The start of the new school year in Armenia was ushered in today with a special Divine Liturgy at Etchmiadzin celebrated by Catholicos Garegin II. The Catholicos conveyed his blessings on the occasion and noted the historical strong bonds between the Armenian church and school Present were RoA Minister of education Armen Ashotyan, representatives of the education departments of various Regional Administrations and school principals. Minister Ashotyan and Catholicos Garegin II met with reporters after church services. The Minister noted the important educational role the Armenian Church played during the long centuries when there was no Armenian state and thus no ministry of education. At one point during the meeting with print reporters, Minister Ashotyan got flustered when asked about rumors that certain school principals were taking bribes from parents to have their children enrolled at their schools. Hetq reporters also asked the minister about his observations from his recent trip to Javakhk, an Armenian populated region in southern Georgia. Minister Ashotyan responded that he would be giving a general press conference on September 7 and that he’d answer all questions then. "I’m always on TV, talking with the press. I’ll talk about all other issues then," he huffed while leaving. "I’ve told you for the fourth time already. Wait till the press conference. At this point, several clergy stepped in to intervene, scolding reporters not to disturb their work.