His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel of Romania celebrates his 71st birthday on Friday, July 22.

Patriarch Daniel was born in 1951 in the village of Dobrești, Bara commune, Timiș county, being the third child in the family of the teacher Alexie and Stela Ciobotea.

After completing his doctoral studies in theology under the guidance of Father Dumitru Stăniloae in Bucharest and then under the guidance of two renowned French professors in Strasbourg, Dan-Ilie Ciobotea entered monasticism with the name of Daniel at the age of 36.

He entered monastic life in 1987 at Sihăstria Monastery, having Elder Cleopas Ilie as his monastic godfather (sponsor).

After three years, he was ordained to the episcopate and served for several months as assistant bishop to the Archdiocese of Timișoara, becoming Metropolitan of Moldavia and Bukovina on 7 June 1990.

In Iași, he had numerous successful initiatives in pastoral and administrative and academic fields. Among these were the steps taken to consolidate and restore the Metropolitan Cathedral in Iași, the founding of the Providence Diagnostic and Treatment Centre, which became the first hospital of the Church with a structure approved by the Ministry of Health with 102 beds.

Since September 2007, he has been the Patriarch of Romania.

Since the beginning of his mission, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel has ensured the continuation of the projects in progress at that time and the initiation of new projects without separating the Divine Liturgy from philanthropy and philanthropy from Liturgy or social work from spiritual life.

During this period, the Romanian Church underwent changes aimed at preserving unaltered the spirit of prayer and, simultaneously, improving the lives of all.

The best known of the achievements of the current leader of the Romanian Orthodox Church is the fulfilment of an old wish of the Romanians: the National Cathedral, which was consecrated one hundred years after Romania’s 1918 Great Union.

Patriarch Daniel paid particular attention to Romanian predecessors, martyrs and saints. During his patriarchal ministry, more than 30 Romanian saints were canonised. The Romanian People’s Salvation Cathedral is dedicated to all national heroes, with St. Andrew the Apostle as its patron Saint.

Among the first initiatives in Bucharest was the establishment of the Basilica Media Centre. Patriarch Daniel is also particularly concerned about Romanians in the diaspora, which is why, at His Beatitude’s proposal, the Holy Synod decided in 2009 to adopt a day dedicated to Romanian migrants.

The Patriarch has encouraged social activity these years, with the Romanian Orthodox Church becoming the most prominent philanthropist and having more than 800 philanthropic institutions.

Celebrations at the Patriarchal Cathedral

At the Patriarchal Cathedral, a Te Deum service will be celebrated on Friday at 11:00 a.m. as a token of gratitude to God for the recent achievements in the life of the Romanian Orthodox Church and His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel.

Starting at noon, at the Patriarchal Palace, there will be a festive moment during which various congratulatory messages will be read.

The participants will include hierarchs of the Holy Synod, representatives of central and local state authorities, personalities of Romanian public life, members of the National Church Council and the Eparchial Council of the Archdiocese of Bucharest, clergy and laity.

Photography courtesy of Basilica.ro / Raluca Ene