The Armenian Tradition in Italy

One does not expect to find Eastern Catholics in northern Italy, but as they were persecuted by the Muslim Turks, the various Italian States gave them refuge.

From One Peter Five

By Massimo Scapin

Three hundred and fifty years ago, on February 7, 1676, the Servant of God Mekhitar was born—described by Pope Paul VI as “the glory of the Armenian Church, a maker of unity and peace.”[1] As the founder of one of the most luminous spiritual and cultural revivals in Armenian history, Mekhitar left an indelible mark on the faith of his people.

Born in Sebaste, in Lesser Armenia (present-day Sivas, in Anatolia), Mekhitar was educated from an early age in detachment from worldly possessions. “Encouraged by the Madonna of the monastery of Sevan, he joyfully answered the divine call, destined for an apostolic ministry and as a witness on the arduous path toward Church unity.”[2]

He entered the monastery of Surp Nshan (Holy Cross), where he embraced the monastic life and took the name Mekhitar, meaning “Comforter” in Armenian. Ordained a priest in 1696, he was animated by a fervent desire for religious and cultural renewal. In 1700, he founded in Constantinople the congregation that would later bear his name. Persecuted by Ottoman authorities, Mekhitar went into exile—first to Modon in the Peloponnese and eventually, in 1715, to Venice.

In 1717, the Venetian Senate granted Mekhitar and his community the island of San Lazzaro, which soon became the beating heart of the Armenian cultural and spiritual renaissance in the diaspora. “The lagoon island of San Lazzaro […] became like a fragment of beloved Armenia, where he settled permanently and died on April 27, 1749, in the odor of sanctity.”[3]

From this place—transformed into a beacon of spirituality, culture, and dialogue—emerged some of the Mechitarist community’s most enduring achievements: a new translation of the Bible into classical Armenian (1735), the compilation of a dictionary (1749), and the founding of a library and printing press that became vital reference points for Armenians worldwide.

Mekhitar, a tenacious and brilliant builder of fruitful works and initiatives, was a true forerunner in God’s design, because he responded to the still unheard plea: Ut omnes unum sint (Jn 17:21).[4]

Few figures in the history of Armenian monasticism combined ascetic rigor with poetic sensitivity as Mekhitar did. Founder of the Mechitarist Congregation, he was not only a religious and cultural reformer but also an inspired hymnographer with rare liturgical depth. His Marian hymns—still sung in Armenia and throughout the diaspora—bear witness to a wounded yet radiant faith, capable of praising even in the midst of darkness.

In his poetry, Mekhitar addresses Mary not only as the Mother of God, but also as the Tabernacle of the Word, the light of the soul, and the dwelling place of the Uncreated. His hymns are deeply personal and theologically rich. Suffering—such as the loss of his sight—becomes a path to spiritual elevation, a song of trust and surrender to the Heavenly Mother.

As his biographer M. Nowrikhan recalls,[5] Mekhitar began composing verse in his youth, setting his own melodies and teaching them to both monks and laypeople. His alphabetic hymns to the Virgin—each stanza beginning with a letter of the Armenian alphabet—draw from the rich mystical-poetic tradition of the East, in continuity with figures such as Saint Nerses Shnorhali the Gracious (†1173), whom we have mentioned in this article. These songs, passed down orally, often replaced secular popular songs, becoming embedded in the hearts of the people—and are still sung with reverence today.

Below is our English translation of two hymns by Mekhitar, taken from the program notes of an Italian concert.

⸻

Aghachem zkez Asdvadzadzin

We implore thee, Mother of God,
temple of the Word Incarnate.
High and radiant like the sun,
intercede for me with your Son.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Mother of God, intercede for us.
We cry to you with tear-filled eyes;
O Virgin Mary, hear my plea.

You are the divine throne—
plead for me, O Virgin who bore the Lord.
Lord, have mercy…
You are the beloved tabernacle
of our King Christ.
Jesus gathered himself in your womb
and took on the nature of earthly beings.
Lord, have mercy…
He, unreachable by the angels,
was born from you for Adam.
O Mother who gave birth to the Light,
I kneel before you—
plead for me with your Master.
Lord, have mercy…

⸻

This hymn takes the form of an intense, almost liturgical prayer. Rich in imagery from the Eastern Christian tradition, it exalts Mary as the sacred vessel where the eternal Word took flesh, the bridge between heaven and earth. The repeated refrain—“Lord, have mercy. Mother of God, intercede for us”—establishes a meditative rhythm, inviting contemplation and trust.

⸻

Anjarin Khoran

Unspeakable Altar,
receptacle of the Word;
praised Holy Mary;
ever-living Rose.
Exalted Queen;
heavenly Heir;
I implore you, Virgin,
give light to my eye.
My eye grew painful,
from the tangle of my sins;
dispel my sorrows, O Mary,
sweet Mother of God.

⸻

In this brief yet profound hymn, Mary is evoked as the living altar of divine mystery, a spiritual echo of the Song of Songs. Written as Mekhitar suffered from blindness, the verses rise from sorrow into praise, transforming pain into supplication and darkness into the search for light.

As Nowrikhan writes, “Mekhitar was deeply versed in oriental music and composed melodies for his hymns.”[6] He taught them to his fellow monks and passed them down as integral parts of Mechitarist spirituality. In Armenian homes, mothers and artisans would sing his hymns as they worked, turning Marian praise into an act of both cultural memory and spiritual resistance.

Among Mekhitar’s most poignant compositions are also “the hymn of the Mother of God’s lullaby at the cradle of the Infant Jesus” and “the hymn of the Mother of Sorrows as her Divine Son was taken down from the cross,” traditionally sung on Good Friday.[7] These are the songs of a soul that praises in the night, finding in the Virgin the mirror of divine light.

To this day, the island of San Lazzaro degli Armeni in Venice continues to preserve and transmit Mekhitar’s legacy. His hymns are not relics but living voices—expressions of a cultivated, poetic, incarnate faith.

In song, in the union of faith and culture, of East and West, Mekhitar remains true to his name: a consoler. And three and a half centuries later, his hymns still console. Still uplift.

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[1] Paul VI, Message to the Mechitarists, September 8, 1977, our translation.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Ibid.

[4] Ibid.

[5] M. Nowrikhan, The Life and Times, 1660–1750 of the Servant of God Abbot Mechitar, Founder of the Armenian Mechitarists of Venice, Venice, 1915, pp. 330–332.

[6] Ibid., pp. 70–71.

[7] Ibid., p. 331.

Pictured: Servant of God Mekhitar of Sebaste, CMV