Saint Who?
Saints Who Taught about Prayer
Saint Gregory of Narek
Priest and Doctor († 1005) Feast: February 27
Although most Westerners have never heard of him, Gregory of Narek has been beloved by the Armenian people for over a millennium. When Pope Francis declared Gregory a Doctor of the Church, he called him “an extraordinary interpreter of the human soul.”
Gregory’s father became a bishop after Gregory’s mother died. Gregory grew up to become a priest, and he taught theology at a monastery school. Few other details about his life are known. However, he left behind many writings, including his literary masterpiece, Book of Lamentations. This work is a ten-thousand-line mystical poem in which Gregory speaks to the Lord “from the depths of his heart.” He laments his sufferings and sins, praises God’s mercy, and poses questions to God. Armenians have united their own struggles to the words of this lyric poem, particularly during times of poverty and violence.
While the kingdom of Armenia became the first official Christian state in the 4th century, the Armenian people have endured many periods of invasion, conquest, and even genocide since that time. When persecuted and facing death for their faith in Jesus Christ, generations of Armenians have faced their sufferings with trust in God’s love and mercy by reading Gregory’s Lamentations.
Son of the Living God, move us to speak to you
from the depths of our hearts.
