Catholicos St. Nersess the Great and Armenian Charity
Usually, when we think about St. Nersess, it is the beloved twelfth century hymnist and scholar St. Nersess Shnorhali who comes to mind. The alphabetic Առաւօտ լուսոյ (Aravod Luso, known as the “Hymn for the Morning”) or his acrostic Նորաստեղծեալ (Norasdeghdzyal) are some of the best-known songs of the Daily Services, the Jamerkutyun prayers that comprise the main services outside of the Divine Liturgy. However, by 1102 when Shnorhali was born, the name Nersess was already a storied and illustrious name. Nersess Shnorhali is actually Catholicos Nersess IV and it would have been a great honor for him to take the name Nersess. Nersess is such an important name in the history of the Armenian Apostolic Church that during the diptychs—the series of litanies sung by the deacons shortly before the Lord’s Prayer—the list of patriarchs ends with “the Nersesses and the Gregorys.” These are the saints who were given these two names but that are not mentioned specifically. Catholicos Nersess I, known as Nersess the Great, the great-great-grandson of St. Gregory the Illuminator, was the first Catholicos and saint of the Armenian Church to be named Nersess. Every subsequent Nersess has had this great leader as the source of their name and a source of inspiration for their ministry.
Who was St. Nersess the Great? As mentioned, he was a direct descent of St. Gregory the Illuminator, at a time when the position of Catholicos was hereditary, a product of the nakharar system of Armenian governance where certain duties were held by specific families. We learn about him and his ministry from several of the earliest Armenian histories, including “the Father of Armenian History,” Moses Khorenatsi. Khorenatsi is partially dependent upon account in The Epic Histories, once attributed Pastos Buzand and still called the Buzandaran. When King Arshak ascended to the throne of Armenia, he sought out a descendent of St. Gregory to renew the “spiritual leadership” of Armenia just as the king was renewing the kingdom itself. Before becoming Catholicos, Nersess had an illustrious military career who was described as “a large man of tall and pleasing stature.” More importantly, he was so humble that when he was asked to be ordained and to become Catholicos, he made up negative things about himself because he didn’t consider himself worthy! This humility, an important attribute for any spiritual leader, was one of the central attributes of his character.
Once he was finally convinced to take on the responsibility of Catholicos, he went to Caesarea, modern Kayseri, which was an important center of Christianity. While Khorenatsi tells us that Nersess had been in both Byzantium (Constantinople/Istanbul) and Caesarea before returning to Armenia (which would have given him a connection to St. Basil the Great, the Buzandaran says only that he went to Caesarea after he agreed to be ordained. Following the custom begun by St. Gregory the Illuminator, who himself had grown up in Caesarea, Nersess went to Caesarea to be ordained. According to the Buzandaran, it was none other than the great bishop and renowned historian of the early church, Eusebius of Caesarea who ordained him. Nersess then returned to Armenia and took up the patriarchal throne. As Catholicos, he was perhaps the dominant figure in Armenia during the middle of the fourth century: he rebuked and outlived kings, met with important figures of the larger Christian Church, and contended with the policies of emperors and kings.
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By “the Father of Armenian History,” Moses Khorenatsi. Translated by Robert W. Thomson. |
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The epic histories attributed to Pʿawstos Buzand (Buzandaran patmutʿiwnkʿ) |
One of the most important early Armenian histories. It provides the most detailed account of the life and ministry of St. Nersess the Great. Translated with extensive commentary by Dr. Nina Garsoïan. |
Written by Eusebius, the Bishop of Caesarea in the fourth century, this history defined the genre of Christian history-writing and cemented the centrality of Constantine the Great in the history of Christianity. St. Nersess the Great was ordained by him in Caesarea. |
Recounting all the details of the life and deeds of Catholicos St. Nersess the Great would be well beyond the scope of this short introduction, and we encourage you to read the most detailed account of his ministry as it is presented in Books IV and V of the Buzandaran. Here, we will emphasize some of his greatest accomplishments. They are long-lasting, institutional achievements that shaped Armenian Christianity for centuries to come. In this way, St. Nersess the Great is truly a source for all of subsequent Armenian Christianity.
