Feast of the Holy Cross of Varak
Encyclopedia
Unique to the Armenian Apostolic Church
, the Feast of the Holy Cross of Varak is celebrated on the Sunday nearest to September 28, always two weeks after the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross.
In the 3rd century, the nun St. Hripsime buried a piece of the cross upon which Christ
was crucified on Mount Varak in historic Armenia
as a way of protecting it from the soldiers of Emperor Maximian, who were pursuing her. Centuries later, in 650, a monk
by the name of Todik had a dream of a church on Mount Varak with 12 pillars in the center of which was a radiant cross. The cross then came to rest over the altar of the monastery of Varak, where Todik discovered the cross relic
. When told the news by the monk, Catholicos Nersess (the builder) came to Varak, verified the relic's authenticity, and established a feast
in honor of the discovery.
Armenian Apostolic Church
The Armenian Apostolic Church is the world's oldest National Church, is part of Oriental Orthodoxy, and is one of the most ancient Christian communities. Armenia was the first country to adopt Christianity as its official religion in 301 AD, in establishing this church...
, the Feast of the Holy Cross of Varak is celebrated on the Sunday nearest to September 28, always two weeks after the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross.
In the 3rd century, the nun St. Hripsime buried a piece of the cross upon which Christ
Christ
Christ is the English term for the Greek meaning "the anointed one". It is a translation of the Hebrew , usually transliterated into English as Messiah or Mashiach...
was crucified on Mount Varak in historic Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
as a way of protecting it from the soldiers of Emperor Maximian, who were pursuing her. Centuries later, in 650, a monk
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
by the name of Todik had a dream of a church on Mount Varak with 12 pillars in the center of which was a radiant cross. The cross then came to rest over the altar of the monastery of Varak, where Todik discovered the cross relic
Relic
In religion, a relic is a part of the body of a saint or a venerated person, or else another type of ancient religious object, carefully preserved for purposes of veneration or as a tangible memorial...
. When told the news by the monk, Catholicos Nersess (the builder) came to Varak, verified the relic's authenticity, and established a feast
Calendar of saints
The calendar of saints is a traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the feast day of said saint...
in honor of the discovery.