Thirty-two years ago, on December 19, 1992, the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church officially acknowledged the reactivation of the Metropolis of Bessarabia. This autonomous metropolis, based in Chișinău, became integral to the Romanian Orthodox Church.
The decision to reactivate the Metropolis of Bessarabia was made by clergy and faithful gathered at the Archdiocesan Assembly in Chișinău. They elected His Grace Bishop Petru Păduraru of Bălți as the acting metropolitan.
Historical Background
The history of the Metropolis of Moldavia dates back to the early 15th century. On July 26, 1401, the Ecumenical Patriarchate recognized the Metropolis of Moldavia as an autonomous Church led by a Romanian primate, Metropolitan Joseph, who was the brother of Prince Alexander the Good. Its canonical territory stretched between the Milcov and Dniester rivers.
The Great Union of 1918 led the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church to declare in the following year:
“The union of the Romanian nation shall also extend to our ancestral Holy Church so that the Orthodox Church of Bessarabia, Bukovina, Transylvania, Banat, Crișana, and Hungarian territories shall constitute a single Romanian National Autocephalous Church.”
Subsequently, in 1925, the Romanian Patriarchate was established, and the Metropolitan of Bucharest received the title of Patriarch.
Establishment
That same year, the Metropolis of Bessarabia was officially founded through Royal Decree No. 1942. Its jurisdiction covered the territories between the Prut and Dniester rivers, while the Metropolis of Moldavia oversaw the areas between the Milcov and Prut rivers.
When the Soviet regime was established in Bessarabia in 1944, Metropolitan Efrem Enăchescu was forced to abandon his episcopal chair.
For nearly half a century, the Metropolis of Bessarabia ceased its activities, although the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church never recognized its dissolution.
Reactivation and Recognition
Since its reactivation in 1992, the Metropolis of Bessarabia has sought official recognition from the state institutions of the Republic of Moldova. This recognition was only granted in 2002, following the European Court of Human Rights ruling.