Saint St. Husik I

Husik I or Yusik (Armenian: Հուսիկ (reformed); Յուսիկ (classical); c. 295 – 347) was hereditary patriarch of the Armenian Church of the Gregorid line during the reign of the Arsacid king Tiran (r. 341–347?). He was the son of Vrtanes I, his predecessor as patriarch, and the grandson of Gregory the Illuminator, the founder of the Armenian Church. His patriarchate is dated to 341–347. He came into conflict with the monarchy and was assassinated on the king's orders. He is venerated as a saint in the Armenian Church. The name Husik (Classical Armenian Yusik) derives from the Armenian word yoys (modern Armenian huys), meaning 'hope', with the diminutive suffix -ik attached. The name is sometimes connected with the Greek name Hesychius. Husik was the son of Vrtanes I and the grandson of the apostle of Armenia, Gregory the Illuminator. He was the twin brother of Grigoris, who was martyred in Caucasian Albania (died c. 330–340). His birth year is variously given as 295 or 305. According to the Armenian history traditionally attributed to Faustus of Byzantium (also known as Buzandaran Patmutʻiwnkʻ), Husik was raised and educated at the court of the Armenian king Tiran (r. 341–347?) and was married at a young age to Tiran's daughter. He had two sons with the Arsacid princess: Pap and Atanagines, who married Tiran's sisters Varazdukht and Bambishn, respectively. Since this means that Pap and Atanagines married their own great-aunts, Cyril Toumanoff suggests that Husik actually married the daughter of the earlier king Trdat the Great (Tiran's grandfather). Nina Garsoïan notes that these marriages may indicate the continuation of the Zoroastrian practice of consanguineous marriage in early Christian Armenia. He became the new patriarch of the Armenian Church after his father and reigned from 341 until 347. He was consecrated at Caesarea in Cappadocia like his predecessors.