The Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church has issued a pastoral letter on the first Sunday of the Nativity Fast recalling that the Romanian people bears the ‘seal of the mystery of Christ’s Cross and Resurrection.’ ‘The luminous fruit-bearing of Christ’s Gospel in the history and culture of the Romanian people is observed in the gift of national unity, freedom and dignity, gained through strong faith and sacrificial struggle over many ages of Christian suffering,’ the hierarchs point out…

On the forefeast of Saint John Chrysostom, November 12, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel inaugurated the Consilium House of the National Cathedral’s Chapel. Following the blessing service, His Beatitude referred to the way the new building will be used by the priests and believers. He said that given its capacity, agape meals will be held inside. Also, that it may serve as a place of gathering for the Chapel’s volunteers, as well as for those who work on the National Cathedral’s construction site…

Romanians came out to vote on 6 and 7 October in a referendum to change the constitution to officially define marriage as between one man and one woman. However, not enough Romanians came out. The referendum needed 30% of the population to show up to be valid, but although the vote was extended to two days, only about 20% of registered voters actually cast ballots. At present, marriage is constitutionally defined as “between spouses.” Same-sex marriage is already banned in the Romanian civil co…

Die Nationale Kirchenversammlung der Rumänischen Orthodoxen Kirche hat die Bürger des Landes dazu aufgerufen, am bevorstehenden Referendum über die Ehe Ja zu stimmen. Mit dem Referendum soll die Definition der Ehe in der rumänischen Verfassung abgeändert werden, wo sie bisher als eine freiwillig eingegangene Verbindung zwischen Ehepartnern bezeichnet wird. Falls das Referendum angenommen wird, hieße es in der Verfassung künftig „Verbindung zwischen Mann und Frau“.

His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel offered Tuesday, September 11, a vestment with which the holy relics of Saint Paraskeva were clothed to a representative of the Bulgarian Patriarchate. Saint Paraskeva’s vestment, received from Metropolitan Teofan of Moldavia and Bukovina, was handed over to His Eminence Metropolitan Naum of Ruse at the St George Chapel of the Patriarchal Residence in Bucharest. The holy relic will be enshrined in the old church “Saint Paraskeva”, located at the basement of the Me…

Monday, September 3, 2018, from 09:45 to 10:30 a.m., His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel officiated the blessing service of the National Cathedral’s six bells on the ground. Consequently, the bells will be mounted together with their metallic structure in the Bell Tower on the western façade of the new Patriarchal Cathedral, at a height of 60 meters. The blessing of the exterior of the bells will be followed by an additional on the inside blessing after the bells will be installed in the bell tower…

The Romanian Orthodox Church has released a statement calling for “prayer, peace, dialogue, and social co-responsibility” against the backdrop of several days of protests in Bucharest that have left more than 450 injured. Some estimates say 100'000 people came out to the streets of the capital for several days starting on 10 August 2018 to protest what they see as government corruption and to call for new elections. The protests were largely organized by Romanian expats who returned home for th…

Artists have begun to apply mosaic icons on the iconostasis of the National Cathedral in Bucharest, patriarchal adviser Vasile Cracaoanu announced on 28 June 2018. Eng. Vasile Cracaoanu, who is one of the persons involved in coordinating the works at the Romanian People’s Salvation Cathedral, said that the preparation for the application of the mosaic icons began as early as May and it involved plastering the wall of the iconostasis. Following the plastering of the iconostasis, iconographers a…

Der Vorstand der Gemeinsamen Arbeitsgruppe der römisch-katholischen Kirche und des Ökumenischen Rats der Kirchen (ÖRK) hat sich vom 24. bis 27. Mai 2018 im rumänischen Târgovişte getroffen und dort die weitere Zusammenarbeit in der Friedensförderung sowie die ökumenischen Herausforderungen und Chancen angesichts von Migration und Flucht besprochen. Das Treffen fand auf Einladung des Co-Vorsitzenden von ÖRK-Seite, Metropolit Nifon (Mihaita), in dessen Eparchie statt.

