Aurelian Iftimiu

Youngest Romanian bishop urges young people in diaspora to ‘be bridges, not walls’

“You are the heart of the Church scattered throughout the world, like the seed of the Gospel carried to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8),” Assistant Bishop Iachint of the Pacific of the Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Australia and New Zealand told young Orthodox Christians on Wednesday. Marking International Youth Day, the youngest hierarch…

Aug 12, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Patriarch Daniel urges support for Romanian families abroad on Migrants’ Sunday

His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel of the Romanian Orthodox Church has called for stronger spiritual and family ties with Romanians living abroad, saying Orthodox parishes in the diaspora have become places where migrants can preserve their faith, language and cultural identity. In a message for the Sunday of Romanian Migrants, observed this year on 16 August,…

Aug 12, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Low Danube levels expose remains of St Constantine the Great’s Roman bridge

The foundations of a Roman bridge built across the Danube nearly 1,700 years ago have emerged as exceptionally low water levels exposed parts of the ancient structure, Reuters reported. The Bridge of Constantine was built in the early fourth century and inaugurated in 328 by the Holy Emperor Constantine the Great. It linked the ancient…

Aug 12, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

World Calligraphy Day celebrates an ancient art with deep roots in Christian tradition

World Calligraphy Day celebrates the art of handwriting, practised since antiquity. Over the centuries, calligraphy has embellished manuscripts and has also held an important place in the Christian tradition. The observance is held annually on the second Wednesday of August and is dedicated to the art of calligraphy and those who practise it. In 2026,…

Aug 12, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Târgoviște Archbishop marks name day, says Church journeys through history in footsteps of saints

“The Church journeys through history in the footsteps of the saints, and their fascinating experience and profound embrace of Christian values constitute that wonderful treasure of spirituality which inspires the lives of us all, young and old,” His Eminence Archbishop Nifon of Târgoviște, Honorary Metropolitan and Patriarchal Exarch, said on Tuesday. On the feast of…

Aug 12, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Ecumenical Patriarch marks 1,400 years since first chanting of Akathist Hymn at Blachernae

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I prayed last Friday at the Church of Blachernae in Constantinople, marking 1,400 years since the Akathist Hymn to the Mother of God was first chanted. According to tradition, the hymn dedicated to the Mother of God was first chanted at the Church of Blachernae in Constantinople in 626, after the Byzantine…

Aug 12, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to visit Bulgaria for feast of St John of Rila

His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I will visit Bulgaria on 19 October for the feast of St John of Rila. The announcement was made on Friday during the Service of Supplication to the Mother of God held at the Church of St John of Rila of the Bulgarian community in Constantinople. The visit will take…

Aug 12, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Romanian Orthodox Diocese urges faithful to declare Romanian identity in Australia’s 2026 Census

The Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Australia and New Zealand is encouraging Romanians living in Australia to declare both their Romanian ethnicity and their Orthodox Christian faith in the 2026 Australian Census. According to a press release issued by the Diocese, the census data helps provide an accurate picture of the Romanian and Orthodox communities in…

Aug 12, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Romanian priest’s wife in Germany says diaspora ministry requires balancing parish mission and family life

Mihaela-Iuliana Păun is the wife of Fr. Ionuț Păun, the parish priest of the Romanian Orthodox Church dedicated to St. Parascheva and the Holy Martyrs Kilian, Coloman, and Totnan in Bamberg, Germany. She has lived there for almost seventeen years together with her husband and their four children. She teaches German in adult education, and…

Aug 11, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Only after you believe God can help you can you begin the journey of renewal, Bishop Iachint says

“Only after you believe that God can help you can you take the first step on the path of renewal and salvation,” His Grace Iachint of the Pacific, Assistant Bishop of the Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Australia and New Zealand, said on Sunday at St Mary Romanian Orthodox Parish in Wellington, New Zealand. Reflecting on…

Aug 11, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu

Assistant Bishop Timotei: Seek the light through constant spiritual struggle against darkness

“Let us seek the light through a constant struggle against darkness,” His Grace Timotei of Prahova, Assistant Bishop of the Archdiocese of Bucharest, urged the faithful on Sunday at the Patriarchal Cathedral. Reflecting on the Gospel reading for the Tenth Sunday after Pentecost, the bishop explained that the power of evil is limited and that…

Aug 10, 2026Aurelian Iftimiu