In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Yesterday, the Armenian Church celebrated a little known feast day dedicated to the honor of five sainted men who lived centuries ago. Their names are not as common as the names of the other saints but they should be because these five moral men left their mark on history. History shows us how to behave. History teaches us who we are. It reinforces what we believe in and from where we came and history points out what we ought to be willing to stand up for.
Yesterday was a feast founded upon the pages of history and celebrates the lives of the five men named Aristakes, Vertanes, Hoosig, Grigoris and Taniel. These men were the sons and grandsons of St. Gregory the Illuminator and each a successor to the title of Catholicos of the Armenian Church. These five men are remembered by name each time the Badarak is celebrated in an Armenian Church anywhere in the world and it is interesting that these men were canonized into sainthood not because of their relationship to St. Gregory but for the fact that each of them gave up his life for his faith.
Apparently, the development of the Christian faith in ancient Armenia occurred over a period of time as the Princes of the land slowly developed their own personal faith. According to historians, their morals and values were likewise slow in taking on Christian characteristics. So, as all this was going on, Aristakes, Vertanes and the others—all moral church leaders—pushed the Princes of Armenia to live their lives with the moral standards that befit the teachings of Jesus Christ and because they stood firm in their moral demands, each of these five men were martyred at different times by the different Princes of our ancient homeland.
At the time these men lived, there was a desire building up in Armenia to go back to pre-Christian ways. Even foreign governments were trying to impose their religion and cultural identity upon the Armenians. Even within the Armenians themselves, small pagan communities were trying to maintain their traditions and roll back the land of St. Gregory and king D’rtad to pre-Christian times.
Should we be surprised by this? No, in fact, it should be expected because 4th century Armenians only knew Pagan ways up to that point and that was handed down to them through generations of family tradition. Pre-Christian culture in Armenia was very different than what the Christian King of Armenia was trying to put into place across his land. So, he called upon the sons and grandsons of St. Gregory to align the people and the Princes of his land with the teachings of Jesus Christ.
In the early days of the Church, the bishops and clergy focused their teachings primarily on love and forgiveness. In other words, how we treat people, how we accept people, how we interact with people makes a difference in the eyes of God.
Now, imagine if these five men lived today and they challenged us the way they challenged the people of their time3 and asked us the very same questions.
- Are you good to other people?
- What have you done with the people God placed in your lives along the way?
- Have you been kind and considerate?
- Do you walk with God in your heart?
- Do you speak and act with love and regard other people as valuable and special?
How would you answer?
What these five men were trying to instill in 4th century Armenia was a new mind-set. That we can’t treat people poorly and expect God’s favor. We can’t live putting ourselves above others and claim we love God. The sons and grandsons of St. Gregory died teaching our ancestors that the selfless loving Christ ALWAYS put others first and they ask us to do no less.
Imagine if these five great men asked you the same questions they asked of 4th century Armenians. How would you answer? Something for all of us to think about.
Amen.