In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
We all know that there are days in the year that stand apart from other days. We consider those days special—birthdays, anniversaries, holidays. The Church also has special days and calls these days “Feast Days.” Church feast days and holidays are more than just dates on the calendar. They are living connections to centuries of history, faith and identity. Whether religious or secular, these celebrations have always revealed what mattered most to our ancestors: family, faith, community, resilience and remembrance.
This past week there were four important feast days in the Armenian Church. The week began by celebrating the lives of Saints Hripsime and Gayaneh and they continued on through yesterday and today with the feasts of St. Gregory the Illuminator and of Holy Etchmiadzin. Through these feasts, very important saints are remembered and honored and very important cathedrals are celebrated.
Here is the story of Saints Hripsime and Gayaneh. It was the year 287 A.D., King Drtad began his persecution of Christians in Armenia by having St. Gregory imprisoned in a deep pit at the foot of Mount Ararat. At this time, “According to history, thirty-six nuns under their leadership of the Mother Superior Gayaneh, escaped to Armenia hoping to find refuge from the Roman Emperor who desired to wed the nun named Hripsime because of her rare beauty. The Armenian King Drtad heard of these nuns and of their entry into his lands. He had them found and brought to him. Drtad, too, recognized Hripsime’s unusual beauty and fell in love with her. After many efforts to win her over, the King saw that it was useless and that she would not consent to marrying him, nor leave her Christian faith. So the King grew furious and had Hripsime tortured unspeakable tortures. The following day, the King ordered Gayaneh and the other thirty-four nuns put to similar horrible deaths.” The rest of the story we should all know well. Soon after the King put Hripsime and the other nuns to death, he went insane from guilt and according to historical accounts, behaved in every way “like a wild boar.”
Soon after that, King Drtad’s sister, Khosrovidukht, had a dream that only St. Gregory could cure her brother. So, she ordered the Royal Court to release Gregory from the pit so that he could pray over the King and cure him of his mental illness and so it happened. The rest is history—that St. Gregory converted the King of Armenia, the Royal Family of Armenia and the Land of Armenia to Christianity.
Upon his release from the pit, St. Gregory built chapels over the relics of those thirty-three holy nuns and later in the 7th century, two beautiful cathedrals were erected to permanently house the remains of those thirty-six pious nuns. Those two cathedrals stand tall today as witnesses to the faith of Hripsime and Gayaneh.
What’s the lesson we can take away from the lives of these two great female saints of the Armenian Church? Hripsime and Gayaneh were drawn to everything Jesus Christ did and taught. They were refreshed and encouraged because of Him. Through their faith, they heard the Voice of God calling them to remain firm in their beliefs and because of their faith, they were given the Crown of Heaven.
Why? Because while they stood among all that noise, while they fled from Rome to Armenia, while Caesars and Kings tried to convert their faith, they only heard the Voice of God and they chose to follow His voice.
Today, we live in a world that is unpredictable and often frightening and we are all aware of the bad things that could happen to us and to our loved ones. But despite it all, because of faith, we can rise up every morning and face the world because the Voice of God speaks to us, too. His voice cares about us. His voice protects us. The Voice of God makes the world seem less frightening.
The main message of Hripsime and Gayanerh IS NOT that bad things will never happen to us because of course they will. The main message is that we will not face those bad things alone because God is with us.
The headlines of tomorrow will still speak of violence and tragedy, but as Christians, we face the world with God’s voice gently speaking into our ear as our constant companion guiding jus through life.
So, let’s ask ourselves:
- Do you listen for the Voice of God in your life today?
- If you don’t, then what is it that prevents you from hearing it?
Amen.