Summary
Three hundred and fifty years ago, on February 7, 1676, Mekhitar, Servant of God and founder of the Mechitarist Congregation, was born in Sebaste, Lesser Armenia. Educated from an early age to detach himself from worldly possessions, he was ordained a priest in 1696 and later founded the congregation that would bear his name in Constantinople in 1700. Despite persecution by Ottoman authorities, Mekhitar went into exile, first to Modon in the Peloponnese and then to Venice, where in 1715 he was granted the island of San Lazzaro. This became the epicenter for Armenian cultural and spiritual renewal. Founding a library and printing press on the island in 1717, Mekhitar translated the Bible into classical Armenian (1735), compiled a dictionary (1749), and composed Marian hymns still sung by Armenians worldwide. Known as a religious and cultural reformer with liturgical depth, Mekhitar’s ascetic rigor was paired with poetic sensitivity, evident in his personal hymns to the Virgin Mary. His life and work exemplify his motto “Ut omnes unum sint” (that all may be one), guiding him in establishing a community that would continue his legacy of promoting unity among Armenians globally.
Key Topics
Mekhitar, Armenians, San Lazzaro
