page_title: Holy See of Cilicia
section_title: Catholicosate in Antelias, Lebanon (1930–present)
hierarchical_section_title: Holy See of Cilicia / Catholicosate in Antelias, Lebanon (1930–present)
caption_attribution_description: English: The chair of the Armenian Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia in Sis
context_page_description: The Armenian Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia is an autocephalous Oriental Orthodox church. Since 1930, the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia has been headquartered in Antelias, Lebanon. Aram I is the Catholicos of Cilicia of the Armenian Apostolic Church since 1995.
context_section_description: Sahak II after leaving the premises of the Catholicosate in Sis stayed at various locations in Northern Syria and in Lebanon, running the affairs of the Catholicosate.
  In 1922 the American Committee for Relief in the Near East established an orphanage in Antilias for survivors of the genocide. It continued operating until 1928. After the foundation's Executive Committee was petitioned in 1929 by Sahak II, in 1930 the now-vacant buildings of the orphanage were leased to the Cilicia Catholicosate for a period of five years to be used as a seat for the Catholicosate and a seminary for training priests and teachers. The foundation also agreed to contribute $6000-$7000 yearly towards running costs. The first mass in the Catholicosate's seminary at Antelias took place on Sunday, October 12, 1930.
  Using donations from Simon and Mathilde Kayekjian, the Catholicosate eventually purchased the property and land that housed the Catholicosate in Antelias. Ailing Catholicos Sahak II, who died in 1939, was aided in his later years by Papken I, who served as Catholicos Coadjutor from 1931 until his death in 1936.
  The St. Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral was built through the donation of a benefactor whose name, Sarkis Kenadjian, was only revealed after his death, according to his wish. A chapel in memory of the one and a half million Armenian martyrs was also built, followed by a residence for the Catholicos, called Veharan (Վեհարան), and a new Seminary building. The chapel was built after the donation of Armenian-Cypriot benefactor and art collector Vahram Utidjian, son of Apisoghom Utidjian, official translator for the British government in Cyprus. However, the "Cilicia" museum is a much later development; it was built and inaugurated in 1997.
  Thus, the complex of the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia in Antelias includes:
  St. Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral (1940)
  The Catholicosate Library (1932)
  "Cilicia" church museum (1997)
  Memorial chapel to the victims of the Armenian Genocide.
  The Catholicos' residence.
  The Catholicosate complex also includes the mausoleum / cemetery where members of the Antelias congregation are buried. For a certain period, the Catholicosate also hosted an elementary Armenian school within the Catholicosate complex, but the school was moved to a new location a few kilometers away due to the expanding number of students and grade levels, as well as the need for additional classroom space.
  The theological seminary located in the nearby mountains in Bikfaya also serves as summer residence for the Catholicos and the clergy.
caption: The chair of the Armenian Catholicosate in Sis (today Kozan)
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