Pope Benedict XVI appointed Archbishop Raphael Minasyan as the new head of Armenian Catholics in Armenia, Georgia and Eastern Europe, according to the Patriarchy of the Armenian Catholic Church in Beirut.

Pope Benedict XVI appointed Archbishop Raphael Minasyan as the new head of Armenian Catholics in Armenia, Georgia and Eastern Europe, according to the Patriarchy of the Armenian Catholic Church in Beirut.

Minasian will replace Vahan Ohanian. The official appointment ceremony will take place at the Cathedral of Saint Gregory the Illuminator in Beirut, on July 16, 2011.

Raphael Minasian was born in Lebanon on October 24,1946. He entered the Catholic monastery of Zmmar in Lebanon in 1958. He entered the Lebanese seminry in Rome in 1966. He joined the order in Beirut in 1973.

Minasian formed the Sacred Cross scout group in 1984, the group opened a church in Zalka. He was a pastor of Armenian Catholics in California in 1996-2006. He is a co-founder of the Armenian Alliance charity fund. He was the editor-in-chief of Avetaber-Verelk for 8 years.

Minasian founded an Armenian television company in 2005, whose segments were broadcast by the Telepace Channel.

For more details in Armenian please refer to: http://bit.ly/mkGhU4