Pope Francis reflects on Saint Gregory of Narek's prayersApril 27, 2023 - 14:19 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Pope Francis on Wednesday, April 26 continued with his series of catecheses on “apostolic zeal”, this week focusing on the crucial role that monks and nuns play in the Church’s mission, Vatican News reports. The Holy Father’s catechesis focused in particular on Saint Gregory of Narek, a medieval Armenian monk who, he said, offers a shining example of the universal, all-embracing love which Christians are called to. Saint Gregory, the Pope said, spent almost his entire life in the monastery of Narek, where he “learned to peer into the depths of the human soul and, by fusing poetry and prayer together, achieved the pinnacle of both Armenian literature and spirituality.” What most strikes him about the saint, the Holy Father went on, is his “universal solidarity” – his identification with all people and his decision to dedicate his life to praying for them. He sees the faults of humanity not primarily in others, the Pope continued, but in himself, writing in his masterpiece the Book of Lamentations that "I have voluntarily taken upon myself all faults, from those of the first father down to the last of his descendants, and I have held myself responsible for them". This universal solidarity, Pope Francis stressed, was not exclusive to St Gregory, but is rather a feauture of the lives all nuns and monks, who, "like Jesus, take on the world's problems, the difficulties, the illnesses, many things, and pray for others." Cloistered religious, he said, are always busy - with work, and with prayer. The Pope thus ended his catechesis with an encouragement to his listeners to visit monasteries whenever possible - "it'll do you good!". Top stories The number of state universities will be reduced from 23 to 8 by 2030, Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport Zhanna Andreasyan has said. From September 21 to November 11, a total of 2,820 Russians registered at a place of residence in Armenia, the police has said. The situation on the contact line between Karabakh and Azerbaijan was relatively stable overnight, the Defense Army says. Defense Minister Suren Papikyan has visited the southern Armenian province of Syunik, the Defense Ministry reported on March 18. Partner news | Czech-Armenian military cooperation discussed in Yerevan A delegation led by the Director General for the Industrial Cooperation Division of the Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic visited Armenia. U.S. welcomes efforts to define Armenia-Azerbaijan border The United States welcomes efforts to define the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan, says Vedant Patel. Biden honors resilience of Armenian people on April 24 U.S. President Joe Biden has issued a statement on the 109th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. Macron says France commemorates 109th anniv. of Armenian genocide Today France commemorates the 109th anniversary of the Armenian genocide of 1915, Macron says. |