Patriarch Daniel of the Romanian Orthodox Church sent a message on Saturday for the consecration of the Romanian Orthodox Cathedral in Madrid, describing the new place of worship as a “Gate of Heaven” and a spiritual landmark for Romanians living in the Iberian Peninsula.
In the message read during the consecration ceremony, the Patriarch said the cathedral was not merely a building, but a sacred space dedicated to God, where “earth is united with heaven”. He stressed that through the consecration with Holy Chrism, the cathedral becomes “the House of God and the Gate of Heaven”.
Patriarch Daniel also highlighted the significance of the new cathedral for the more than 800,000 Orthodox Romanians from Romania and the Republic of Moldova living in Spain and Portugal. He described the cathedral as a symbol of Romanian spiritual identity and a centre of unity for Orthodox faithful across the Iberian Peninsula.
The Patriarch thanked Bishop Timotei of Spain and Portugal, the Romanian authorities and all benefactors involved in the project, while urging the faithful to remain united around the Church and preserve their Orthodox faith and Romanian identity abroad.
Romanian Orthodox Cathedral in Madrid – Gate of Heaven and Landmark of Romanian Identity in the Iberian Peninsula
“Consecrate this house which you have built, that My Name may be there forever; My eyes and My heart will be there always.” (1 Kings 9:3)
Your Eminences and Your Graces,
Esteemed representatives of the Christian communities in Madrid,
Esteemed representatives of the Spanish Government and of the City of Madrid,
Esteemed representatives of the Government of Romania,
Reverend and Very Reverend Fathers,
Beloved faithful,
The consecration of a church is, above all, a work of God in the midst of His people. It is not merely a ceremony inaugurating a building, but an event through which a space within creation is dedicated to the service of God and becomes a place of encounter between heaven and earth.
The consecration of a church is, in fact, a blessing of the presence of Christ’s love among His people (cf. Matthew 28:20). Through the grace of the Holy Spirit, He sanctifies the church building — fashioned from stone and fresco, wood and gold — through the prayers of clergy and faithful kneeling before Him.
Through the anointing with the Holy and Great Chrism, the walls of this Cathedral are no longer merely a human structure, but become the House of God and the Gate of Heaven, according to the words of Scripture (cf. Genesis 28:17).
It is significant that this consecration takes place near the feast of the Holy Emperors Constantine and Helen, Equal-to-the-Apostles. In the fourth century, the Holy Emperor Constantine understood that a church built of stone is the visible image of the spiritual Church, and that a Christian people who raise cathedrals unite earth with heaven.
Saint Constantine the Great, the first Christian Roman emperor, granted the Church freedom and dignity in order to reveal the spiritual power of love for God through prayer and love for neighbour through good deeds.
In the same spirit, the Diocesan Cathedral of the Entry of the Most Holy Theotokos into the Temple in Madrid bears witness that Orthodox Romanians settled on Iberian soil are not merely temporary inhabitants of an earthly city, but pilgrims seeking the heavenly city, the New Jerusalem, which an Orthodox church — painted and consecrated — represents iconically and prophetically.
This day of holy joy is the fruit of a long and persevering journey. Aware of its pastoral responsibility towards the more than 800,000 Orthodox Christians from Romania and the Republic of Moldova settled in Spain and Portugal, the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church established, by its decision of 22 October 2007, the Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Spain and Portugal, with its seat in Madrid.
This decision came in response to the desire of Romanian Orthodox clergy and faithful who wished to have their own bishop, their own Romanian Orthodox diocese, and a recognised voice before the Iberian authorities.
On 18 April 2010, during the first visit of an Orthodox Patriarch to Iberian soil, we had the joy of laying the foundation stone of this Cathedral in the presence of the hierarchs of the Romanian Orthodox Metropolis of Western and Southern Europe, hierarchs from the diaspora and Romania, as well as representatives of the sister Orthodox Churches.
