James O'Reilly
His Holiness Aram I, head of the Armenian Apostolic Church in Lebanon, has renewed his appeals to the Vatican for another ecumenical council to be convened—in short, Vatican III.
He admitted as much during a recent press conference with journalists in Rome, saying he has raised this appeal several times in the past.
CATHOLICOS ARAM I
Armenian Apostolic Church, Lebanon
I have raised this question with the former three popes
And none of these popes said 'no'. But they shared, or they expressed, their arguments, their concerns. For instance, you see, they said that the decisions of Vatican II have not yet been fully implemented.
The Armenian patriarch then acknowledged the need for patience as Rome continues to fully integrate Vatican II into the Church. But he also urged the need for a new council to address the radical changes that have occurred since the last council closed in 1965.
CATHOLICOS ARAM I
Armenian Apostolic Church, Lebanon
I'm not the one to speak for the Catholic Church, but in my opinion, we are living in a different world. There are lots of issues and challenges, trends, tendencies, that really question the mission of the Church, the Christian values, the credibility of our Church.
The greatest challenges today have of course to do with the birth of the digital age and the rise of artificial intelligence, which has quickly come to dominate almost every sphere of human life, offering promise and peril—and raising questions, says Aram I, that should concern all Christians, both western and eastern.
CATHOLICOS ARAM I
Armenian Apostolic Church, Lebanon
Even, you see, today, if Vatican Council III organized, all the Churches in a sense will participate because we cannot say anymore in this globalized world that 'your problem is not my problem'.
In other words, the issues of the 21st century demand unity in the Church—even between Rome and the Armenian Church, which split following the Council of Chalcedon in 451.
Patriarch Aram also disclosed additional topics discussed with Pope Leo and other Vatican officials—topics which included finding a common date for celebrating Easter and challenges facing Christians in the Middle East.
