The local proclamation of the canonisation of Saint Blandina the Confessor took place on Sunday at the Metropolitan Cathedral in Iași.
The solemn event was held at the end of the Divine Liturgy celebrated by an assembly of seven hierarchs led by Metropolitan Teofan of Moldavia and Bukovina.
The Synodal Tomos proclaiming the canonisation was presented by Assistant Bishop Nichifor of Botoșani of the Archdiocese of Iași.
Through the official act, it was decreed that “Saint Blandina the Confessor of Iași shall be numbered among the saints of the Church and commemorated with hymns of praise on her feast day, May 24, each year, and shall be included in the Synaxarion, the liturgical books, and the calendar of the Romanian Orthodox Church.”
Patriarch Daniel’s message
His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel sent a message for the solemn occasion, highlighting Saint Blandina’s humility and obedience.
“Saint Blandina showed profound humility, carrying out in prison, together with her cousin, the most humiliating tasks, always bearing in mind the words of the Lord Jesus Christ: ‘Whoever desires to be first among you shall be servant of all’ (Mark 10:44).”
“Thus, what the world regarded as humiliation, the confessor of Christ clothed in the garment of humility pleasing to God, transforming the lowliest work into a hidden labour of love for God and neighbour,” the Patriarch of Romania emphasised.
The message was presented by Răzvan Mihai Clipici, Patriarchal Counsellor at the Culture, Painting, and Restoration department of the Patriarchal Administration.
Strong faith in God
At the conclusion of the event, Metropolitan Teofan of Moldavia and Bukovina said that Saint Blandina was defined by her strong faith in God and in God’s love for the world.
“The faith manifested, as Saint Paul testifies in the Epistle to the Hebrews, through the knowledge of unseen things and the obtaining of what is hoped for. In other words, Saint Blandina’s faith was certainty regarding God’s presence in her life and in the life of the world. And the obtaining of what was hoped for meant that the Kingdom of Heaven and eternal life were already lived here and in her own time by Saint Blandina the Confessor.”
“She showed confessor-like courage in Bessarabia and Siberia, in Bucharest and in Iași. Therefore, we ought to thank God for this wonderful gift, which becomes a source of consolation in the Holy Spirit, alongside Saint Paraskeva, the Great Martyr George, and Saint Joseph the Merciful, who also came to Iași from the blessed lands of Bessarabia,” Metropolitan Teofan added.
Saint Confessor Blandina of Iași
Saint Blandina the Confessor of Iași was born on February 24, 1906, in the village of Grușeuți, Hotin County, in Bessarabia, to Fr. Zaharia and Presbytera Serafima Popovici.
She completed studies to become a teacher and married engineer Gheorghe Gobjilă in 1926. Together, they had a son, Vladislav. After the Soviet occupation of Bessarabia in 1940, the family was deported to Siberia, enduring 15 years of suffering.
In 1957, she arrived in Romania. Her son and daughter-in-law, hostile to the faith, forced her to choose between God and family. Mother Blandina chose faith without hesitation, becoming homeless and eventually reaching Iași, where she found support from a Christian family.
She became a discreet yet steadfast presence at the Metropolitan Cathedral in Iași, dedicating her time to prayer, translating and copying akathists, and helping those in need. Saint Confessor Blandina reposed in the Lord on May 24, 1971.
The general proclamation of Saint Blandina and the other 15 holy women canonised by the Holy Synod in 2025 took place on February 6 at the Patriarchal Cathedral in Bucharest.
Photo: Doxologia / Fr. Silviu Cluci
