Gregorio Pietro Agagianian


Gregorio Pietro XV Agagianian
Cardinal
Patriarch of Cilicia
Prefect of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith
Photograph by David Lees, 1965
ChurchArmenian Catholic Church
SeeCilicia
Appointed13 December 1937
Term ended25 August 1962
PredecessorAvedis Bedros XIV Arpiarian
SuccessorIgnatius Bedros XVI Batanian
Other post(s)Cardinal-Bishop of Albano
Orders
Ordination23 December 1917
Consecration21 July 1935
by Bishop Serge Der Abrahamian[1]
Created cardinal18 February 1946
by Pope Pius XII
RankCardinal-Priest (1946–1970)
Cardinal-Bishop (1970–1971)
Personal details
Born
Ghazaros Aghajanian

(1895-09-15)15 September 1895
Died16 May 1971(1971-05-16) (aged 75)
Rome, Italy
NationalityArmenian (ethnicity)
Lebanese (citizen)
Vatican (citizen)
Russian Empire (subject by birth)[a]
DenominationArmenian Catholic
ResidenceRome, Beirut[b]
Previous post(s)
MottoIustitia et Pax
(Justice and Peace)
Coat of armsGregorio Pietro XV Agagianian's coat of arms
Sainthood
Venerated inCatholic Church
Title as SaintServant of God
Styles of
Gregorio Pietro Agagianian
Reference styleHis Eminence
Spoken styleYour Eminence
Posthumous styleServant of God
Informal styleCardinal
SeeCilicia

Gregorio Pietro XV Agagianian (ah-gah-JAHN-yan;[3] anglicized: Gregory Peter;[6] Western Armenian: Գրիգոր Պետրոս ԺԵ. Աղաճանեան,[7] Krikor Bedros ŽĒ. Aghajanian; born Ghazaros Aghajanian, 15 September 1895 – 16 May 1971) was an Armenian cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was the head of the Armenian Catholic Church (as Patriarch of Cilicia) from 1937 to 1962 and supervised the Catholic Church's missionary work for more than a decade, until his retirement in 1970. He was considered papabile on two occasions, in 1958 and 1963.

Educated in Tiflis and Rome, Agagianian first served as leader of the Armenian Catholic community of Tiflis before the Bolshevik takeover of the Caucasus in 1921. He then moved to Rome, where he first taught and then headed the Pontifical Armenian College until 1937 when he was elected to lead the Armenian Catholic Church, which he revitalized after major losses the church had experienced during the Armenian genocide.

Agagianian was elevated to the cardinalate in 1946 by Pope Pius XII. He was Prefect of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith (Propaganda Fide) from 1958 to 1970. Theologically a moderate, a linguist, and an authority on the Soviet Union, he served as one of the four moderators at the Second Vatican Council. His cause for canonization was scheduled to be officially opened on October 28, 2022.[8]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference catholic-hierarchy was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference NYT 58 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Healy 1961, p. 97.
  4. ^ Healy 1961, p. 100.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Hofmann was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "Religion: Pius' Patriarch". Time. 25 March 1946. ...soft-voiced, fierce-bearded Gregory Peter XV Agagianian (pronounced ah-gah-jahn-yan), Patriarch-Catholicos of Cilicia of the Armenians...
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference aztagdaily was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference canonization was invoked but never defined (see the help page).


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