Editing Gregory the Illuminator (section)

== Relics and veneration ==
After his death his corpse was removed to the village of Thodanum (T'ordan, modern [[Doğanköy, Kemah]], near [[Erzincan]]).

The [[Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin]], the [[Armenian Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia]], the [[Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem]] and the [[Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople]] each claim to have relics from the right arm of the saint, in an arm-shaped reliquary.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kouymjian |first1=Dickran |editor1-last=Borgeaud and Youri Volokhine |editor1-first=Philippe |editor2-last=Volokhine |editor2-first=Youri |title=The Right Hand of St. Gregory and other Armenian Arm Relics |journal=Les objets de la mémoire. Pour une approche comparatiste des reliques et de leur culte |year=2005 |pages=215–240 |url=https://www.academia.edu/18448087}}</ref> The [[catholicosate]]s of Etchmiadzin and Cilicia use the arm relic for the blessing of the [[chrism|Holy Myron]] every seven years.

In the calendar of the Armenian Church, the discovery of the relics of St. Gregory is an important feast and is commemorated on the Saturday before the Fourth Sunday after Pentecost.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://armenianchurchsydney.org.au/discovery-of-the-relics-of-st-gregory-the-illuminator/ |title=Discovery of the Relics of St Gregory the Illuminator – Armenian Apostolic Church of Holy Resurrection}}</ref> Two other feast days in the Armenian Apostolic Church are devoted to St. Gregory: the feast of his entry into [[Khor Virap]], the 'deep pit or dungeon' (commemorated on the last Saturday of Lent) and his deliverance from Khor Virap (commemorated on the Saturday before the second Sunday after Pentecost).<ref>Domar: the calendrical and liturgical cycle of the Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Church, Armenian Orthodox Theological Research Institute, 2002, pp. 391, 427–28.</ref>

=== Depictions in Armenian art ===
Gregory has been depicted widely in Armenian art since the early Middle Ages on various media. He is most likely the figure, a saint, carved on a seventh-century stele in [[Talin, Armenia|Talin]].{{sfn|Maranci|2018|p=47}} He is depicted next to John the Baptist, the prophet [[Elijah]], and most likely Thaddeus, [[James of Nisibis]], and the apostle Bartholomew on the east façade of the tenth-century [[Cathedral of the Holy Cross, Aghtamar|Aghtamar Cathedral]] in [[Lake Van]].{{sfn|Maranci|2018|p=70}} Sixteen scenes depicting Gregory's life are painted in the [[Ani#The church of St Gregory of Tigran Honents|Church of Tigran Honents]] in [[Ani]] (1215), that contains the most complete painted interior of all medieval Armenian monuments.{{sfn|Maranci|2018|pp=131-132}}

Gregory is depicted on the silver reliquary of Skevra (1293), the best known work of precious metal from [[Armenian Cilicia]], along with Saint Thaddeus,{{sfn|Maranci|2018|p=121}} and on the reliquary of the Holy Sign (1300), another significant piece of Armenian metalwork made at the [[:hy:Խոտակերաց վանք|Monastery of Khotakerats]], along with John the Baptist.{{sfn|Maranci|2018|p=152}} Gregory is depicted with King Trdat on the left and Hripsime on a 1448 processional banner of embroidered silk kept at the Treasury of Etchmiadzin.{{sfn|Maranci|2018|pp=181-3}} At the [[Vank Cathedral]] in [[New Julfa]], the Armenian district of [[Isfahan]], Iran, Gregory's martyrdom was painted in a European style by the Italian-trained [[Hovhannes M'rkuz Jułayeci]] in 1646.{{sfn|Maranci|2018|p=195}}

