Stephen of Tbeti

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Stepane Mtbevari (Georgian: სტეფანე მტბევარი) was a 10th-century hierarch of the Georgian Orthodox Church, religious writer and calligrapher. Mtbevari, "of T'beti", is the title indicating his holding of the diocese of , centered on the eponymous monastery in Shavsheti (now in eastern Turkey).[1] He is praised by the contemporary hagiographer Giorgi Merchule as a writer in The Life of Grigol of Khandzta, but beyond a translation of a commentary to the Psalms, the Passion of Gobron is his only—and best known—extant work.[2]

The Passion of Gobron is a piece of original hagiography, commissioned from the author by the Georgian Bagratid prince Ashot Kukhi (died 918)[2] and relating heroic defense of the fort of Q'ueli by Christian Georgian noble Gobron and his eventual death as a martyr at the hands of the Muslim emir Yusuf Ibn Abi'l-Saj (Abu l'Kasim) in 914.[2] "The Holy Father Stepane Mtbevari" and his work are also mentioned by the 11th-century anonymous Chronicle of Kartli, part of the Georgian Chronicles, while the 11th-century historian Sumbat reports Stepane's installment by Ashot Kukhi as the first bishop of T'beti.[3][1]

The Passion of Gobron opens with edifying quotations from the Book of Job and Saint Paul. It then continues, condemning the Armenians for their "heresy", a reference to Armenia's rejection of the Council of Chalcedon.[2][4] While describing the Muslim invasion and Gobron's defense of Q'ueli, Stepane shows a talent for epic storytelling.[2]

References[]

  1. ^ a b Antony Eastmond (1998), Royal Imagery in Medieval Georgia, p. 221. Penn State Press, ISBN 0-271-01628-0.
  2. ^ a b c d e Rayfield, Donald (2000), The Literature of Georgia: A History, pp. 48-9. Routledge, ISBN 0-7007-1163-5.
  3. ^ Rapp, Stephen H. (2003), Studies in Medieval Georgian Historiography: Early Texts And Eurasian Contexts, p. 359. Peeters Publishers, ISBN 90-429-1318-5
  4. ^ (in French) Martin-Hisard, Bernadette (1992), "Une hagiographie géorgienne anti-arménienne du début du Xe siècle". Revue des Études Arméniennes 23: 209-235.

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