Pope Francis has written a letter granting eccesial communion to the new Armenian Catholic Patriarch, Raphaël Bedros XXI Minassian, 74.

Referring to the deadlock that led to papal intervention as provided by Church law, Pope Francis wrote that “the bishops gathered first in Lebanon, at the beginning of the summer, and in these days in Rome, at the Pontifical Armenian College.” The Pontiff then paid tribute to the heritage of the Armenian Catholic Church (CNEWA profile), “fully integrated in the affairs of the Armenian people, preserving their memory and traditions, and at the same time deeply linked to the Successor of the Apostle Peter.”