Blessed Ignazio Maloyan

[Blessed Ignazio Maloyan]
Also known as
Choukrallah Maloyan
Ignadios Maloyan
Ignatios Maloyan
Ignatius Maloyan
Shoukrallah Maloyan
Shukrallah Maloyan
Memorial
11 June
Profile
Son of Melkon and Faridé Maloyan. Studied at the convent of Bzommar-Lebanon where he was ordained on 6 August 1896. Member of the Bzommar Institute. Took the name of Ignatius in remembrance of Saint Ignatius of Antioch. Parish priest in Alexandria and Cairo from 1897 to 1910. Assistant to Patriarch Boghos Bedros XII in 1904, but respiratory health problems forced his return to Egypt. Dispatched to the diocese of Mardin to restore order and discipline. Archbishop of Mardin on 22 October 1911, working with the Armenian Catholic minority. Encouraged the devotion to the Sacred Heart.

At the outbreak of WWI, Armenians in Turkey, especially Christians, became target of persecutions. On 30 April 1915 a group of Turkish soldiers surrounded the Armenian Catholic Bishopric and church in Mardin, claiming it was used to hide weapons. On 3 June 1915, Turkish soldiers arrested Bishop Maloyan along with many other Armenian Catholic priests and laymen. In court, chief of the police Mamdooh Bek ordered bishop Maloyan to convert to Islam; the bishop declined, and was beaten, tortured, chained, and imprisoned. On 10 June 1915, Ignazio and over 400 other Christians, including fourteen priests, were force marched into the desert. When they stopped, bishop Ignazio celebrated an impromptu liturgy with scraps of bread; the group was then murdered. The bishop was the last to die. Mamdooh Bek again demanded that Ignazio convert to Islam; when he refused, Bek shot him.

"I shall live and die for the sake of my faith and religion. I take pride in the Cross of my God and Lord." - Blessed Ignatio to the final demand that the abandon Christianity
Born
18 April 1869 at Mardin, Turkey
Died
shot to death on 11 June 1915 by Mamdooh Bek at Zerzevan Castle, Çinar, Diyarbakir, Turkey; his body is reported to have radiated light for three days after his death
Venerated
24 April 2001 by Pope John Paul II
Beatified
7 October 2001 by Pope John Paul II
Canonized
pending; if you have information relevant to the canonization of Blessed Ignazio, contact
   Patriarcat Arménien-Catholique
   Rue de l’Hopital Orthodoxe
   Jeitaoui
   2400 Beyrouth, LEBANON
   - or -
   Institut du Clergé Patriarcal de Bzommar
   5081 Bzommar, LEBANON
Additional Information
L'Osservatore Romano
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