Marking its 517th anniversary, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel re-consecrated the church of Dealu Monastery on 10. June 2018 referring to it as ‘an important landmark of Romanian national identity and unity’. The Patriarch of Romania said that this monastic settlement is ‘the holy place keeping as in a reliquary the honourable head of Ruler Prince Michael the Brave, who made the first union of the Romanian Principalities, Wallachia, Transylvania, and Moldova, in 1600.’ Although this union ‘was a…

In Sibiu fand vom 11. bis 14. Mai 2018 die erste internationale Konferenz des neu gegründeten ökumenischen Instituts Ex fide lux zum Thema „Heilige und Heiligenverehrung in Ost und West“ statt. Mit über 80 orthodoxen, katholischen und evangelischen Teilnehmern stieß das Thema der Tagung auf reges Interesse. Die Konferenz in Sibiu erlaubte einen ökumenischen Blick auf Verbindendes und Trennendes zwischen den Kirchen in dieser Frage. Organisiert wurde die Tagung von Ex fide lux – Deutsch-Rumänisc…

The Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church held Thursday, 24 May 2018, its working session at the Synodal Hall of the Patriarchal Residence, under the chairmanship of His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel. Given the insistent request of the clergy and lay believers of the Metropolis of Bessarabia, the Holy Synod elected by secret vote His Grace Antonie of Orhei, Assistant Bishop to the Archdiocese of Chișinău, as Bishop of Bălți.The Holy Synod proceeded to the election by secret vote of the V. Rev…

About 95% of the Romanian citizens believe in God, but only 21% go to church every week, says a survey on the religious belief in Romania, conducted by Friedrich Ebert Romania Foundation, cited by Agerpres. According to the same study, 27% of the Romanians say the referendum to re-define the family concept is necessary. The results show that there is a “significant difference” in Romania between the affirmation of faith and the actual religious activity. “Thus, although there is an active stron…

Metropolitan Joseph Naniescu and the lay-ascetic George Lazăr were proclaimed Saints of the Church by Patriarch Daniel in a ceremony at the Metropolitan Cathedral in Iași. After celebrating the Divine Liturgy on the Feast of Annunciation, His Eminence Archbishop Ioachim of Roman and Bacău read out the synodal tomos on the glorification of Metropolitan Joseph of Moldavia by which he was proclaimed a Saint under the name of Holy Hierarch Joseph the Merciful. Next, Bishop Ignatie of Huși read out…

Thursday, March 15 2018, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel received in audience the President of the Conference of European Churches, Bishop Christopher Hill, the CEC Vice-president, His Eminence Metropolitan Emmanuel of France, and the CEC General Secretary, Rev. Heikki Huttunen. A short assessment of the collaboration between the Romanian Orthodox Church and the Conference of European Churches was made during the meeting.   Weiterlesen auf basilica.ro (15. März 2018)

Holy Friday has become an official public non-working holiday in Romania. With Romanian President Klaus Iohannis’ signature on the completion of Paragraph 1 of Article 139 of the Labor Code, Romania joined 16 other EU countries where Holy Friday is already a public holiday. The bill was initiated by Deputy Szabo Odon of the Democrat Hungarian Union and adopted by the Senate on February 21 by a vote of 86-1 with one abstention. The Chamber of Deputies approved the legislation on February 28 by a…

Die Weihe der neuen orthodoxen Kathedrale von Bukarest Ende November 2018 soll nicht nur erstmals nach fast drei spannungsreichen Jahren zu einer Wiederbegegnung des Ökumenischen Patriarchen Bartholomaios mit seinem Moskauer Amtsbruder Kirill führen: Zur Eröffnung der größten Kirche Südosteuropas - bisher war das der Dom des heiligen Sava in Belgrad - soll nach jüngsten Informationen auch eine "Synaxis" aller Oberhirten der Orthodoxie stattfinden. Unter Synaxis wurde ursprünglich eine liturgis…

The Metropolis of Moldavia and Bukovina of the Romanian Orthodox Church has announced that the glorification of Metropolitan Iosif Naniescu and Gheorghe Lazar the Ascetic will be liturgically proclaimed on the feast of the Annunciation, March 25, in the Metropolitan Cathedral of Iași, reports the Romanian Orthodox Church’s Basilica News Agency. The Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church resolved to add them to the calendar of saints at its early October working session. They had earlier bee…

The Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church held this year's first working session on Thursday, February 15, at the Synodal Hall of the Patriarchal Residence, under the chairmanship of His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel. During the meeting, the members of the Holy Synod proceeded to the election of an assistant bishop to the Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Italy and an assistant bishop to the Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Spain and Portugal. The Holy Synod elected by secret vote the Very Reverend Ar…

In 2017, the Romanian Orthodox Church invested approximatively 24 million Euros in charity work. 'Currently the Romanian Orthodox Church is the greatest philanthropist in terms of ist contribution to social work', said Patriarch Daniel during the meeting of the National Church Assembly (NCA) stressing that this means 'sacrifice, effort, and caring for the people'. His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel thanked those who ‘have contributed to the rich activities carried out during the 2017 solemn and com…