Today we celebrate the memorial of Saint Gregory of Narek.

Gregor was born between 945 and 950 in a settlement on the banks of Lake Van. A few years ago, his father, an archbishop, passed away. After Gregor’s mother passed away, a learned uncle took care of him and his elder brother and sent them to the Narek monastery, where he was a monk, to receive their education. The sanctuary, now in Turkey, was a well-known academic hub. Gregor also joined the monastery and received his ordination in 977.

A theology professor, Gregor also penned lengthy mystical poetry known as the Book of Prayer or Lamentations. He also authored a metaphysical interpretation of the Song of Songs. This literary classic is from Armenia, with over 30 languages worth of copies, and the poet called his poem “an encyclopedia of prayer for all people.” In 1985, music was composed to accompany the Book of Lamentations in Russian.

With his demise at the start of the 11th century and burial inside the Narek monastery’s walls, There was little information about Gregor, where he had lived much of his life. Gregory of Narek, a monk, poet, and saint of the Armenian Apostolic Church, was named a Doctor of the Church by Pope Francis in 2015 as the world commemorated the 100th anniversary of the Armenian genocide in the Ottoman Empire. Pope Francis shared the altar with Patriarch Nerses Bedros XIX Tarmouni during a Mass at the Vatican. Saint Gregory’s feast day is on February 27.

Source: franciscanmedia.org