The Synod of the Metropolis of Muntenia and Dobrudja met on Monday at the Patriarchal Residence in Bucharest. On this occasion, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel announced that the founders of the Athonite Prodromou Skete, Venerable Nifon and Nectarie, have been proposed to be canonized by the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
The most important item on the agenda was the approval of the liturgical texts to accompany the proposal for the canonization of Venerable Nectarie the Protopsaltes submitted to the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
“This Nectarie the Protopsaltes, or Nectarie the Wallachian, was one of the greatest Romanian Hesychasts who lived ob Holy Mount Athos,” explained Patriarch Daniel.
“He is widely known and appreciated not only by the Romanians of Athos, but also by monks of nationalities, and we have also seen receptivity from the Ecumenical Patriarchate, because they also said that he was a great chanter, he was called the Nightingale of Holy Mount Athos.”
His Beatitude reported that, following discussions within the Liturgical Commission for Canonization of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the resolution was to prepare the canonization of four Athonite fathers of Romanian origin: in addition to Elders Dionisie Ignat, Petroniu Tănase and Nectarie the Protopsaltes, Venerable Nifon, founder of the Romanian Prodromu Skete on Mount Athos, will also be canonized.
The silver reliquary for the relics of Venerable Dionisie Ignat is ready, and the one for Venerable Petroniu Tănase is in the works, the Patriarch of Romania announced.
The Metropolitan Synod discussed the liturgical texts dedicated to Venerable Nectarie the Protopsaltes, while those dedicated to Athonite Venerable Nifon the Prodromite will be discussed later.
Other items on the agenda were the updating of the theme and bibliography for the clerical degree exams, details on the youth camps organized in the Metropolis of Muntenia and Dobrudja and granting the rank of archimandrite to three monks from the Archdiocese of Tomis.
Photo credit: Ziarul Lumina / Luigi Ivanciu
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