 52 24.06.16 - Pope Francis greeted with Hrashapar (wondrously glorious) service in Etchmiadzin                                                         Pope Francis greeted with Hrashapar service in Etchmiadzin  June 24, 2016 - 16:26 AMTPanARMENIAN.Net - Pope Francis accompanied by top clerics on Friday, June 24 arrived in Etchmiadzin, the main religious center of the Armenian people. Children carrying the flags of the Vatican and Armenia met the pontiff at the Etschmiadzin Cathedral. The pope was greeted with the Hrashapar (wondrously glorious) service, which is traditionally offered as a service of welcome to top religious clerics. Both the pope and the Catholicos of All Armenians, His Holiness Karekin II delivered remarks. Francis is then scheduled to meet with President Serzh Sargsyan in Yerevan. The pontiff's plane landed at the Zvartnots International Airport at 3:00pm local time. The pope caps his first day with a visit to the seat of the Armenian Apostolic Church, where he will stay as a guest of the patriarch.  Top stories As a result of floods in Armenia’s northern Lori and Tavush provinces, 17 bridges, including five large ones, have collapsed. David Vardanyan is the son of former Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan who who is currently imprisoned in Azerbaijan. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has met with Stephan Schütz, Executive Partner at Gerkan, Marg and Partners. The number of state universities will be reduced from 23 to 8 by 2030, Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport Zhanna Andreasyan has said.   Partner news |  Latest news Putin congratulates Pashinyan’s birthday  Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on his birthday on June 1.Ruling MPs, Foreign Minister talk Armenia-Azerbaijan processes MOs from the ruling Civil Contract party met with the Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan in the Armenian parliament.Russia: Armenia’s frozen membership weakens CSTO position in Caucasus A Russian envoy said any step that could alienate the CSTO member states from each other is “deeply wrong”.International cybercrime ringleaders arrested in Armenia, Ukraine Europol, Europe's crime agency, has arrested four ringleaders of several cybercrime networks that used botnets. |
