Nerses Pozapalian

Archbishop Nerses (Armenian: Տեր Ներսես արքեպիսկոպոս) (born Hakob Pozapalian (Armenian: Հակոբ Պոզապալյան, July 5, 1937 – June 27, 2009) was one of the senior bishops of the Armenian Apostolic Church.

Hakob Pozapalian was born in 1937 in the town of kırkhan, French Syria (nowadays in Turkey).

In 1939, his family migrated to Beirut where he received his primary education at the Noubarian Armenian College, the Armenian Seminary of Antelias, and the Central High College of Beirut. In 1957 his family repatriated to Soviet Armenia. Here he continued his education at the Gevorkian Theological Seminary of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin.

He was ordained to the diaconate that same year by Archbishop Haikazoon Abrahamian. He continued his education at the Academy of the Russian Orthodox Church in Zagorsk. He was ordained as a celibate priest in 1961 by the Catholicos of All Armenians Vazken I and given the priestly name of Nerses.

In 1962 upon the successful defense of his thesis, Nerses received the rank of Archimandrite (Vardapet) and, in 1965 he received the rank of Senior Archimandrite (Dzayraguyn Vardapet).

From 1963 to 1965 Nerses studied at the Department of Theology at the College of the Resurrection in Yorkshire, England. At the same time he participated in summer courses in English culture and literature at Cambridge University. Upon his return from England, he served as the dean of the Gevorkian Theological Seminary until 1969.

From 1969 to 1970 Nerses studied at the Ecumenical Institute of Bossey in Geneva. He served as the pastor for the Swiss-Armenian community from 1969 to 1972. He served as the Primate of the Diocese of England from 1973 to 1982 and in 1974 he was consecrated as a bishop by Catholicos Vasken I.

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