VATICAN CITY (A.W.)—Pope Francis has declared celebrated 10th century
Armenian mystic and poet, St. Gregory of Narek, a Doctor of the
Universal Church. The Vatican said Monday that the Pope had agreed to
bestow the honor on St. Gregory after the decision made by the Vatican’s
office in charge of saint-making, reported the Vatican Radio.
St. Gregory of Narek,
The title of Doctor of the Universal Church is one of the church’s
highest honors—reserved for people whose writings have greatly served
the universal church, reports the Associated Press. In all, only 35
people have been given the title over the years. Doctors of the Church
include St. Augustine, St. Francis de Sales, and St. Teresa of Avila.
St. Gregory lived around 950 to 1005 and is regarded as one of the
most significant figures of medieval Armenian religious thought. The
Book of Lamentations, commonly referred to simply as the
Narek, is a mystical poem in 95 sections, and is considered his most important work.
The designation comes only a few weeks before the Pope is scheduled
to celebrate Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.
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