Feast of Gregory the Illuminator
Although I will be at work, I will have dinner prepared in advance (with Jolie's aid) in honor of one of my namesake's. This particular Saint Gregory is considered the apostle and patron of Armenia. His story can be found here (warning: some of the details of torture make Brave Heart seem quite tame). In brief, his endurance of horrific trials and 13 years of imprisonment resulted in the conversion of the King of Armenia to Christianity and eventually to Armenia being the first "Christian nation" in history - still several decades before Constantine.
In addition to honoring Gregory the Illuminator, today we honor the brave history of Armenia itself -- a tiny buffer nation that has endured occupation by Persians, Arabs, Turks and Soviets and somehow retained its identity in Christ.