<gallery caption="Armenian depictions of Gregory" mode="packed" heights="150px">
File:Saint Grégoire et la foule, 1569.jpg|A [[Armenian illuminated manuscripts|miniature]] of Gregory and Trdat (as a boar) by [[:hy:Վարդան Բաղիշեցի (մանրանկարիչ)|Vardan Baghishetsi]] on a manuscript from [[Baghesh]], [[Vaspurakan]], {{circa|1569–70}}<ref>Illuminated by Vardan of Baghesh (Vardan Baghishets‘i; act. 1569–1578). Scribe: Hakob the deacon (sarkawag) (act. second half 16th century). Tempera and ink on paper; 353 folios. [[Matenadaran]], Yerevan, Armenia (ms 1920) {{cite book |last1=Piñon |first1=Erin |editor1-last=Evans |editor1-first=Helen C. |editor1-link=Helen C. Evans |title=Armenia: Art, Religion, and Trade in the Middle Ages |date=2018 |publisher=[[Metropolitan Museum of Art]] and [[Yale University Press]] |isbn=978-1-58839-660-0 |oclc=1028910888 |url=https://www.metmuseum.org/art/metpublications/Armenia_Art_Religion_and_Trade_in_the_Middle_Ages |chapter=Revival of Early Narratives in Manuscripts |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=ezNtDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA210 210]}}</ref>
File:Etchmiadzin Cathedral Gregory the Illuminator relief.jpg|[[Etchmiadzin Cathedral]], 17th century
File:Անհայտ հայ նկարիչ, 18-րդ դար Սուրբ Գրիգոր Լուսավորիչ.jpg|An 18th century painting by an unknown author
File:Gregory the Illuminator.jpg|''The Baptism of the Armenian People. Gregory the Illuminator'' by [[Ivan Aivazovsky]] (1892)
File:Սուրենյանց Վարդգես. Գրիգոր Լուսավորիչ.jpg|A painting by [[Vardges Sureniants]]
</gallery>

=== Byzantium and the Orthodox world ===
Gregory is commemorated on September 30 by the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]], which styles him "Holy Hieromartyr Gregory, Bishop of Greater Armenia, Equal of the Apostles and Enlightener of Armenia."

His relics were scattered near and far in the reign of the [[Eastern Roman Emperor]] [[Zeno (emperor)|Zeno]].{{sfn|Ayvazyan|1984|p=41}} Relic fragments are found at the [[Karakallou Monastery]] and [[Iviron Monastery]] on [[Mount Athos]]; the [[Gregoriou Monastery]] claims to have the saint's skull.<ref>{{cite web |title=Άγιος Γρηγόριος ο Ιερομάρτυρας επίσκοπος της Μεγάλης Αρμενίας |url=https://www.agiamarinaalykou.gr/%CF%83%CF%85%CE%BD%CE%B1%CE%BE%CE%AC%CF%81%CE%B9/%CF%80%CE%AD%CE%BC%CF%80%CF%84%CE%B7-30-%CF%83%CE%B5%CF%80%CF%84%CE%B5%CE%BC%CE%B2%CF%81%CE%AF%CE%BF%CF%85-2021/ |website=Ιερό Προσκύνημα Αγίας Μαρίνας Αλυκού |access-date=2 March 2024 |date=30 September 2021 |last1=Νεκτάριος |first1=Πάτερ }}</ref>

Veneration of Gregory began in the [[Byzantine Empire]] in the late 9th century with the ascend of [[Basil I]]. A 9th century mosaic of Gregory was uncovered in [[Hagia Sophia]] under a layer of plaster in 1847–49 during the restoration by the [[Fossati brothers]].{{sfn|Mango|Hawkins|1972|p=6}} Located in the south [[Tympanum (architecture)|tympanum]], next to the [[Fathers of the Church]], it shows Gregory standing in bishop robes, blessing with one hand and holding the [[Book of the Gospels]] with the other.{{sfn|Der Nersessian|1966|p=386}} The mosaic, thought to have been destroyed in the [[1894 Istanbul earthquake|1894 earthquake]], survives in drawing by [[:de:Wilhelm Salzenberg|Wilhelm Salzenberg]] and the Fossati brothers. [[Sirarpie Der Nersessian]] argued that his inclusion in the series of the Church Fathers is explained by the myth of the Arsacid origin of Basil I, likely fabricated by Patriarch [[Photios I of Constantinople]].{{sfn|Der Nersessian|1966|p=389}}{{sfn|Mango|Hawkins|1972|p=38}}

