The local proclamation of the canonisation of the Holy Nun-Martyr Eulogia took place on Sunday at Samurcășești Monastery in Ilfov County. In a message delivered at the ceremony, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel highlighted the saint’s missionary work in villages across Wallachia.
The Divine Liturgy was celebrated by Patriarchal Auxiliary Bishops Varlaam of Ploiești and Paisie of Sinaia, together with Assistant Bishop Timotei of Prahova of the Archdiocese of Bucharest.
Representatives of county and local authorities attended the service alongside pilgrims who came to honour Saint Eulogia.
The solemn proclamation included the presentation of the Holy Synod’s decision on her canonisation, together with the saint’s icon, troparion and holy relics.
Synodal Tomos
The Synodal Tomos was read by Patriarchal Auxiliary Bishop Varlaam of Ploiești, Secretary of the Holy Synod.
“She practised strict asceticism, being filled with humility and devoted to prayer. She gave her body no rest and spared herself no hardship, but travelled through the villages, facing deprivation, dangers and persecution. She continued her missionary work even during the communist persecution, enduring beatings and torture because she would not cease proclaiming the Gospel of Christ.”
According to the official document, the Holy Nun-Martyr Eulogia proved a swift helper and wonderworker after her repose in the Lord, bringing healing to the sick and those in danger of death.
The Synodal Tomos provides that new and renewed churches may be placed under the saint’s patronage, “so that the devotion of Orthodox Christians may increase through the veneration of and prayerful appeals to the Holy Nun-Martyr Eulogia of Samurcășești”.
Witness to the point of martyrdom
Patriarchal Auxiliary Bishop Paisie of Sinaia presented Patriarch Daniel’s message for the local proclamation of the saint’s canonisation.
“The love shown by the Holy Nun-Martyr Eulogia towards the poor and the sick was the fruit of a heart that had itself received God’s help through the intercessions of the Mother of God and St Catherine the Great Martyr,” the Patriarch of Romania emphasised.
His Beatitude highlighted Saint Eulogia’s missionary courage, which she bore to the Orthodox faith at the cost of her life.
“Wherever Saint Eulogia awakened souls, the churches were filled to overflowing, and the taverns were left empty. Working in close cooperation with the priests, she taught the people to sing church hymns and explained the words of Holy Scripture in a way everyone could understand.”
“Her preaching about repentance and returning to God was, in that context, a direct challenge to the communist ideology that promised a new man without God. In December 1949, in the village of Ulmeni in Călărași County, several communist fanatics attacked her and brutally beat her, leaving her almost dead,” Patriarch Daniel recalled.
As a result of her injuries, the saint reposed in the Lord on 19 December 1949.
Saint Eulogia of Samurcășești
Saint Eulogia was born in 1908 in the village of Nymfaio in northern Greece and was baptised Catherine.
Following a childhood marked by suffering and trials, she responded to Christ’s call through intensive missionary work, urging people to repentance, prayer and renewal of life.
In 1939, she entered the community of Samurcășești Monastery, where she was tonsured a nun named Eulogia and became known for her humility, asceticism, and love for her neighbour.
During the communist regime, Saint Eulogia continued her missionary activity despite threats and persecution.
In December 1949, after being brutally beaten for proclaiming the Gospel and distributing prayer books and icons, she returned to Samurcășești Monastery. There, after confessing and receiving the Holy Mysteries, she entrusted her soul to God.
The Holy Nun-Martyr Eulogia of Samurcășești was canonised by the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church in 2025, together with 15 other Romanian women saints.
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