Page 24 - THE ARMENIAN CHURCH_Neat

Long History in Brief 25

be the First Illuminators and the founders
of the church in Armenia. Information about
the apostles' evangelism in Armenia is
scanty. According to Eusebius of Caesarea,
the father of church history, Apkar, the king
of Edessa, who was suffering from a skin
disease, sent a letter to Jesus Christ hoping
to be cured, and received the answer that
one of the apostles would visit him. After
Christ's ascension, St. Thaddeus went to
Edessa and with the face cloth of Christ
cured the King who, with his family, became
Christian. St. Thaddeus then entered Ar-
menia. He converted Princess Sandukht, the
daughter of King Sanatruk of Armenia, and
many others. King Sanatruk tried to force
St. Thaddeus and his followers, including
his own daughter, to renounce Christianity.
Having remained faithful to her faith, San-
dukht, together with St. Thaddeus, was
martyred, thus becoming the first Christian
woman martyr in Armenia. In the meantime,
St. Bartholomew, after preaching in Persia
and near the border of India, proceeded to
Armenia, preached the Christian faith, and
received the crown of martyrdom.
Through the years, churches and shrines
have been built over the tombs of these
apostles and their martyrdom is commemo-
rated on either the last Saturday of Novem-
ber or the first Saturday of December. The
monastery of St. Thaddeus in the region of