Gregory is depicted in two prominent Byzantine illuminated manuscripts—the ''[[Menologion of Basil II]]'' (c. 1000)<ref name="Menologion">{{cite web |title=Manuscript – Vat.gr.1613 |url=https://digi.vatlib.it/view/MSS_Vat.gr.1613/0096?sid=a7590df9b8aca22111c8359533716419&zoomlevel=4 |website=vatlib.it |publisher=[[Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana]] |archive-url=https://archive.today/20230212162232/https://digi.vatlib.it/view/MSS_Vat.gr.1613/0096?sid=a7590df9b8aca22111c8359533716419&zoomlevel=4 |archive-date=12 February 2023}}</ref> and the ''[[Theodore Psalter]]'' (1066)<ref name="BLcontent" /><ref>{{cite web |title=Add MS 19352: f.48r |url=https://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/Viewer.aspx?ref=add_ms_19352_f048r |website=bl.uk |publisher=[[British Library]] |archive-url=https://archive.today/20230212161542/https://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/Viewer.aspx?ref=add_ms_19352_f048r |archive-date=12 February 2023}}</ref>—and in a number of Byzantine churches and monasteries, most notably [[Hosios Loukas]] (11th century),{{sfn|Mango|Hawkins|1972|p=25}} [[Church of Panagia Chalkeon]] in [[Thessaloniki]] (11th century), and the [[Pammakaristos Church]] in Constantinople (14th century).{{sfn|Der Nersessian|1966|p=390}}

One of the sections of Moscow's iconic [[Saint Basil's Cathedral]] is named after Gregory the Armenian (''Tserkov Grigoriya Armyanskogo''). It is dedicated to the capture of Ars Tower of the [[Kazan Kremlin]] by [[Ivan the Terrible]] during the [[Siege of Kazan]] on September 30, 1552, on his feast day.<ref>{{cite book |last=Brunov |first=N. I. |title=Храм Василия Блаженного в Москве. Покровский собор [Cathedral of Vasily the Blessed in Moscow: Pokrovsky Cathedral] |publisher=[[Iskusstvo]] |language=ru |year=1988 |pages=6–10}}, supplemental tables.</ref>

<gallery caption="Byzantine depictions of Gregory" mode="packed" heights="150px">
File:Gregory the Illuminator mosaic in Hagia Sophia by Wilhelm Salzenberg.jpg|Lost mosaic from [[Hagia Sophia]] (9th century){{efn|As reproduced by [[:de:Wilhelm Salzenberg|Wilhelm Salzenberg]].<ref>{{cite web |title=C. W.; Salzenberg, W. [Editor] Alt-christliche Baudenkmale von Constantinopel vom V. bis XII. Jahrhundert |url=https://digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/diglit/salzenberg1854/0097/image,info |website=uni-heidelberg.de |publisher=[[Heidelberg University]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230206065030/https://digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/diglit/salzenberg1854/0097/image,info |archive-date=6 February 2023 |page=29}}</ref>}}
<!-- File:Fossati 003.JPG| -->
File:Menologion of Basil 038.jpg|in the ''[[Menologion of Basil II]]'' (c. 1000)<ref name="Menologion" />
File:Theodore Psalter. Gregory brings Tiridates to Christ.jpg|in the ''[[Theodore Psalter]]'' (1066){{efn|"St. Gregory brings Tiridates to Christ. (Gregory has purple tunic, pink cloak, and white stole w. black crosses)."<ref name="BLcontent">{{cite web |title=Add MS 19352: Theodore Psalter |url=https://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/FullDisplay.aspx?ref=Add_MS_19352 |website=bl.uk |publisher=[[British Library]] |archive-url=https://archive.today/20230212161318/https://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/FullDisplay.aspx?ref=Add_MS_19352 |archive-date=12 February 2023}}</ref>}}
File:Istanbul - Chiesa Pammacaristos (Fetiye camii) - San Gregorio armeniaco - Foto G. Dall'Orto 26-5-2006.jpg|A mosaic at the [[Pammakaristos Church]] (14th century){{sfn|Der Nersessian|1966|p=390}}
</gallery>