It was a moment of profound emotion, but also a hope that blossomed over the years through the untiring efforts of His Grace Bishop Timotei, of the clergy, and of the founder-faithful and benefactors, with the support of the Romanian Government through the State Secretariat for Religious Affairs and the Department for Romanians Abroad.
The land, granted free of charge by the Madrid City Council for a period of 75 years, on Calle Tubas 9 in the Latina district, is itself a sign of the recognition and respect shown by the Spanish authorities towards the Romanian Orthodox community.
The Diocesan Cathedral consecrated today is a synthesis of the Romanian soul and universal beauty. Modelled after the Princely Church of Curtea de Argeș, Cozia Monastery, and the historic Patriarchal Cathedral in Bucharest, it bears in its architecture and ornamentation the spirit of the Brancovenesque tradition — that spirituality which united Orthodox faith with the richness of Europe’s artistic forms in a remarkable way.
The Byzantine-style mural painting, executed in fresco technique by a team of iconographers led by Archdeacon Nicolae Bălan, speaks to us in the eternal language of the icon about the living and active God in the world. The mosaic on the façade, depicting the Virgin Mary Orans and the Holy Apostles Andrew and James, protectors of the Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Spain and Portugal, is a constant call to prayer addressed to all who cross the threshold of this holy Cathedral.
A European capital with a Romanian Orthodox Cathedral is spiritually richer. The Cathedral is not a spiritual luxury, but a pastoral and missionary necessity. It is the place where the children of emigrants receive Holy Baptism, where young people are married and lay the foundations of a new family in the light of Christ’s presence, where the elderly give thanks to God for a life lived in faith and honest labour, and where those who depart this life are accompanied with prayer and tears towards eternal rest.
The Cathedral is also a factor of unity in faith and nationhood for all Romanian Orthodox Christians in Spain and Portugal, a spiritual and cultural landmark that will endure through time, bearing witness to future generations that their forebears valued, above every comfort, the holy presence and work of God in their lives.
We express our highest appreciation to His Grace Bishop Timotei of the Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Spain and Portugal for his rich pastoral, missionary, and administrative activity, and for the zeal with which he brought this holy place to completion.
We thank all founders and donors who contributed to the building of this House of God. We especially recall the efforts of the Reverend Professor Dr Teofil Moldovan, the shepherd who, for many years, bore upon his shoulders the pastoral care of the Romanian faithful in the Iberian Peninsula and who undertook all the necessary steps to obtain the land on which the Diocesan Cathedral now stands.
Likewise, we offer words of congratulations to all founders, benefactors and donors of this holy Cathedral, together with the entire assembly of hierarchs, clergy and Romanian and Spanish officials present at this important event in the life of the Romanian Orthodox community.
We also thank the Government of Romania, which, through the State Secretariat for Religious Affairs and the Department for Romanians Abroad, offered sustained financial support for the construction and completion of this beautiful Cathedral of Orthodox Romanians in Spain and Portugal.
Beloved Orthodox faithful, we urge you to love this Cathedral as a priceless spiritual treasure. Come to this Cathedral not only on feast days, but whenever your soul feels the need for peace, light and spiritual strengthening.
Remain united around the Holy Altar, in brotherly love for one another, in communion with the Romanian Orthodox Diocese and with the Mother Church in Romania. Never forget that to be Romanian also means to be Christian, and to be Christian means to carry in one’s heart, wherever one may be in the world, Christ crucified and risen.
We pray to the Most Holy Trinity that, through the intercessions of the Most Holy Virgin Mary — whose Entry into the Temple is the patronal feast of this Cathedral — and through the prayers of the Holy Apostles Andrew and James, protectors of the Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Spain and Portugal, He may pour out His sanctifying grace upon all those who pray with devotion in this holy place, granting them health and salvation, peace and joy, and abundant help in every good work.
With much esteem and paternal blessings,
† DANIEL
Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church
Photo: Lumina Newspaper
