obsessed leader. This way they attempt to deprive me of spiritual consolation, but God has many ways and means to bring us His comfort. Therefore, being deprived of the opportunity to celebrate the upcoming holidays, we nevertheless congratulate the beloved sons of our people on the approaching New Year and Christmas, wishing God’s blessing and all the best.

Pray for us in our holy churches, as we pray for you in the conditions of our imprisonment.

Happy New Year and Merry Christmas, December 30, 2025, the 187th day of unlawful imprisonment,” he wrote.