At the invitation of His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel, the leaders of three Autocephalous Orthodox Churches will attend this year’s celebrations in honour of Saint Demetrios the New, Protector of Bucharest.
His Beatitude Kirill, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, His Beatitude Anastasios, Archbishop of Albania, and His Beatitude Rastislav, Metropolitan of the Czech Lands and Slovakia, will attend the celebrations held in Bucharest in memory of the defenders of Orthodoxy during communism and to mark Patriarch Daniel’s 10th anniversary of patriarchal ministry.
The Romanian Patriarchate extended an invitation to all Autocephalous Orthodox Churches in former communist countries: Russia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Georgia, Poland, Albania, Czech Republic and Slovakia.
Patriarch Kirill | Russian Orthodox Church
His Beatitude Kirill is the first Russian Patriarch to visit Romania after the fall of the communist regime in 1989. The latter visit paid to Romania by a Russian Patriarch was in 1983.
The current Primate of the Russian Church was born on 20 November 1946 in Leningrad (now Skt. Petersburg). He was elected Patriarch on 27 January 2009 and enthroned during a solemn ceremony at Christ the Saviour Cathedral in Moscow on 1 February 2009.
Archbishop Anastasios | Albanian Orthodox Church
This will be the third visit to Bucharest of Archbishop Anastasios of Tirana, Durres and All Albania. He first attended the celebrations marking the 110th anniversary of the recognition of the autocephaly of the Romanian Orthodox Church and the 70th anniversary of the Romanian Patriarchate’s establishment, on 25-27 October 1995. His second official visit paid to Bucharest took place at the invitation of former Patriarch Teoctist, on 8-19 November 2003.
His Beatitude Anastasios was elected Archbishop of Tirana on 24 June 1992, being enthroned the same year on August 2.
Metropolitan Rastislav | Orthodox Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia
This is the first visit to Bucharest of His Beatitude Rastislav, Metropolitan of the Orthodox Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia, after his enthronement as Primate of the Czech and Slovak Church in 2013.
Metropolitan Rastislav was born on 25 January 1978 in Snina, Slovakia. On 18 November 2012, he was consecrated Bishop of Prešov. On 11 January 2013, he was elected Primate of the Orthodox Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia, being enthroned on Feb. 10.
The last Primate of the Czech and Slovak Church to visit Romania was Metropolitan Emeritus Kryštof in 2015. He attended a festival dedicated to Romanians abroad, in Arad, on July 8-9, he met His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel in Bucharest and attended the celebrations in honour of St Paraskeva in Iași.
