Semi-weekly herald. [volume] (Durango, Colo.) 1907-1917, 1910-08-01

famous Armenian saints. Any one who
win take the trouble to drive eight or
ten miles to the village of Khorvirab
Ieay see well In which St. Gregory
Is said TO have been confined by his
prosecutors for fourteen years, having
his food and drink lowered down to
hnn by a rope all this time, In one
of the chapels of the monastery is the
slab of marble he used to cover
cave into which he drove all the devils
that pestered Armenia in his day.
picturesque shrine now occupie the
SPOT. But St Gregory does not seem
to have been as successful as st Pat
rick was with the snakes In Ireland
Some of the devils must have been
overlooked, because he was not only
bitterly persecuted himself, but his fol-
lowers in Armenia have suffered more
than the believers in any religion In
any other part OF the world.
The monastery is very large and is
surrounded by massive wall which
las sustained many siege and repell-
ed frequent attacks by Kurds, Turks,
Tartars. peralans and Saracens. There
are several buildings. the most con-
spicuous containing the apartments OF
the patriarch and the several arch
| bishops, bishops and clerks who as
sist him In the performance of his
duties. There is a hospice for the
entertainment of visiting clergy who
come here in large numbers on busi-
ness and TO seek inspiration; another
less pretentious is for the entertain
ment of pilgrims, and nearby Is ba,
zaar, or market, where they can pur'
chase food and other supplies. A theo-
logical seminary with forty or fifty
| students who are studying for the Ar
menian ministry is maintained here
and the privilege of attending 1t is
quite as highly priced as that enjoyed
BIS the students of the various Roman
| Catholic colleges at Rome. AS a rule
the Armenian clergy is not highly edu-
| Gated The reason Is that the par
| lshioners are not able to pay for the
services of educated men; but many
brilliant young theologians have gone
out from this school to Armenian col
| ouies In different parts of the world TO
defend the faith with zeal and elo
quence
The library OF the institution, how
| ever. does not convey an impression
| of scholarship. The number of books
upon its shelves is very small, they
| are all very old and most OF them are
| obsolete. There does not appear to
he n demand for a supply of litera.
| lure. theological or otherwise. in the
! Armenian language. Very few OF the
books are of any value.
There has been an understanding
among Oriental scholars that the H.
brary at Etchmiadzin is filled with an
cient manuscripts OF the greatest in.
forest and value, but that Is not the
case. There are no attractions here
for students, and the Armenian clergy
seem to take much deeper interest in
certain superstitutions and the tradi-
| lions attached to the highly venerated
relies in their sanctuary than in the
contents of their book shelves.
The treasury of the monastery con-
tains holy lance"-the weapon OF
the soldier which pierced the side OF
| the Savior as He hung upon the cross,
| There is n duplicate at the palace OF
| ~. pr which WAS
brought from Jerusalem by st. Helena,
| and once belonged to Charlemagne,
by whom IT was passed down to his
| successors as the head of the holy
Roman empire. There is still another
in st. Peters in Rome, which was
brought from the Holy Land by the
| crusaders, who discovered 1t through
Il miracle at Antioch. The holy
lance" here is said to have been
| brought to Armenia by Thaddeus, the
| disciple, when he came at the invi-
tation of the king to convert the ma
ton.
A still more interesting relic is
fragment of Noah's ark-a ragged and
rotten piece of plank, about four feet
long, eighteen inches wide and two
Inches thick. which Is alleged to have
been taken from the hull of that well
known vessel There are no written
| guarantees. and therefore it is I'M
possible to establish identity, but as
it is equally impossible to disprove
the statement, il is easier to accept
the faith of these good people without
question.
What Is probably more genuine is
a beautifully chased silver reliquary In
the shape of forearm and hand
which Is said to contain the actual
right hand and arm of st. Gregory
and 1t is used in an impressive cere
mony at the conservation of the patri
arch of the Armenian church. At the
henediotion this silver reliquary con
tanning the hand of the founder OF
the Armenian church Is solemnly plac-
ed upon the forehead of the candidate
by the officiating bishop.
There are many other relics OF