The Buzandaran tells us that shortly after he ascended to the patriarchal throne, he convened a council at Ashtishat, an important site of the early Armenian Church where previous synods had been held. There, the assembled bishops discussed canons of the church and St. Nersess pushed for uniformity in belief and practice throughout all of Armenia. Throughout his time as Catholicos, Nersess was a staunch defender of the orthodox Christian faith. The uniformity that he emphasized was upheld by his friends and supporters, such as Khad, the Bishop of Bagrevand, whom Nersess left as Vicar when he traveled abroad through Greek territory. Khad is mentioned alongside St. Nersess in the diptychs.
In addition to overseeing these organizational developments of the Armenian Church, St. Nersess the Great is credited with developing monasteries and monastic life in Armenia. We know from other historians that there were various ascetics and monastics: the Voskiank and Susiasank, early martyrs in Armenia were also lived an ascetic existence. St. Gregory himself retreated to the “Caves of Mane.” Yet the organized, communal, cenobitic monasticism that developed in Egypt, Palestine, and Cappadocia really developed under the support of St. Nersess the Great. In fact, tradition has it that the Rule of St. Basil, one of the most influential and widespread set of rules for communal monastic living, were brought to Armenia by St. Nersess after he visited St. Basil the Great during his travels through the Eastern Roman/Byzantine Empire. The Rule of St. Basil was the charter document for many Armenian monasteries. So, our Armenian monasteries, fundamental sources of Armenian Christian learning and teaching throughout the centuries, partially have their source in the work of St. Nersess the Great.
Finally, perhaps the most important efforts of St. Nersess the Great involve the creation of charitable institutions. The Buzandaran says that he indicated “the most suitable places to be set aside for the building of almshouses for the poor and to collect the sick, the lepers, the paralytics, and all those who suffered; leper-houses were designated for them, assistance and maintenance, as well as shelters for the poor.” In essence, he created communal, “publicly funded” (or funded through the Church) hospitals and support centers for the sick and the poor. Khorenatsi says that Nersess set these up “to offer relief to the suffering on the model of the Greek hospitals.” If this is the case, then we can see the influence of a specific form of Greek charitable foundation, one that was common during the Byzantine era, on the development of large-scale religious public projects in Armenia. Centuries later, the Islamic institution of the waqf or the vakif, another form of charitable endowment or foundation, was also partially based on these Byzantine foundations. Armenians in the Ottoman Empire also used these vakifs, and they funded some of the most important Armenian institutions in the Ottoman Empire, including schools and orphanages. Some of these, like the Surp Pirgic Armenian Hospital and the Kalfayan Orphanage, are still active in Istanbul today. These public, Church-supported forms of Armenian Christian charity started by St. Nersess the Great should be a great source for thinking about how the Armenian Apostolic Church can support those in need today. We can see that St. Nersess continues to be an inspiration, because the Eastern Prelacy has named a charitable and social organization after St. Nersess! St. Nersess the Great stands as a source and a spur for our own Christian charity!
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A recently published collection of essays on Armenian monasticism, including an essay by Bishop Daniel Findikyan. It also includes details of early Armenian monasticism and the role of Nersess the Great in establishing a tradition of Armenian monasticism. |
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Published in the series from Dumbarton Oaks, the vital museum and library supporting Byzantine and other Christian studies, this volume details the religious foundations in the Byzantine Empire that were the source for Nersess the Great’s projects in Armenia. At St. Vladimir’s. |
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A History of Philanthropic Foundations: The Islamic World from the Seventh Century to the Present |
By Murat Cizakca, this book traces the history of the Islamic institution of waqf, known in Turkish as vakif. It is a form of charitable foundation that Cizakca, among others, maintains is influenced by the Byzantine charitable foundations. |
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