The establishment of the Romanian Patriarchate was a natural consequence of the enthusiasm that followed the Great Union of 1918, but achieving it required immense effort from the country’s leadership, said Academician Ioan-Aurel Pop, President of the Romanian Academy, in an interview published in Lumina Newspaper on the occasion of the Centennial of the Romanian Patriarchate.
“The enthusiasm of our people after the Great Union was so great and beautiful that it naturally led to the creation of the Patriarchate. But this does not mean that this great achievement happened effortlessly—on the contrary, the efforts of those in leadership were immense,” he stated.
Romanians and Their Unique Historical Development
Asked about the relationship between Romanian history and the evolution of church organization, Pop noted that “our people have had a distinct, unparalleled, and unrepeatable historical development.”
“In the Middle Ages, Romanian states did not need patriarchates because our rulers did not aspire to imperial status or seek to overturn the established hierarchy of the Ecumenical Patriarchate,” he explained. “Our metropolitans held a sufficiently high ecclesiastical rank to ensure the sovereign power of Romanian princes.”
Unlike other Orthodox nations, Romanians did not create a separate patriarchate from the Great Church of Constantinople, as they did not share the imperial vocation of Byzantium. However, the Metropolises of Wallachia and Moldavia, and later the Metropolis of Transylvania, played a crucial historical role in consecrating princely power, defending independence, and supporting national identity.
The Church at the Heart of the Community
Academician Pop emphasized that church centres historically moved along with political power. “The Church is the world itself, and its leadership is found at the heart of the community.”
Just as Constantinople was established as the new capital after the decline of Rome, medieval Romanian metropolises shifted along with princely seats:
- Wallachia: From Argeș to Târgoviște, then to Bucharest.
- Moldavia: From Baia and Siret to Suceava, then to Iași.
National Legitimacy and the Role of the Church
The 19th century, known as the “century of nationalities,” was marked by the struggle for national emancipation and the dismantling of multinational empires. According to Pop, the Eastern Orthodox Churches played a key role in this process, supporting the creation of national states.
“Just as national legitimacy in Eastern Europe was established in part through the Church, Romanians also took part in this movement,” he explained.
The decisive event that paved the way for the autocephaly of the Romanian Church was the country’s independence in 1877, which followed the Union of the Principalities in 1859.
“Just as autocephaly followed the union and independence, so too did the Great Union of 1918 lead to the establishment of the Patriarchate,” Pop noted.
By then, Greater Romania had become the largest country in Southeast Europe and the second-largest Orthodox nation in the world.
A Century of Stability for the Romanian Patriarchate
Pop highlighted that the Romanian Patriarchate has maintained its status over the past century, functioning continuously even during the communist regime, without experiencing schisms or doctrinal deviations.
“It has preserved the faith of the Romanian people and their trust in the Church hierarchy and clergy,” he emphasized.
The Romanian Orthodox Church celebrated 100 years as a Patriarchate on Tuesday, February 4, with a Solemn Divine Liturgy and a Te Deum of thanksgiving at the Patriarchal Cathedral.
The celebration also included the proclamation of the canonization of new 20th-century Romanian saints, recognizing confessors and monastic saints who upheld the Orthodox faith under persecution.
Photo: Basilica.ro Files / Mircea Florescu
