Welcome the Stranger: Elijah He was a man of holiness and generosity; but also a man who could countenance the cruelest violence. His very name confessed his loyalty to God; but also prefigured the loneliness that can follow any man with such loyalties. He was Elijah the Tishbite, Elijah “the Stranger”: the Hebrew prophet... Read More »

  St Hripsime, along with her companions in martyrdom, are venerated as the first martyrs in Armenian history. Noble Hripsime was one of the 37 Christian nuns who, together with the Abyss Gayane, lived during the period of the reign of the Roman King Diocletianus (284-305) in the Monastery of St Paul located in the... Read More »

  The Commemoration of St Gayane takes place on the day following the Commemoration of St Hripsime. St Gayane, the abbess and St Hripsime, along with their companions, remind us of the central role of strong, determined, faithful women at the root of Armenian Christianity. While the recounting of the conversion to Christianity usually centres... Read More »

  The Armenian Church commemorates the day when the relics of St John the Forerunner (the Baptist) and Bishop Atanagine were transferred to Armenia. Mariam, the wife of St Gregory the Illuminator, had a brother named Atanagine. He was the Bishop of Pitacton and died while defending the faith. After his consecration in Caesarea, St... Read More »

  The Feast of St Gregory the Illuminator’s deliverance from the pit is also known as Khor Viraben Yelkuh. Gregory is revered as the patron saint of the Armenian Church. He is recognised and memorialided in both eastern and western hierarchical churches. The Armenian liturgical calendar reserves three feast days in his honour: Entrance into... Read More »

  One of the most celebrated feasts of the Armenian Church is the day when the Cathedral of Holy Etchmiadzin was established, according to the inspired vision of St Gregory the Illuminator. According to hagiographic sources, following the declaration of Christianity as the Official Religion of Armenia in 301 AD, St Gregory had a famous... Read More »

                                        In the Gospel according to St. Matthew, we read about the slaying of the innocent children prior to the birth of Jesus Christ (Matthew 2:16-18). Men, who had come from the East to Jerusalem, spread... Read More »

  St Nune and St Mane were two of the companions of St Hripsime, who, being persecuted by the King Dioklethianos, left Rome with the Abbess Gayane and her order of nuns, and reached Armenia where she was martyred. However, Nune and Mane were not destined to die together with their companions. Reaching Armenia together... Read More »

  St Nersess was an Armenian Catholicos (Patriarch) who lived in the 4th century and was the great grandson of St Gregory the Illuminator. His father, Athenogenes, and his uncle, Bab, who were next in line for the succession to the Throne of St Gregory, were laymen and had no desire to become priests. As... Read More »

  This is the Sunday preceding the week prior to the feast of Discovery of St Gregory the Illuminator’s relics, in the 5th century. The week long fast lasts from Monday to Friday.

  King Kostandianos (Constantine) was born in the city of Nish, in the former Yugoslavia. He is one of the most prominent figures of the Roman Empire. It was he who officially released the Church from persecutions lasting more than 250 years and in 313 A.D. By the Encyclical of Milan he proclaimed Christianity to... Read More »

  The relics of St Gregory the Illuminator (Lousavorich) are one of our most revered within the Armenian Church, as well as all Christian Churches. The discovery of the relics of St Gregory the Illuminator is one of the three significant feast days dedicated to the memory of the Patron Saint of Armenia and the... Read More »

  The Prophet Daniel (meaning God is my Judge), is one of the four great prophets of the Old Testament. Nearly all that is known concerning the Prophet is derived from the book ascribed to him, which dates back to the VII-VI centuries B.C. Daniel and his youthful companions Shadrach (Setrak), Meshach (Misak) and Abednego... Read More »

  Catholicos St Sahak Bartev (Partev) and Archimandrite St Mesrop (Vardapet) Mashtots are the founders of Armenian literature and ecclesiastical bibliography. St Sahak Partev was the elder son of Catholicos St Nersess the Great. He was the last Catholicos of the Armenian Church who descended from the lineage of St Gregory the Illuminator. He became... Read More »

  In 287 A.D. Tiridates (Drtad), from the royal house of Arshakouni, assumed the throne which once belonged to his father and he became Tiridates III, King of Armenia. His name is inextricably linked with the Patron Saint of the Armenian Church, St Gregory the Illuminator. In 301 A.D, the king released the Christian Gregory... Read More »

  According to tradition, while on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, two Greek princes came across a chest that once belonged to St Mary. In Galilee, they saw a large crowd gathered in front of a Jewish woman’s house. On enquiring, they found that the sick were being healed due to the inexplicable power of the... Read More »

  Every year, the Armenian Church reserves a day in its liturgical calendar to remember one of the more obscure figures of the Old Testament: the Prophet Zechariah. Zechariah’s collection of prophecies and oracles stands among the last books of the canonical Old Testament. In its opening verse, Zechariah situates himself in time during the... Read More »

  The Twelve Apostles elected by Our Lord Jesus Christ, were Christ’s disciples and first preachers of His doctrine, as well as the Incarnate Christ’s witnesses. “Jesus called his twelve disciples together and gave them authority to drive out devil spirits and to heal every disease and every sickness.” Matthew 10:1 These were the names of... Read More »