And now, as a specialist in religions, knowing Armenian to some extent, you will also be able to address Armenian topics.
I have read various courses on religion and oriental art, and I also deal with issues of modern European religiosity. In Armenia, after seeing ancient temples and chapels, I became fascinated by the theme of popular religiosity in Armenia. This spring, I had the chance to meet with Archbishop Vardan Navasardyan, Primate of the Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church in the Baltic States. Moreover, he is not only an excellent organizer, but also a man with a very big heart. Surprisingly, he finds a common language with everyone, he finds the key to every heart. He talks about theology with world-famous Armenologists and plays backgammon with ordinary parishioners in the courtyard of the Armenian Church in Riga. This is why Mgr Vardan is always surrounded by people. This fall, together with the Faculty of Theology of the University of Latvia, it will organize an international conference dedicated to the 850th anniversary of the death of Nerses Shnorhali. This is the first event funded by the recently established Armenian Studies Foundation under the auspices of the University of Latvia. We invited very strong armenologists from Europe, America and Armenia; the second part will feature participants from Latvia. I’m also going to read an article; it will be on the Christology of Nerses Shnorhali. His work “Jesus the Son” is of particular interest from the point of view of comparative religion.
What is your main thesis and your vision of the situation?
Shnorhali’s doctrine of Christ is rather progressive and useful for modern Armenian theology. Shnorhali worked at the crossroads of two cultures, the East and the West. If we analyze Christology from a phenomenological point of view, in the popular consciousness of the Christian East, the Savior is perceived more as God, and in the West as a man. It is common knowledge that the two natures, that is, the divine nature and the human nature, were united in Christ, but at the level of popular mentality there is a violation of proportions. In Armenia, due to the eastern perception of Christ and other circumstances (Muslim persecutions, ban on icons), it was not customary to depict Christ. The idea of Christ is mainly linked to stone crosses. Their curious and very rich symbolism, however, seems to have eclipsed the image of the Crucified Himself. Jesus can only be seen on crosses called Amenaprkich (All Savior) which are extremely rare in Armenia. It is this visual absence of the image of Christ, imposed on the Eastern idea of God, that has caused the Savior to become a distant God in people’s consciousness. In the “Legends of Armenia” by Aram Ganalanyan there are several legends about Christ, which testify to the fact that in the Armenian popular consciousness Christ more often has the traits of a righteous judge. Sometimes he appears as a God of mercy, but the lack of a charitable aspect in popular Christology is evident. Modern Armenians transfer this most merciful aspect to the Saints (Sourbs). It is the saints, and not the distant Christ, who come into direct contact with people. They appear to them in dreams, help them and guide them. This explains the large number of chapels (matours) dedicated to different saints in Armenia. In this way, ordinary people communicate with the sacred realm without the mediation of ecclesiastics, as if they were doing so directly.
Shnorhali, for his part, offers a unique Christological approach: it is both Eastern and Western. His Savior is both the Almighty (Almighty), that is, the Creator of heaven and earth, and a humble shepherd suffering on the cross like an ordinary man. According to Shnorhali’s interpretation, Christ is one of us, he is close to every human being. A return to the distinctly human image of Christ and the good news of the Gospel is necessary for modern Armenians, literally mired in the animist cults of Sourbs (saints). And note that the lack mentioned in the image of the merciful Christ manifests in Western iconography as the heart of Jesus, which you can see on every altar. Therefore, Nerses Shnorhali should be adopted by local theologians with the aim of revitalizing the Christianity of the Church in Armenia.
Everything you say is food for thought. Do you intend to continue your Armenian studies?
Since we have a Foundation for Armenian Studies in our university, which will be able to finance the publication of books, I think that with the armenologist Valda Salminota we will make some publications on Armenian subjects. First of all, I would like to write something about the worship of Sourbs, and then we will see. Armenia is an inexhaustible reservoir of religious studies.