=== Italy and the Catholic world ===
[[File:Gregory the Illuminator, of Armenia statue, St. Peter's Basilica, Rome, Vatican4.jpg|thumb|A statue of St. Gregory in Vatican's [[St. Peter's Basilica]] inaugurated in 2005. ]]

In the 8th century, the [[Iconoclasm|iconoclast]] decrees in Greece caused a number of religious orders to flee the [[Byzantine Empire]] and seek refuge elsewhere. [[San Gregorio Armeno]] in [[Naples]] was built in that century over the remains of a Roman temple dedicated to [[Ceres (mythology)|Ceres]], by a group of nuns escaping from the Byzantine Empire with the relics of Gregory,<ref name="Fortescue">[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07023a.htm Fortescue, Adrian. "Gregory the Illuminator." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 13 Aug. 2014]</ref> including his skull, arms, a femur bone, his staff, the leather straps used in his torture and the manacles that held the saint.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TksBAAAAQAAJ&q=chains+saint+gregory+illuminator+naples&pg=PA31 |title=Mysteries of the Neapolitan cloister |last1=Caracciolo |first1=Enrichetta |year=1865}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |title=Hovhannes Tomajan and the Queen of Naples |journal=Hay Endanik |date=March–April 1987 |page=42-43 |publisher=Mekhitarist Order of San Lazzaro, Venice, Italy |url=https://www.stthomasarmenianchurch.com/religious-information/saints-feast-days/st-gregory-the-enlightener/ |access-date=2024-03-03 |archive-date=2018-03-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180312215928/https://www.stthomasarmenianchurch.com/religious-information/saints-feast-days/st-gregory-the-enlightener/ |url-status=bot: unknown}}</ref> The femur and manacles were returned by [[Pope John Paul II]] to Catholicos [[Karekin II]] and are now enshrined at [[Saint Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral, Yerevan|Saint Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral]] in [[Yerevan]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://asbarez.com/44044/relics-of-st-gregory-returned-to-etchmiadzin/ |title=Relics of St. Gregory Returned to Etchmiadzin |date=13 November 2000}}</ref>

On February 20, 1743, [[Nardò]], Italy was hit by a devastating earthquake that destroyed almost the entire city. The only structure to survive intact after the quake was the city's statue of St. Gregory the Illuminator. According to the city's registers, only 350 out of the city's 10,000 inhabitants died in the earthquake, leading the inhabitants to believe that St. Gregory saved the city. Every year, they mark the anniversary of the earthquake by holding three days of celebrations in his honor. Two relics of the saint are at [[Nardò Cathedral]]: one is kept in a silver bust of the saint,<ref>{{cite web |last1=Gaballo |first1=Marcello |title=Un busto di San Gregorio armeno tra i tesori della cattedrale di Nardò |url=https://www.fondazioneterradotranto.it/2013/02/19/un-busto-di-san-gregorio-armeno-tra-i-tesori-della-cattedrale-di-nardo-2/ |website=Fondazione Terra D'Otranto |access-date=1 March 2024 |date=19 February 2013}}</ref> which is carried in processions, and the other, the metacarpus, is kept within a silver arm-shaped reliquary.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Gaballo |first1=Marcello |title=20 febbraio. San Gregorio armeno l'Illuminatore, patrono di Nardò |url=https://www.fondazioneterradotranto.it/2013/02/20/20-febbraio-san-gregorio-armeno-lilluminatore-patrono-di-nardo-2/ |website=Fondazione Terra D'Otranto |access-date=1 March 2024 |date=20 February 2013}}</ref>

