Malachia Ormanian


Malachia Ormanian was the Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople from 1896 to 1908. He was also a theologian, historian, and philologist.

Life

Boghos Ormanian, originated from an Armenian Catholic family. He joined the Armenian Catholic Church, then studied in Rome, serving as an Armenian teacher to The Sacred Congregation de Propaganda Fide and was present at First Vatican Council. In 1879, he left the Armenian Catholic Church and was accepted as a priest in the Armenian Apostolic Church. By 1880, he was Primate of the Armenians in Erzerum. On 8 June 1886, he was arrested in Vagharshapat. From 1888 to 1896 he was head of the Armenian Seminary of Armash near Izmit, following the forced resignation of Patriarch Matheos III.
Ormanian was elected as Patriarch of Constantinople, of the Armenian Orthodox Church, on 6 November 1896. He was removed due to pressure from the Armenian Assembly and suffered a stroke. Following his rehabilitation, he worked for 2 years in Jerusalem, where the Patriarch chair was vacant, apparently hoping for the appointment. In November 1917 he was deported to Damascus and by May 1918 moved to Constantinople, where he died a few months later.

Writings