Zenit News Agency, Italy
Feb. 22, 2008

St. Peter’s Patio Dedicated to Armenian Patron

VATICAN CITY, FEB. 22, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI dedicated the
north patio of St. Peter’s Basilica to St. Gregory the Illuminator,
the national saint and patron of Armenia.

The Pope did this today during a brief ceremony attended by
Archbishop Nerses Bedros XIX, patriarch of Cilicia of the Armenian
Catholics, and a group of prelates of the Armenian Catholic Church.

Recalling that, a few months before his death, Pope John Paul II
blessed the statue of St. Gregory the Illuminator that is located in
that patio, Benedict XVI affirmed that "this great saint has made the
Armenians, for more than 17 centuries, a Christian people, and more,
the first officially Christian people."

The Pope said "St. Gregory was called the illuminator precisely
because in him the Lord’s face is reflected in an extraordinary way."

The Holy Father asked that the "Armenian people, through the
intercession of this illustrious and distinguished son, continue
their journey along the paths of faith, letting themselves be guided,
as they have for centuries, by Christ and by his Gospel, which has
indelibly marked their culture."