Romania

The Week in Pictures: February 15 – 21, 2021

Please find below beautiful sunsets, winterscapes, liturgical moments and other snapshots from the Orthodox world: it is our selection of photos taken between February 15 – 21, 2021. Last week’s most-liked Instagram post:   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by Basilica News Agency (@basilica.ro) Do you want to be featured in…

Feb 22, 2021Ștefana Totorcea

Writer Paul Kingsnorth, baptized in the Romanian Orthodox Church, says he feels like arriving home

Paul Kingsnorth, one of the most important English writers alive, was baptized as a Christian Orthodox at the Romanian Monastery in Shannonbridge, Ireland. “As a Western newcomer to Orthodoxy, I have a lifetime’s learning journey ahead of me, but I already feel like I have arrived home,” said the writer. “I first discovered Christian Orthodoxy…

Feb 15, 2021Ștefana Totorcea

Cluj Archdiocese spends EUR 3.3 mln on charity in 2020

The Archdiocese of Cluj spent 3.3 million Euros on philanthropy last year, offering aid or other forms of support to approximately 16,000 beneficiaries. The announcement was made at the Eparchial Assembly gathered on Saturday in central Romania’s Cluj-Napoca city.  The meeting began with a Te Deum service, after which His Eminence Metropolitan Andrei of Cluj…

Feb 11, 2021Ștefana Totorcea

Iași Archdiocese: Two candidates to be considered for episcopacy

Archimandrites Nichifor Horia and Ioan Harpa were nominated by the Metropolitan Synod of Moldavia and Bucovina for the position of Auxiliary Bishop of Iași. The proposals were approved on February 2 and were forwarded to the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church. Archimandrite Nichifor Horia is the Abbot of the “Holy Three Hierarchs” in the…

Feb 11, 2021Ștefana Totorcea

Auxiliary Bishop for Deva and Hunedoara to be elected. Who are the two candidates

Archimandrites Nestor Dinculeană and Gherontie Ciupe were nominated for the position of Auxiliary Bishop to the Diocese of Deva and Hunedoara. The Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church will vote one of them to fill the new position. The two nominations were approved on Monday by the Metropolitan Synod organized at the Diocesan Centre…

Feb 10, 2021Ștefana Totorcea

Romania’s Buzău Land, one step closer to becoming a UNESCO Global Geopark

Buzău Land (Ținutul Buzăului) in Romania is just one step away from becoming a UNESCO Global Geopark, which means that it would be recognized as a territory with natural and cultural values of international importance. In December 2020, Ținutul Buzăului Association sent to Paris the file of the 18 communes that constitute the Land, to…

Feb 7, 2021Aurelian Iftimiu

‘We suffer together with the entire Romanian people’, Ecumenical Patriarch says after Bucharest hospital fire

His Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew sent on Monday a letter to His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel in which he expressed the “deep compassion” of the Ecumenical Patriarchate following a fire that broke out at the Matei Balş National Institute for Infectious Diseases in Bucharest. “We pray for the rest of the souls of the innocent victims…

Feb 5, 2021Aurelian Iftimiu

Diocese of Covasna donates 10 tons of potatoes to Roma people affected by the fire

The Orthodox Diocese of Covasna and Harghita donated 10 tons of potatoes to the Miercurea Ciuc city council to prepare meals for the Roma people temporarily accommodated in the city sports hall. They were taken in after a fire destroyed their houses in January. Bishop Andrei of Covasna and Harghita declared for Romania’s national news…

Feb 5, 2021Ștefana Totorcea

Regular liturgical life resumes in the old church of the Berislăveşti Monastery after 21 years

Regular services were resumed in the church at Berislăveşti Monastery in Vâlcea, Romania, after 21 years. Previously, services were held only occasionally because of the danger of the collapse of the building, reports the Archdiocese of Râmnic. Extensive restoration and conservation work on the historical ensemble began in 2015, which allowed for the reopening of…

Feb 5, 2021Ștefana Totorcea

Romanian Patriarchate stands for one hour per week religious education classes in all high schools

The Romanian Patriarchate announced on Wednesday it stands for keeping the one-hour-per-week time budget of Religious Education in all high schools, regardless of their technological or theoretical profile. His Grace Varlaam of Ploieşti transmitted the message in person at the Palace of Parliament, during a debate organized by the joint parliamentary committees for Education, science,…

Jan 28, 2021Ștefana Totorcea

Archdiocese of Timișoara spends 900,000 € on philanthropic projects in 2020

The Archdiocese of Timișoara, in Western Romania, spent 900,000 € on philanthropic projects last year, according to an announcement on its official website. The beneficiaries were socially-vulnerable persons and institutions with financial difficulties. “In spite of all the financial difficulties,” the diocese said in a statement, “support activities have been intensified by the Diocesan Center…

Jan 28, 2021Ștefana Totorcea