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166 The Armenian Church

Church has also covered multiple programs
and projects, as well as fund-raising and
relief and reconstruction initiatives related
to emergency situations such as the Leba-
nese civil war (1975-1990), the Gulf war
(1991), and the conflicts in Iraq (2002) and
Syria (2012). In situations of socio-economic
crises, the Church sets up special programs
to provide employment to the unemployed
and different kinds of facilities to the
impoverished to assist them to recover their
financial stability and economic security.
The socio-humanitarian response of the
Church to the consequences of the earthquake
in Armenia (December 1989) was remarkable,
indeed. The two Catholicosates organized
fund-raising to meet the needs of families
and sponsored a number of projects, aimed
at socio-economic rehabilitation. With the
restoration of the independence of Armenia in
1991 and the self-determination of the Ar-
menians in Nagorno-Karabagh, the social
action of the Armenian Church was given a
renewed emphasis and broader scope. The
Holy See of St. Etchmiadzin undertook a
number of initiatives involving health care,
the assistance to the orphans of war and the
children of broken families. Hospitals and
socio-medical centers were established in
Armenia and Nagorno-Karabagh with the
support of donors from diaspora commu-
nities. Diaspora donors, organizations, and