Pope offers extended public greeting to Aram I, Armenian Apostolic Church leader

May 20, 2026

At the beginning of his general audience today in St. Peter’s Square, Pope Leo XIV offered an extended public greeting to Aram I, head of the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia.

The Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia, based in Lebanon, is one of the two chief jurisdictions in the Armenian Apostolic Church (CNEWA profile). The Armenian Apostolic Church is among the Oriental Orthodox churches that ceased to be in full communion with the Holy See following the Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon (451).

“Brothers and sisters, I am very happy to welcome His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of Cilicia of the Armenian Apostolic Church, together with the distinguished delegation accompanying him,” Pope Leo said. “This fraternal visit represents an important opportunity to strengthen the bonds of unity that already exist between us, as we move towards full communion between our Churches.”

Pope Leo added:

Your Holiness, in these days when we prepare for Pentecost, I invoke the grace of the Holy Spirit upon your pilgrimage to the tombs of the Apostles Peter and Paul, and I invite all those present to pray fervently to the Lord that your visit and meetings may constitute a further step on the path towards full unity. Let us also pray for peace in Lebanon and the Middle East, once again torn apart by violence and war.

Your Holiness, I wish to express my particular gratitude for your constant personal commitment to ecumenism, especially to the international theological dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Oriental Orthodox Churches.

Welcome, Your Holiness, dear bishops and dear friends! Together, let us invoke the intercession of Saint Gregory the Illuminator, Saint Gregory of Nareg, Saint Nerses the Gracious and, above all, the Virgin Mother of God, that they may enlighten our path towards the fullness of that unity we all desire.

The greeting took place two days after Pope Leo received the Catholicos.

In his address to Pope Leo on May 18, Aram I said that ecumenism is crucial in the face of secularism. Pope Leo, in turn, praised Aram I for his ecumenical zeal. Following the two addresses, Pope Leo and the Catholicos prayed together in the Chapel of Urban VIII in the Apostolic Palace (link to booklet).

 

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Further information:

• General Audience (Dicastery for Communication - Vatican Media, 5/20/26)
• General Audience, 20.05.2026 (Holy See Press Office, 5/20/26)
• Pope Leo praises Armenian Apostolic Church leader for his ecumenical zeal (CWN, 5/18/26)
• Ecumenism is crucial in the face of secularism, Armenian Apostolic Church leader tells Pope Leo (CWN, 5/19/26)