“Christ is the source of pastoral strength,” Archimandrite Nicodim Petre said Thursday evening, at the end of the Holy Synod meeting where he was elected Bishop of Bălți.
“I accept this decision, this vote of confidence, with the hope that I will honour it, with humility and with the awareness that this is a very high ministry in the Church,” the bishop-elect said.
“I also know my limitations and weaknesses, and I ask God to make possible what is impossible for human beings.”
The newly elected hierarch thanked the members of the Holy Synod for their votes, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel for the confidence placed in him, Metropolitan Antonie for proposing him for this ministry, and Metropolitan Teofan for his advice, patience and fatherly care.
A diocese built through great sacrifice
Bishop-elect Nicodim emphasised that His Eminence Metropolitan Antonie had shown great sacrifice and patience during his leadership of the Diocese of Bălți.
“I have been there very often, and I know how much work and effort have been devoted to it. I wish to serve both the clergy and the faithful there with all my dedication, all my energy and all my strength,” Archimandrite Nicodim Petre said.
“Thank you all, and please pray for me as well,” the bishop-elect of Bălți said at the conclusion of his address.
Need for material and moral support
“With God’s help and with support from the hierarchs in Romania, especially those in the eastern part of the country, in accordance with the decisions of the Holy Synod, this diocese must be supported because it is small and situated in a rather complicated region,” His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel said in his concluding remarks.
“That is why it needs both prayer and action, and practical support.”
The Patriarch of Romania highlighted the newly elected Bishop of Bălți’s experience in youth ministry.
“We must always be receptive and, at the same time, encourage them to train young people from Bessarabia in the future, so that they can pursue their studies, gain substantial and solid monastic experience, and then return to their country of origin,” Patriarch Daniel added.
The newly elected Bishop of Bălți is 58 years old and has been a monk for 26 years, having received monastic tonsure and ordination at Putna Monastery towards the end of 2000.
