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KAMURJ

THE ARMENIAN CHURCH IN THE FOURTH CENTURY

ST. GRIGOR controlled the Armenian Church for a quarter of a century, carrying out all that was necessary for bestowing on her an organisation both perfect and sound. We are indebted to him for the canons which bear his name for the homilies which are ascribed to him, and for certain services of a disciplinary and liturgical order, which date back to his time. He established close on four hundred episcopal and archiepiscopal dioceses for the spiritual government of Armenia and of the surrounding country. He was the moving spirit in the conversion of Georgia, of Caspian Albania, and of Atropatene, whither he despatched leaders and ecclesiastics. He died at the time of the meeting of the Council of Nicaea (325). His sons succeeded him first the younger who was unmarried, St. Aristakes (325-333) then the elder, St. Vertanes (333-341), who was a married man. The latter had as his successor his own son, St. Houssik (341-347). The retention of the patriarchate in the family of St. Grigor was at the wish of the nation, either as a desire to do homage to the great Illuminator, or as an unconscious compliance with the influences of a pagan custom. The refusal of the sons of Houssik to take orders introduced to the patriarchal see Paren of Aschtisch at, a collateral relative (348-352); soon, however, the successor reverted to the direct line by the election of St. Nerses, the grandson of Houssik (353-373). But while the only son of Nerses was still of an age which made him in eligible for preferment, the nation arranged for the successive appointment of Schahak (373-377), Zaven (377-381), and Aspourakes (381-386), the descendants, all of them, of the priestly household of Albianus who bad assisted St. Grigor in the work of evangelization. After that the patriarchal dignity reverted once more to the family of Grigor, in the person of the son of Nerses, St. Sahak (Isaac), who completed his full jubilee on the patriarchal throne (387-439). It is, indeed, true that the accuracy of the chronology of the patriarchs of the fourth century is disputed by modern historians, but the data from which we draw our facts have been gathered by research made directly from the original sources.

The Armenian Church in the fourth century, though hierarchically and administratively well organized, lacked, nevertheless, an element of the utmost necessity: a version of the Bible and a ritual written in her own language; the Armenian, who was as yet unprovided with an alphabet, could not set down in writing the living word of the sacred books. Scholastic instruction was acquired in foreign languages, and the famous schools of Caesarea in Cappadocia and of Edessa in Osroene were the only centres of enlightenment accessible to Armenia at that time. The Greek language was in use in the schools of Caesarea, where the students of the northern provinces resorted Syrian prevailed at Edessa, where flocked the students from the south. St. Grigor was the first to establish schools, at the head of which he was obliged to appoint foreign teachers. His successors followed his example but it was St. Nerses who gave the most intense impetus to the furtherance of scholastic and charitable institutions.

In spite of the combined efforts of St. Grigor and of king Tiridates towards the complete Christianisation of Armenia, pagan worship had not yet entirely disappeared from the country. In the mountainous districts the old-established deities were still in evidence by their altars and their priests. In vain were the efforts of the patriarchs to root out these ancient practices, which retained their hold until the time of St. Nerses, who dealt them a severe blow. Yet traces of them were still met with in the time of St. Sahak. What obstinately held their ground were pagan customs, and their prevalence continued among the people, and more especially in the palace of the sovereigns and among the satraps. The patriarchs, at the risk of bringing on themselves the fury of the civil power, often had need to exert all their pastoral courage in battling against the abuses and the moral iniquities of such a society, not yet sufficiently enlightened by Christianity. It was on this account that St. Aristakes was assassinated by the satrap of Dzovk (Sophene); that St. Vertanes was obliged to escape from the pursuit of the mountaineers of Sim (Sassun), who were stirred up by the queen; that St. Houssik died under the scourgings of king Tiran; and that St. Daniel of Aschtischat, who had been nominated to the patriarchate, came to a similar end. But these persecutions did in no way moderate the zeal of these saintly pontiffs.

Concerning the doctrine which was observed by the prelates of the early Church, there is nothing new to say. The whole Church in the fourth century was united by the same dogmas. The East and the West were in complete fellowship in faith and in charity. The chief heresies which arose in the course of that century in the East, those of the Arians and the Macedonians, were condemned by the Councils of Nicaea (325) and of Constantinople (381), the decisions of which were strictly observed by the Armenians. St. Aristakes was himself present at the first Council and if, in the second, the Armenians had no representatives, they, nevertheless, never ceased to abide by the letter and the spirit of its decisions.

The Armenian national liturgy, as we have said, had not yet been framed for want of an alphabet and of a literature adapted to its needs. The Bible and the rituals were read in the Greek and Syriac languages. But, as much as the people were ignorant of both languages, an oral translation was rendered to them in the church itself. A special order of translators (Thargmanitch) had to be included in the religious service, to orally interpret the passages of the holy scriptures which were read by the readers (Verdzanogh). They explained the prayers of the ritual and instructed the people, in their mother tongue, in certain prayers based on the psalms and the offices. If we were to note the differences of phraseology between the construction of the psalms of the offices and of that in the text of the scriptures, we would find two translations: the former, dating from the fourth century, for the use of the people the latter, a classical one of the fifth century, based on the Greek text.