A historic moment at the Patriarchal Cathedral in Bucharest: The new Confessor Saints have been proclaimed

The proclamation of the 16 saints canonised last year took place on Tuesday at the Patriarchal Cathedral in Bucharest in the presence of His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel of Romania and the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church members.

The historic event took place at the end of the Divine Liturgy celebrated by His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel on the anniversary of the Centenary of the Romanian Patriarchate. The service was attended by members of the National Church Assembly, and hundreds of believers were present on the Hill of the Metropolitanate.

Proclamation

The Synodal Tomos for the proclamation of the saints was read by His Grace Varlaam of Ploiești, the Patriarchal Auxiliary Bishop and Secretary of the Holy Synod.

‘Great joy is proclaimed today to her children by our Orthodox Church, on the anniversary of the Centenary of the Romanian Patriarchate, deciding that those who are well-pleasing to God from the Romanian people be placed in the calendar of saints.’

His Grace read the names of the 16 saints the names of the 16 saints and mentioned their feast days.

‘These saints, that are so pleasing to God lived lives crowned with prayer, fasting, repentance, humility, and love, reaching perfection. Some of them paid with their lives for their confession of faith, being crowned with glorious martyr’s crowns. Others lived a continuous, bloodless martyrdom, enduring prisons, tortures, and countless humiliations, and after their release, they were still persecuted by the godless,’ the synodal text states.

‘Neither tribulation, nor distress, nor hunger, nor lack of clothing, nor danger separated them from the love of Christ; in all these things, they were shown to be more than victorious through Christ who loved them.’

After the reading of the synodal act, the icons of the new saints were presented, and the Tronos Psaltic Group sang their troparia.

The most precious fruit

His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel highlighted that the 16 saints are “the most precious fruit that our Church has borne in this period of 100 years, because through them the mysterious work of the grace of the Holy Spirit in the Romanian Orthodox Church is revealed more intensely.

‘These saints were canonised or inscribed in the Church’s calendar because signs of holiness were evident in their lives: orthodoxy of faith, holy life of repentance and prayer, humble and merciful love toward others, self-sacrificial confession of faith, and sometimes even the performing of miracles, as well as the piety of the people toward them.’

‘Their canonization is an act of recognizing the holiness of their lives, which transcends any political context, emphasizing that true Christian confession does not support transient worldly ideologies, but rather the eternal values of faith and love for God,’ His Beatitude explained.

‘The Centenary of the Romanian Patriarchate is, therefore, a moment of holy joy and gratitude for the entire Romanian Orthodoxy. Looking back, we see not only a rich history but also a profound spiritual legacy left by our predecessors – patriarchs, hierarchs, priests, monks, and lay believers – who have defended and passed on the Orthodox faith over time,’ concluded the Patriarch.

Afterward, Metropolitan Iosif of Western and Southern Europe officiated a Thanksgiving (Te Deum) Service for the anniversary of the Centenary of the Romanian Patriarchate and for the opening of the works of the Holy Synod and the National Church Assembly.

Text credit:Basilica.ro
Photo credit: Basilica.ro / Raluca Emanuela Ene