2022 Catholic Media Association honorable mention in prayer: collections of prayers
St. Gregory of Narek (ca. 945–1003), Armenian mystic poet and theologian, was named Doctor of the Church by Pope Francis on April 12, 2015. Not so well known in the West, the saint holds a distinctive place in the Armenian Church by virtue of his prayer book and hymnic odes—among other works. His writings are equally prized as literary masterpieces, with the prayer book as the magnum opus.
With this meticulous translation of the prayers, St. Gregory of Narek enters another millennium of wonderment, now in a wider circle. The prayers resound from their author’s heart—albeit in a different language, rendered by a renowned translator of early Armenian texts and a theologian.
By:
Abraham Terian,
Abraham Terian
Imprint: Liturgical Press
Country of Publication: United States
Edition: Annotated edition
Dimensions:
Height: 229mm,
Width: 152mm,
Spine: 32mm
Weight: 862g
ISBN: 9780814684641
ISBN 10: 0814684645
Pages: 568
Publication Date: 03 January 2022
Audience:
General/trade
,
College/higher education
,
Professional and scholarly
,
ELT Advanced
,
Primary
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active
Contents Transcription of Armenian xi Preface xiii Introduction xv The Life and Times of Gregory xix Gregory’s Earlier Works xxiv Toward a Better Understanding of the Prayers xxviii Gregory’s Esteem for His Book xxxvi The Genre of the Prayers and the Title of the Book xxxviii The Composition of the Book xliv Mix of Poetic Prose and Verse xlvii Translation of the Prayers 1 “Plaintive cries from the heart I offer to you” 3 2 “Grant the mercy of your grace” 7 3 “Through the prayers in this book” 14 4 “There is no answering on that day” 20 5 “How dare I come before your judgment?” 24 6 “The weight of my sins is scaled in heaps of sand” 30 7 “Woe to me!” 35 8 “What will you do, my lost soul?” 39 9 “I reprimand my soul” 42 10 “I begin constructing an edifice of faith” 45 11 “In hope I believe” 48 12 “Remembering the hope placed in you” 53 13 “The Holy Trinity to help a sinner like me” 57 14 “You resuscitated” 60 15 “You are called Shepherd” 64 16 “The light of your mercy” 68 17 “The more you show mercy . . . ” 71 18 “I beg healing for my soul” 75 19 “I will testify against myself ” 80 20 “Confession laid in repentance at your feet” 84 21 “I shall confess all over again” 90 22 “My blameworthy soul” 94 23 “In the inner chambers of my heart” 97 24 “Spiritual distress” 101 25 “Like the wrecked sailboat” 105 26 “At the head of the circle of those who sing in mournful verse” 110 27 “I have sinned” 115 28 “Forgive these many sins” 121 29 “You taught us to be like you in forgiving” 127 30 “May the truth of your word be affirmed” 132 31 “You are remembered” 137 32 “I bare my soul before you” 142 33(a) “This book’s confessions to affect multitudes” 148 33(b) “Supplication in the presence of the Holy Spirit” 152 34 “Confession of faith” 156 35 “The dew of your goodness” 167 36 “Your publicly demonstrated passion on the cross” 171 37 “Yours is all the boundless goodness” 174 38 “The liberating law of spiritual life” 177 39 “Much to my shame” 181 40 “You, Lord Christ, are the answer” 184 41 “Nothing is impossible for you” 187 42 “I plead with the one who was crucified with you” 189 43 “I shall be made whole in soul and body” 191 44 “You cared so much for my salvation” 193 45 “Confess your thoughts to God” 196 46 “You are still the likeness of his image” 201 47 “Like the Prodigal Son” 205 48 “Solomon as an example” 207 49 “Grace greater than all the miracles” 216 50 “Out of sympathy for me?” 220 51 “The salvation of Manasseh” 225 52 “Those narrow windows” 231 53 “His body and blood for atonement” 234 54 “My salvation comes from you” 239 55 “Acceptable prayers” 243 56 “By my deeds I merited the worst” 247 57 “Consider my agonizing contrition” 250 58 “For one sinful like me, you are Savior” 253 59 “So, come Lord” 256 60 “Dare I say with David . . . ?” I. 259 61 “Dare I say with David . . . ?” II. 267 62 “Passages from the Prophets” 272 63 “Your name is to be glorified, O Jesus” 275 64 “I am still sustained by your willing compassion” 281 65 “When I leave this life” 284 66 “May the message of these words be engraved as an epitaph” 289 67 “Gazing at the bottom of hell” 297 68 “How could the streams of tears from my eyes be dried?” 301 69 “Reminding me of [dreaded] things to come” 307 70 “You are life, you are salvation” 310 71 “And where is salvation in desperate situations?” 314 72 “I rather speak to you, ascetic communities and monastic disciples” 322 73 “On the day of my life-breath’s release” 326 74 “Your mercy is truly there” 330 75 “Representing heaven on earth” 335 76 “Wishing salvation” 352 77 “Friday of the Great Pascha” 356 78 “Your grace renewed by the blood drops from your side” 360 79 “At the tribunal of the Last Judgment” 365 80 “I pray to you, Holy Mother of God” 370 81 “Through the prayers of my angel” 374 82 “For the sake of the holy apostles” 377 83 “Praying for my enemies” 383 84 “I commit to you today” 388 85 “Make me arrive at what I hope for” 391 86 “I plead for all the dead” 394 87 “If I reach old age” 396 88 “The lasting prayers of this book” 400 89 “Son of God is your confessed name” 403 90 “Mirroring again your changeless image” 404 91 “Watch over me with your heavenly hosts” 410 92 “The semantron” 415 93 “The Holy Myron” 428 94 “Life in death and Light in darkness” 458 95 “Renewed by you with eternal life” 460 Colophon by the Author 463 Bibliography 465 General Index 479 Scripture Index 489
Abraham Terian is professor emeritus of Armenian theology and patristics at St. Nersess Armenian Seminary, Armonk, New York. A recipient of the Fulbright Distinguished Chair in the Humanities award and Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia, he has extensive publications in the fields of Hellenistic, early Christian, and Armenian religious literature.
Reviews for From the Depths of the Heart: Annotated Translation of the Prayers of St. Gregory of Narek
With From the Depths of the Heart, a meticulous translation of the prayers, St. Gregory of Narek enters another millennium of wonderment, now in a wider circle. SirReadaLot St. Gregory of Narek, revered and beloved monastic author of tenth-century Armenia, gave the 95 poetic prayers to his own tradition; called simply The Narek, they came to be regarded as a form of sacred scripture. Armenians often traveled with a copy of this beloved book; English speakers can now see the reason for their attention and their devotion. We are deeply indebted to Professor Abraham Terian for this clear, elegant, and beautiful translation of the prayers, which demonstrates why St. Gregory has at last been declared a doctor of the universal church. Robin Darling-Young, The Catholic University of America Professor Terian's translation of St. Gregory of Narek's Prayers is masterful. His scrupulously literal rendition is lucid, the poetry, exquisite. Like the prayers themselves, the edition captures the reader's mind, heart, and soul--by its erudite introduction and annotations, by the rhapsodic beauty of the English, and by the power of the words to lift the supplicant to the realm of the Divine Word. Bishop-Primate Michael Daniel Findikyan, Eastern Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Church of America
