The installation of the statue St. Gregory of Narek seems like a piece of Armenia is placed in the Vatican, Armenian ambassador to the Holy See Mikayel Minasyan said, according to the Catholic News Agency.

At the end of Pope Francis’ visit to Armenia in June 2016, the pope was given a small statue of St. Gregory of Narek, a gift from Armenia’s President Serzh Sargsyan. A large replica of the statue will be installed at the Vatican gardens on Thursday, April 5, in the presence of Armenian president Serzh Sargsyan, Catholicos Karekin II, who is head of the Armenian Apostolic Church, along with other Armenian dignitaries.

An Armenian monk, theologian and poet of the 10th century, St. Gregory of Narek is venerated as a saint by the Catholic Church and the Armenian Apostolic Church, the Armenian national Church of Eastern Orthodoxy. Pope Francis proclaimed Gregory of Narek a Doctor of the Church during an April 2015 Mass for the centenary of Armenian Genocide.

“St. Gregory of Narek is the author of the spiritual constitution of Armenia and the Armenian people. He is the symbol of our culture, which comprises Armenian, international and Christian cultures,” Minasyan said.

The installation of the statue also symbolizes the impact of diplomatic relations between Armenia and Holy See, which were opened 25 years ago.

“Our diplomatic relation are 25 years old and, at the same time, 1700 years old, because it is not just about the relations between the Holy See and the Republic of Armenia, but also between the Armenian world and the Catholic world,” Ambassador Minasyan said.

This is the reason why, he said, “Armenia will not just be represented by its president, but also by the two Catholicos and by the Armenian Catholic Patriarch, Krikor Bedros XX.”