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St. Peter's Patio Dedicated to Armenian Patron

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  • St. Peter's Patio Dedicated to Armenian Patron

    Zenit News Agency, Italy
    Feb. 22, 2008


    St. Peter's Patio Dedicated to Armenian Patron


    VATICAN CITY, FEB. 22, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI dedicated the
    north patio of St. Peter's Basilica to St. Gregory the Illuminator,
    the national saint and patron of Armenia.

    The Pope did this today during a brief ceremony attended by
    Archbishop Nerses Bedros XIX, patriarch of Cilicia of the Armenian
    Catholics, and a group of prelates of the Armenian Catholic Church.

    Recalling that, a few months before his death, Pope John Paul II
    blessed the statue of St. Gregory the Illuminator that is located in
    that patio, Benedict XVI affirmed that "this great saint has made the
    Armenians, for more than 17 centuries, a Christian people, and more,
    the first officially Christian people."

    The Pope said "St. Gregory was called the illuminator precisely
    because in him the Lord's face is reflected in an extraordinary way."

    The Holy Father asked that the "Armenian people, through the
    intercession of this illustrious and distinguished son, continue
    their journey along the paths of faith, letting themselves be guided,
    as they have for centuries, by Christ and by his Gospel, which has
    indelibly marked their culture."
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