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St. Gregory is the first Doctor of the Church to have lived outside direct communion with the Bishop of Rome. Left: Icon of St. Gregory of Narek Matenadaran, in Yerevan, Armenia. Right: The 10th century Armenian monastery of Narekavank (now destroyed), Lake Van, Vaspurakan (modern Turkey). (Photos: Wikipedia.org) On February 21, Pope Francis announced his decision to make St. Gregory of Narek (950-1003) a Doctor of the Church. Once again, Pope Francis has caught us off guard and now many people are scrambling to figure out who St. Gregory was and what the implications of the new honor bestowed upon...

From Vatican Radio:  Pope Francis has declared Armenian poet and monk, Saint Gregory of Narek, a Doctor of the Universal Church.  Meeting with Cardinal Angelo Amato, Prefect of the Congregation for the Cause of Saints on Saturday ahead of his departure for Aricca on Lenten retreat, the Pope confirmed the proposal put forward by the Plenary Session of the Congregation to confer the title of Doctor of the Universal Church on the 10th century saint.St. Gregory of Narek is widely revered as one of the greatest figures of medieval Armenian religious thought and literature. Born in the city of Narek in...

St Gregory of Narek. Credit: Public Domain/Wikimedia Commons. Vatican City, Feb 23, 2015 / 04:37 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- St. Gregory of Narek – a tenth century priest, monk, mystic, and poet beloved among Armenian Christians – has become the first Armenian to be named a Doctor of the Church. “It is a great honor for the Armenian Church to contribute to this very important rank of saints who have enriched the Catholic Church with their teachings,” Armenian Catholic priest Father Thomas Garabedian told CNA Feb. 23. “Certainly this is a big honor for us Armenian-Americans,” said Fr. Garabedian, who is...