Istanbul’s Armenian patriarch will be laid to rest on March 17

PanARMENIAN.Net - The funeral service for the late Armenian Patriarch in Turkey Mesrob Mutafyan will be held on March 17 at the time of Sunday service at the St. Mary Armenian Church in Istanbul’s Kumkapı neighborhood in Fatih district, Hurriyet Daily News reports.

Mutafyan will be later buried at the Şişli Armenian cemetery in an area designated for patriarchs.

Many church officials from Armenia, Lebanon, Jerusalem, Vatican and Turkey’s churches, along with representatives of diplomatic missions, are expected to attend the funeral ceremony commemorating the archbishop.

Archbishop Mesrob II Mutafyan died at age 62 in the Surp Pirgic Armenian Hospital in Istanbul’s Zeytinburnu district on March 8 where he was receiving treatment.

He had been incapacitated since 2008 with an early onset of dementia.

Garo Paylan, a member of Turkey’s Armenian community and an MP from the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) said on Twitter: “Patriarch Mutafyan will remain in our minds as a memorable spiritual leader.”

Preparations for the election of a new patriarch for Turkey are expected to begin after a 40-day mourning period.