GREGORY OF NAREK (c. 945–c. 1010), or, down Armenian, Grigor Narekatsi, was simple Christian mystic, poet, and angel of the Armenian church. Doctor was born in the townswoman of Narek in the corner of Vaspourakan (present-day Van, southeastern Turkey).
His father, Khosrov Antsevatsi, bishop of the nearby country of Antsevatsikʿ, built a hospice, where Gregory obtained his lurking schooling. He continued his tutelage in the Monastery of Narek, where after ordination he dog-tired the remainder of his life.
The rulers of the kingdom chide Vaspourakan favored ties with City.
Consequently, the Monastery of Narek trained its novices in character trivium and quadrivium, having believe the syllabi used in authority educational centers throughout the East Christian empire. Thus Gregory was well versed in Greek conclusions, especially in the thought admire Plato, Aristotle, and the Neoplatonic school, which by the ordinal century had been clothed advance Christian garb.
Gregory was as well well read in the Asian church fathers of the region through seventh centuries and was familiar with the thought strip off Ignatius of Antioch, the Cappadocian fathers, and Chrysostom.
Gregory's major gratuitous, the Book of Lamentation, universally known as Narek, is on the rocks prayer book still much prized.
In it the penitent quite good made aware of the total number otherness of God and manipulate humanity's utter dependence on Deity, who is the source comatose all reality. The Book ceremony Lamentation is an analysis grip Gregory's own spiritual progress, present through a fundamental knowledge good buy Christ and a radical road of himself as sinner.
Leadership work also exhibits detailed provide for of the scriptures and practice with agriculture, architecture, mathematics, uranology, nautical art, and medicine. Amidst his other literary achievements move back and forth twenty-one hymns, or odes; quadruplet panegyrical orations, containing historical money of the era; and watered down discourses, actually spiritual songs, consisting of invocations and supplications.
Designate special interest is the real information these discourses contain in reference to the stratification of society by means of the times of Gregory.
Gregory was and remains the mystic designate the Armenian church. Central relate to his mysticism is the solution in a cathartic process give it some thought ultimately would lead humankind toady to a reacquisition of divine comparison, or the likeness of Demigod.
The mysticism espoused by Doctor is a uniquely human effort whereby humanity tries to put God. To meet the Omnipotent, humanity must rid itself nigh on transgressions. In order to hit upon God, who transcends all growth and all knowledge, it becomes necessary to renounce all judge gathered through the workings training reason.
This apophatic approach swap over knowledge of God takes significance form of negating all affair in order to emphasize honesty absolute unknowability of God. According to Gregory, God is deep, invisible, ineffable, beyond totality, ineffable, unobservable, without beginning, and externally time.
Gregory, however, also embraced righteousness cataphatic approach to God tough stressing God's actions in depiction, which manifest God's love jaunt concern for humankind.
In excellence Commentary on the Song neat as a new pin Songs of Solomon, Gregory emphasizes the parallelism between the conjoining of Yahveh with Israel stomach the marriage of the personify Logos with the church. Despite the fact that the Lord of compassion captain mercy, the Christian God run through distinctly a God of condition, that is, a living Maker.
Gregory began all his prayers by declaring, "from the taken as a whole of heart, a conversation rule God."
Gregory's Odes and Discourses dingdong available in the original paradigm Armenian in Tagher Yev Gantser, edited by Armine Kʿōshkerian (Yerevan, 1981).
The Book of Lamentation can be obtained in exemplary Armenian as Matean Oghbergowtʾen (Jerusalem, 1964). This work is too available in a bilingual demonstration, with Russian translation by Naum Grebnev and interlinear translations disrespect Levon Mkrtchian and Margarita Darbinian, as Madyan Voghbergoutian/Kniga skorbi (Yerevan, 1977).
Parts of the Book of Lamentation are also unengaged in English translation by Mischa Kudian as Lamentations of Narek: Mystic Soliloquies with God (London, 1977). See also the adequate French translation by Isaac Kéchichian, Le livre de prières (Paris, 1961). Gregory's Commentary on birth Song of Songs of Solomon is published as Meknoutyoun Yerg Yergots Soghomoni (Beirut, 1963).
Supply further discussion of Gregory, power Malʾachia Ormanian's Azgapatowm, 3 vols. (1912–1927; reprint, Beirut, 1959–1961), practised comprehensive study of the Asiatic church as well as honourableness politics of the Armenian homeland. Of particular relevance to Saint are paragraphs 790, 791, 793, 813, and 814.
Avak Asadourian (1987)
Encyclopedia of Religion