Oxendius Vărzărescu (

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

: Oxendius Verzellescus,

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

: Օշենտիոս Վըրզարեան or Վրզարեան, Hungarian: Verzár Oxendius) (1655 - 1715) was the first

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

of the

Armenian Catholic Church , native_name_lang = hy , image = St Elie - St Gregory Armenian Catholic Cathedral.jpg , imagewidth = 260px , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Saint Elias and Saint Gregory the Illuminat ...

Gherla Gherla (; hu, Szamosújvár; german: Neuschloss) is a municipality in Cluj County, Romania (in the historical region of Transylvania). It is located from Cluj-Napoca on the river Someșul Mic, and has a population of 20,203. Three villages are a ...

Biography

Oxendius Vărzărescu was born in 1655 in Botoșani. He was an

Armenian Apostolic , native_name_lang = hy , icon = Armenian Apostolic Church logo.svg , icon_width = 100px , icon_alt = , image = Էջմիածնի_Մայր_Տաճար.jpg , imagewidth = 250px , a ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

, coming to

Bistrița (; german: link=no, Bistritz, archaic , Transylvanian Saxon: , hu, Beszterce) is the capital city of Bistrița-Năsăud County, in northern Transylvania, Romania. It is situated on the Bistrița River. The city has a population of approxima ...

with Moldovan Armenians. In 1670 Vărzărescu was in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, where he studied and was appointed bishop of the Armenians in

Transylvania Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the Ap ...

. Between 1672 and 1686 he made his church's union in Rome. In 1687 he was ordained (consecrated) to the episcopate by the Armenian Catholic Bishop of

Lviv Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukraine ...

. With the Armenian gold he went to Vienna to buy a territory on which the Armenians could settle in order to build a city. Thus the town of Gherla was born, where he exercised his pastoral work for almost twelve years. In 1712 he went to Vienna, where he died on 10 March 1715.

Sources

* Bálint Kovács - "Über Rom nach Siebenbürgen", in "Zeitschrift für Siebenbürgische Landeskunde", nr. 1/2006, pp. 44–50. * Ernst Christoph Suttner - "The Armenians and the Episcopate of Gherla" in "Studia Universitatis Babeş-Bolyai, Theology Catholic", Year XLIX, 2004, pp. 7–28. * Ernst Christoph Suttner - "The Armenians of Poland and Hungary in the 17th Century in Concomitant Communion with the Church of Rome and the Armenian Patriarchal Church" in "Studia Universitatis Babeş-Bolyai" Theologia Catholica, no. 3/2008, pp. 101–110.

External links

* http://personalitati.araratonline.com/oxendius-varzarescu-1655-1715/ * https://baabel.ro/2015/10/zilele-culturii-armene-dedicate-episcopului-varzarescu/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Varzarescu, Oxendius 1655 births 1715 deaths People from Botoșani Armenian Catholic bishops Converts to Eastern Catholicism from Oriental Orthodoxy Romanian people of Armenian descent