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The Armenian Church, heir to the customs of Christianity from the first century, had always been characterized by two outstanding features, namely true unity with the people, and a democratic and freedom-loving mode of thought. 12
Bareilles continues: "The first noticeable thing in the study of the Armenian Church is that its organization is generally democratic. The clergy has never constituted a special and separate class in society, and the people and the Armenian Church are one united being. Between them there have never occurred differences and conflicts because of the will to rule, and it is without a doubt this unison with the other classes in society to which the Armenian Church owes its freedom-loving and merciful nature." 13
From a cultural perspective, for many centuries when Armenia was under foreign rule, the church was also the national centre for cultural minds. Armenian intellectuals, and those who could read and write, liberated themselves from worldly affairs by choosing to live as a member of the clergy. And since they no longer were bound to worldly needs, they could spend their time studying hand-written books and create literary and historical works, increasing the cultural riches of the Armenian people. 14 In these monasteries, the national spirit, though imprisoned, managed to "continue its path untouched and protected against oppression."
Thus the church, by preventing the spiritual death of the Armenian nation, ensured its survival. Despite various catastrophes, it is through the efforts of the church that the thoughts of the Armenian nation have survived.
Besides the preservation of the cultural and moral life of the nation, the Armenian Church led the Armenian people within the ruins of the Ottoman Empire, and preventing it from disappearing among the Turks; Sultan Mehmet II the Conqueror gave the Armenian Church the power to maintain its control over the Armenian subjects in the empire. To fully comprehend this ecclesiastic power, we should refer back to Medieval Europe, when the majority of the duties of present-day governments were implemented by the church.
According to the authority which Sultan Mehmet II gave to the Greek and the Armenian Patriarchs in Constantinople, they had not only the power over their fellow believers, but were also the spiritual leaders and representatives of their people in the eyes of the Turkish rule.
In the Ottoman Empire, the Koran was not only a religious book, but also the law-book according to which the empire was ruled; its maxims did not however extend to include the Christians.
In addition to these broad tasks that the church was required to perform, the strong attachment of the Armenians to their religion strengthened the position of the Armenian Church, and completed its transformation into the focus of the nation.
The love of the Armenians for the Armenian Church was so encompassing that the church was regarded as the only true symbol of their nationality, and the last institution of their fallen kingdom. 15
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