Christianity was first established in Armenia in the fourth century ; the Armenian Church (q. v.) has a close affinity to the Greek Church in its forms and polity ; it is described by the American missionaries who are settled in the country as in a state of great corruption and debasement. The total number of the Armenian nation throughout the world is supposed not to exceed 2,000,000. Their favorite pursuit is commerce, and their merchants are found in all parts of the East. — Kitto.
A list of early works on Armenia may be found in Walch, Bibl. Theol. iii, 353 sq. For a further account of the History of Armenia (New Englander, Oct. 1863), see Moses Chorensis, Historia Armen. lib. iii (Armen. edid. Lat. vert, notisque illustr. W. et G. Whistonii, Lond. 1736); Chamich, History of Armenia (translated from the Armenian original by M. J. Ar- dall, Calcutta, 1827); History ofVartan, translated by Neumann ; see also Langlois, Kumismatique de /.'Ann- nie (Par. 1858) ; Andrisdogues de Lasdivera, Histoire d'Armenie (Par. 1*04). On its Topography, see St.-Martin, Memoire sur V Armenia; Colonel Chesney, Euphrates Expedition, i; Kinneir, Memoirs of the Per- sian Empire, also Travels in Armenia; Moriev, Travels in Persia, i; Ker Porter, Travels; Smith and Dwigbt's Researches in Armenia (Bost. 1833) ; Southgate, Tour through Armenia (N. Y. 1840); Curzon, Residence at
ARMENIAN CHURCH
40S
ARMENIAN CHURCH
Era roum (Lond. 1854) ; and vols, iii, vi, x of the Jour. I of the hand. Geoff. Soc. containing the explorations of Monteith, Ainsworth, and others. On the Religion of the nation, sec Giov. dc Serpos, Compendia storial 'one Arm na (Ven. 1786) ; Kurze histor. Dar- steUvtng d. geg mo. Zustandes d.armen. FbZAes (Petersb. j and Berl. 1831). See EDEN.
Armenian Chui ch. The designation of a branch of Christians, which, although originating in Armenia, is now disseminated over all the adjacent portions of tin- East.
I. History. — Armenia, it is said, first received Chris- ! tianity from Bartholomew and Thaddseus, the latter i not the apostle, but one of the seventy, who instruct- ed Abgarus of Edessa (q. v.) in the faith, although the Armenians themselves maintain that he teas the apos- tle. The light was very speedily quenched, and was not rekindled until the beginning of the fourth cen- tury. About that time Gregory (q. v.) Illuminator (or Lusarovich, in their tongue) preached the Gospel : throughout Armenia, and soon converted the king, j Tyridates. Gregory was consecrated first bishop of the Armenians by Leontius of Csesarea, whence the Armenian Church became thenceforward dependent on the see of Csesarea, and for a long period the success- j ors of Gregory were consecrated bjr that primate. It was to this subjection to the see of Caesarea that the | primates of Armenia owed the title of Catholicos (or proctor-general), which was assigned them as vicars of the primate of Csesarea in that country. In the fourth century the}- received many literary institu- tions through the Catholicos Sahag (after 406), and a translation of the Bible through Mesrob (q. v.). The Armenian Church preserved the faith until the end of the reign of Theodosius the younger; and in 437 a synod was held at Ispahan, composed of many Arme- nian bishops, who addressed a synodieal letter to Pro- clus, of Constantinople, condemning the impieties of Xestorius and Theodore of Mopsuestia. In the follow- ing century the Church of Armenia, from an excess of hatred toward Nestorianism, embraced the Eutyeh- ian (q. v.) heresy, and condemned the Council of Chalcedon. The name commonly given to the Church was Gregorian Church (after Gregory Illuminator), i When, in the fifth century, several kings of Persia i made an attempt to force the doctrines of Zoroaster upon the Armenians, many emigrated to various coun- j tries of Asia and Europe. About 554 a synod of Ar- menian bishops was convened at the city of Thevin, or Tiben, by the patriarch Isierses II, at the command of the King of Persia, who desired to separate the Ar- menians from the Greeks. In this synod they re- ! nounced the communion of the orthodox churches, anathematized that of Jerusalem, allowed only one nature in Jesus Christ, and added to the Tersanctus ( the words Qui crucifixvs es. See Monophysites. An attempt to abolish the schism was made by a synod at Garin in 629, which adopted the resolutions of Chalcedon; but soon the connection between the Armenian and the Greek Church was again dissolved. The metropolis of the Armenian Church was called Vaffarsciahat in their tongue, but was known to the Latin- as Artaxala, the capital of the country. In this city was built, A.D. G50, the monastery of Esch- v Etchmiaz), which contains the sepulchre Of St. Gregory, and is now the see of the patriarch, or catholicos, as he is called, of Armenia Major. Va- garociabat no longer exists; but the monastery of Eschmiazin is the scat of the catholicos, and contain- ed three churches built in a triangle. At first the catholicos of Eschmiazin was the sole patriarch of Armenia ; but befort the year 1341 there were three, vi/. a second at Achtamar, and a third at Sis. R> caut, who wrote an account of " the Greek and Arme- nian Churches" (I I. 1679, 8vo), mentions, besides
these Hire-, a fourth one at < .in-hahar. All four had under them 87 archbishops and 1U0 bishops. By the