His Grace Bishop Sofian of Brașov, the Assistant Bishop of the Romanian Orthodox Archdiocese of Germany, Austria, and Luxembourg, celebrated his 55th birthday on Tuesday.
Born on July 22, 1970, in the village of Băcel, Covasna County, he was given the name Gheorghe at baptism.
After completing his primary and secondary education, he attended Industrial High School No. 2 in Sfântu Gheorghe, specialising in Philology–History (1984–1988), followed by studies at the “Andrei Șaguna” Faculty of Orthodox Theology in Sibiu (1992–1996).
In 1990, he entered Brâncoveanu Monastery at Sâmbăta de Sus as a novice and was tonsured a monk with the name Serafim on April 20, 1993. He was ordained a hierodeacon shortly thereafter.
On April 23, 1999, he was ordained a hieromonk. Between December 1995 and June 1998, he was a scholarship student at the Catholic Faculty of Theology in Chur, Switzerland, where he translated his undergraduate thesis into German. The work was published in 1998 by Der Christliche Osten in Würzburg under the title Die orthodoxe Spiritualität der Osterzeit. Kommentar zum Pentekostarion (“The Orthodox Spirituality of the Paschal Season: Commentary on the Pentecostarion”).
From October 1999 to April 2003, he pursued a master’s degree at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece, culminating in the thesis Martyrs, Martyrdom and Witness in the Writings of Saint Basil the Great.
He continued with doctoral studies in Patristics at the Orthodox Theological Faculty in Sibiu, focusing on The Theology of Priesthood in the Writings of Saint John Chrysostom.
Upon the proposal of Metropolitan Serafim Joantă, he was elected on May 11, 2002, as Assistant Bishop of the Romanian Orthodox Metropolis of Germany, Central and Northern Europe, under the name Sofian and the title “of Brașov.” His election was confirmed by the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church on July 3, 2002.
On May 11, 2003, he was ordained to the episcopacy at the Romanian Orthodox Cathedral in Nuremberg, Germany, by an assembly of hierarchs led by Patriarch Teoctist Arăpașu.
Since December 1, 2004, Bishop Sofian has resided in Munich, Germany, where he oversees the pastoral and missionary activities of the Metropolis and initiated the construction of a diocesan centre. Since November 22, 2008, he has served as president of the Association of Romanian Orthodox Youth in Germany.
He has published books, academic studies, and articles in both German and Romanian.
Photo: Basilica.ro