The feast day of Saint Gregory the Illuminator is on September 30 according to both the 2004 [[Roman Martyrology]] of the [[Ordinary Form]] and the 1956 Roman Martyrology<ref>{{cite book |title=The Roman martyrology, in which are to be found the eulogies of the saints and blessed approved by the Sacred Congregation of Rites up to 1961 |date=1962 |publisher=The Newman Press |pages=214 |url=https://archive.org/details/romanmartyrology0000cath/page/n5/mode/2up |access-date=2 March 2024}}</ref> of the [[Extraordinary Form]] of the [[Catholic Church]]; however, the 1962 [[Roman Missal]]<ref>{{cite book |title=Missale Romanum 1962 |pages=204 |url=https://media.musicasacra.com/pdf/missale62.pdf}}</ref> and its previous editions list the feast day of "Saint Gregory, Bishop of Greater Armenia and Martyr" on October 1.

A {{convert|5.7|m|abbr=on}} tall statue of Gregory in the [[Carrara marble]] was installed in the north courtyard of [[St. Peter's Basilica]] in [[Vatican City]] in January 2005. Sculpted by France-based Lebanese-Armenian sculptor Khatchik Kazandjian, the statue was inaugurated by [[Pope John Paul II]]. Gregory is depicted holding a cross in one hand and the Bible in the other.<ref>{{cite news |title=Vatican Unveils Monument of Saint Gregory the Illuminator |url=https://asbarez.com/vatican-unveils-monument-of-saint-gregory-the-illuminator/ |work=[[Asbarez]] |date=January 19, 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207183756/https://asbarez.com/vatican-unveils-monument-of-saint-gregory-the-illuminator/ |archive-date=7 February 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Pope extends special greeting to Armenian Patriarch |url=https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/2872/pope-extends-special-greeting-to-armenian-patriarch |agency=[[Catholic News Agency]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207185114/https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/2872/pope-extends-special-greeting-to-armenian-patriarch |archive-date=7 February 2023 |date=January 18, 2005}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Monument To Grigor Enlightener To Be Erected |url=https://www.panarmenian.net/eng/politics/news/11920/ |agency=[[PanARMENIAN.Net]] |date=January 17, 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208154741/https://www.panarmenian.net/eng/politics/news/11920/ |archive-date=8 February 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=St. Gregory Finds a Niche at a Vatican: Pope Blesses Statue of Apostle of Armenia |url=https://www.byzcath.org/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/2488/Re:_St._Gregory_Finds_a_Niche_ |agency=[[Zenit News Agency]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207185111/https://www.byzcath.org/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/2488/Re:_St._Gregory_Finds_a_Niche_ |archive-date=7 February 2023}}</ref> [[Pope Benedict XVI]] inaugurated the area as [[:File:Gregory the Illuminator, of Armenia courtyard, St. Peter's Basilica, Rome, Vatican.jpg|St. Gregory the Illuminator Courtyard]] in February 2008.<ref>{{cite web |title=Address of His Holiness Benedict XVI During the Inauguration of A Plaque of St Gregory the Illuminator in the North Courtyard of the Vatican Basilica |url=https://www.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/speeches/2008/february/documents/hf_ben-xvi_spe_20080222_san-gregorio.html |website=vatican.va |publisher=[[Libreria Editrice Vaticana]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207183752/https://www.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/speeches/2008/february/documents/hf_ben-xvi_spe_20080222_san-gregorio.html |archive-date=7 February 2023 |date=22 February 2008}}</ref>

Church of [[San Gregorio Armeno]] is a church and a monastery in [[Naples]], [[Italy]] named after the Gregory the Illuminator

=== Anglican Communion ===
He is honored with a [[Calendar of saints|feast day]] on the [[Calendar of saints (Episcopal Church in the United States of America)|liturgical calendar of the Episcopal Church (USA)]] on March 23.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=W3e7DwAAQBAJ |title=Lesser Feasts and Fasts 2018 |date=2019-12-01 |publisher=Church Publishing, Inc. |isbn=978-1-64065-234-7 |language=en}}</ref>