Aurelian Iftimiu

The Week in Pictures: January 2-8, 2023

Photos from the feast of the Theophany of the Lord or other important moments of Orthodox life between January 2 and January 8, 2023, can be seen in our latest article titled “The Week in Pictures”. Last week’s most-liked Instagram post:   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by Basilica.ro (@basilica.ro) Do…

Jan 13, 2023Aurelian Iftimiu

Patriarch Daniel: The Creator comes to His creation / It is a celebration of a cosmic dimension

On the eve of the Theophany of the Lord, the Patriarch of Romania welcomed the clergy of the Patriarchal Cathedral at his patriarchal residence. His Beatitude spoke to them about the cosmic character of the celebration and about how important it is for the faithful to receive the priest on the feast’s eve. Patriarch Daniel…

Jan 13, 2023Aurelian Iftimiu

Patriarch of Romania: Revering and helping the elderly are expressions of spiritual and social maturity in community life

During a ceremony on New Year’s Day at the Patriarchal Cathedral in Bucharest when 2023 was officially proclaimed as Solemn Year of the pastoral care of the elderly and Commemorative Year of hymnographers and church chanters, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel addressed the faithful, stressing that a community’s social maturity can be evaluated by the way…

Jan 12, 2023Aurelian Iftimiu

First census results show Romania’s population is shrinking, 85.3% remain Orthodox

Romania’s resident population dropped to 19,053,815 inhabitants, the first results of the 2022 census show. Compared to the previous 2011 census, Romania lost 1.1 million inhabitants. Of the total population, 8,185,049 are active people, down from 9,180,337 active people out of a population of 20,121,641 in 2011. Of the active population, 7,688,967 are employed, and 496,082…

Jan 9, 2023Aurelian Iftimiu

Republic of Moldova offers free Romanian language courses for adults

President Maia Sandu announced that adults who belong to national minorities in the Republic of Moldova would benefit from free Romanian language courses starting in 2023. This will be achieved by expanding the Ministry of Education’s National Program for teaching the Romanian language to non-native speakers, until now only intended for children from national minorities.…

Jan 9, 2023Aurelian Iftimiu

Synodal Decree on the Proclamation of the Solemn and Commemorative Year 2023 in the Romanian Patriarchate: full text

The year 2023 was proclaimed as the “Solemn Year of the Pastoral Care of the Elderly” and the “Commemorative Year of Hymnographers and Church Chanters” in the Romanian Patriarchate. The Synodal Decree on the Proclamation of the Solemn and Commemorative Year 2023 was read by the patriarchal auxiliary bishop Varlaam of Ploiești at New Year’s…

Jan 5, 2023Aurelian Iftimiu

Solemn, Commemorative Year 2023 officially proclaimed. It is a great opportunity to visit the elderly, Patriarch Daniel says

The Solemn and Commemorative Year 2023 was officially proclaimed at the Patriarchal Cathedral in Bucharest after the Divine Liturgy celebrated on New Year’s Day. The Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church declared 2023 as a Solemn Year of the pastoral care of the elderly and a Commemorative Year of hymnographers and church chanters. The…

Jan 5, 2023Aurelian Iftimiu

Patriarch Daniel: Offer Christ the gold of faith and good deeds, the frankincense of prayer and the myrrh of a pure life

If rich in spirit, every Christian, whether rich or poor in material terms, “can offer Christ more precious gifts than the gifts offered by the wise men of the East.” These are “the gold of faith and good deeds, the frankincense of fervent prayer and the myrrh of a pure life,” His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel…

Dec 29, 2022Aurelian Iftimiu

Romanian Bishop of Australia and New Zealand urges faithful to welcome the New Year with persistent prayer

In his Christmas pastoral letter, His Grace Mihail, the Romanian Orthodox Bishop of Australia and New Zealand, urges the faithful to greet the New Year with persistent prayer. “We can say that through Christ’s coming into the world, the Kingdom of God was opened to the world,” the bishop wrote. “It is important to emphasise…

Dec 24, 2022Aurelian Iftimiu

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew: Christmas is the time for self-knowledge

“Christmas is the time for self-knowledge, for understanding the difference between “God becoming man” and “man acting as god.” It is the time for awareness of the Christian teaching that “we do not speak of man becoming divine, but of God becoming human,” Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew wrote in this year’s Patriarchal Encyclical for the feast…

Dec 24, 2022Aurelian Iftimiu

Without Christ, we can do nothing for our profit or the peace of the world: Metropolitan Teofan says in his Christmas encyclical

“Without Christ, we can do nothing for our profit or the peace of the world,” Metropolitan Teofan of Moldavia and Bukovina stressed in this year’s Christmas pastoral letter. The Metropolitan lamented the oppressive atmosphere created by the war in the neighbouring country. “The awareness that we share the suffering of those affected by war, that…

Dec 23, 2022Aurelian Iftimiu