St. Gregory, Patriarch of the Armenians

On this day the Church commemorates the martyrdom of St. Gregory, Patriarch of the Armenians who became a martyr without bloodshed. He made himself a slave of the country of Armenia in the days of King Dertades around the year 270 A.D. This king was not Christian.

When the King came to the temple to offer incense to the idols, he summoned the saint to do the same, but the saint refused. The King inflicted severe torture upon him and finally cast him in an empty den. The Saint lived there for fifteen years.

Beside the den lived an old widow. She saw in a vision someone who told her to bake bread regularly and cast it into this den and she continued to do so for fifteen years.

It happened that the King ordered the killing of Arbsima and Ghabata the virgins and their friends. After the killing, he was exceedingly sad because he wanted to marry Arbsima. He became seriously ill and was not cured from his illness until his sister saw in a dream someone who told her: "Unless you bring Gregory out of the den, your brother will never be cured". They brought the Saint out of the den, and he prayed over the King and the King was cured.

The complete story of this Saint is recorded in the Synaxarium on the 15th day of the Coptic month of Kiahk.