The Save The ArQ Movement (@SavetheArQ) and members of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation Party(ARF), Armenian Democratic Liberal Party (ADL), Jerusalem Armenian Benevolent Union (JABU), Armenian Relief Society (ARS), Hoyetchmen Club, and Homenetmen Club met Saturday, December 16th with Patriarch of the Holy City of Jerusalem Theophilos III.

According to a statement by Save the Armenian Quarter, “This marks our second official visit to a vital Christian denomination in the Holy City of Jerusalem. The patriarchate’s ecclesiastical jurisdiction includes approximately 500,000 Orthodox Christians across the Holy Land in Palestine, Jordan, and Israel.”

The statement said that “His Beatitude emphasized the need for more unity, irrespective of our religious nuances and differences, and stressed the need for more open collaboration on a communal level as well.”

Hagop Djernazian and Setrag Balian, the founders of the movement, reciprocated the need for solidarity and thanked the Patriarch for generously welcoming us. During the meeting, a letter regarding the recent developments in the Armenian Quarter addressed to His Beatitude was handed to him.

In closing, His Beatitude proclaimed: When your fight is just, God is with you!

A statement issued by the Save Armenian Quarter Movement thanked the local Armenian institutions, the pillars of our cultural development and perseverance, for yet again uniting for a common goal — the preservation and protection of our Christian Armenian presence in the Holy Land.