Anniversaries and commemorations

World Car-Free Day: What would your city look like without car traffic?

Sunday, September 22, marks World Car Free Day in cities around the world, an older initiative that gained popularity in the 1990s. Car-free days were established in some Western countries during an oil crisis in the 1970s. But it was not until October 1994, at the International Conference on Accessible Cities in Toledo, Spain, that…

Sep 22, 2024Ștefana Totorcea

The 35th Day of Prayer for the Protection of the Environment

Sunday marks the 35th anniversary of establishing the Day of Prayer for the Environment in the Orthodox Church. It was set at the beginning of the Church Year at the initiative of Ecumenical Patriarch Dimitrios I of Constantinople. Ecumenical Patriarch Dimitrios I invited the whole Christian world to give thanks for the creation and ask…

Sep 1, 2024Ștefana Totorcea

August 23: A day to honour the victims of totalitarian regimes and recognize modern Orthodox Saints

Since 2008, August 23rd has been observed as the European Day of Remembrance for Victims of Stalinism and Nazism. In Romania, this day has also been designated as the Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Fascism and Communism by Law No. 198/2011. Many victims of totalitarian regimes suffered because they valued their faith more…

Aug 23, 2024Aurelian Iftimiu

Fr. Seraphim Rose’s 90th birth anniversary: He searched for Truth in Eastern philosophy and found it in an Orthodox Church

Father Seraphim Rose, a brilliant Californian mind, discovered Orthodoxy in adulthood after delving deeply into Eastern philosophy. Once he made this discovery, he devoted himself entirely to this path, becoming a monk and tirelessly working to promote the truth of Orthodoxy in the contemporary world. His birth name was Eugene, and he was born on…

Aug 13, 2024Aurelian Iftimiu

A bishop’s inheritance is not the throne, but the Cross: 40 years since the repose of a holy healer – Saint Callinicus of Edessa

Thursday marks 40 years since the blessed repose of a contemporary saint: St. Callinicus, the Metropolitan of Edessa, Pella, and Almopia. The Ecumenical Patriarchate canonized him in 2020, and his feast day is August 8. Saint Callinicus was born in 1919 in Sitaralona of Thermo, in central Greece, and spent the first part of his…

Aug 8, 2024Aurelian Iftimiu

Remembering Patriarch Teoctist on the 17th anniversary of his blessed repose

Romania’s former Patriarch Teoctist Arapasu reposed in the Lord 17 years ago, on July 30, 2007. Patriarch Teoctist was born on February 7, 1915, in Tocileni, Botoșani county. He was named Teodor, being the tenth child of Dumitru and Marghioala Arăpașu. He went to Vorona Monastery as a novice in 1928 and continued to Neamț…

Jul 30, 2024Aurelian Iftimiu

July 25: The day Saint Paisios of Mount Athos would have turned 100 years old

Saint Paisios of Mount Athos would have turned 100 today. The venerable monk was born on July 25, 1924, in Pharasa, Cappadocia (present-day Turkey). He was given the name Arsenios at his baptism. At the age of 20, he enlisted in the army, serving as a radio operator during the Greek Civil War. He entered…

Jul 25, 2024Aurelian Iftimiu

Patriarch Daniel of Romania turns 73

His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel of Romania has turned 73 on Monday, July 22. His Beatitude has hold Romania’s patriarchal see for 17 years, having over three decades of hierarchical experience. The Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church is originally from the village of Dobrești, Timiș County. He was the third child in the family of…

Jul 22, 2024Aurelian Iftimiu

250th anniversary of the translation of Saint Demetrius the New’s relics to Bucharest

Saturday, July 13, marks the 250th anniversary of the translation of Saint Demetrius the New’s relics to Bucharest. How Saint Demetrius’ relics arrived in Bucharest The historical context in which the venerated relics arrived in Romania’s capital was during the Russo-Turkish War (1768-1774). Battles were fought on Romanian soil and south of the Danube. When…

Jul 13, 2024Aurelian Iftimiu

Basilica News Agency, conveying The Good to Know for 16 years

In a world dominated by information, Patriarch Daniel considered the presence of the Orthodox Church essential in Romanian media. Thus, just one month after his enthronement, on October 27, 2007, he founded the Basilica Media Centre, which includes Radio Trinitas, Trinitas TV, Lumina publications, the Basilica News Agency, and the Press and Public Relations Office.…

Jun 16, 2024Aurelian Iftimiu

Disciple of Saint Nikephoros the Leper and the most modern canonized Saint: 25 years since his repose

On May 23, we commemorate 25 years since the repose of the most modern saint, who was canonized by the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople in March 2022: Venerable Evmenios Saridakis. Known primarily as a disciple of Saint Nikephoros the Leper, Evmenios himself had leprosy, which he accepted with joy and from which he was later healed.…

May 23, 2024Aurelian Iftimiu