His Beatitude Daniel, Patriarch of Romania, officiated on Tueseday, 03 November 2015, at the Patriarchal Cathedral in Bucharest, a memorial service for the victims of the accident which took place at the Collective Club in Bucharest. The Romanian Patriarch was assisted by an assembly of priests and deacons.
On this occasion, His Beatitude delivered a message of compassion and consolation for the victims of the accident, as well for their families.
We must have strong faith in God’s love
Today is the funeral day for those who died in the night of 30 to 31 October 2015 in the Collective Club in Bucharest. It is a day of fervent prayer, the most fervent one, for the rest of the souls of those who departed to the Lord unexpectedly. This memorial service firstly represents, our prayer addressed to God so that He will place their souls in the peace and love of our Saviour Jesus Christ.
Very often human beings die due to accidents, fires, floods, earthquakes, train accidents, subway or in other kind accidents, and often die a sudden death. So, we have to understand that life is a precious gift and we have to pray to the Good Lord to protect us from every danger, from every opposing circumstances, from sudden death and every form of suffering. On the other hand, when these tragic events occur we must have strong faith in God’s love. So, we must never judge those departed to the Lord by the way they passed away from this earthly life, because the mystery of life, as the mystery of death, is above our understanding.
We have to show that prayer is stronger than death
As Orthodox Christians we must show that prayer is stronger than death. By prayer, we are connected with the souls of those who departed to the Lord, and at the same time we ask that their souls find peace and rest in the light and love of the Most Holy Trinity. The prayer of the Church represents the most correct, luminous, and useful way to show our love towards those who passed to the Lord, by prayer and almsgiving. It is very important that the souls of those who departed from these world feel that the living love them, do not judge them, do not evaluate them according to their own limited and oftenegoistical humanthinking, but that each of us desires the salvation and eternal life for those who passed away to Lord. Therefore, both the Holy Scripture and the Holy Fathers of the Church urge us to remember them in prayer, especially during the first 40 days after death. In these 40 days, the human being needs the support of prayer in order to encounter God and to rejoice the welcoming in to the light, the love and the peace of the Most Holy Trinity.
The human being who has faith stays alive
Very often it has been said that people do not die, but move from this earthly life to the eternal life. Therefore, in our hymns we commemorate those who have gone from us. The human being who has faith stays alive, because the just shall live by faith and, as our Saviour Jesus Christ says: «He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live». Which means that he who believes in Christ, even though he may physically die his soul will live because the love connection expressed especially through prayer and good deeds from this earthly life continues in to eternal life. Therefore, we have to bring those who departed to the Lord in this fatherly care of God the Father, in the light of God the Son and the comfort or the peace of the Holy Spirit. These prayers of the Church are based on the Holy Scripture, but also on the experience of the Church.
God wishes to see in us fraternity and support when we pass through trials
Those for whom prayers have been said very often appeared in the dreams of those who had prayed for them. They know what we do for them and feel when we commemorate them with love, when we go to their grave and bring flowers and candles, and kiss the holy cross on their grave with the hope of the communal resurrection or the resurrection of the Latter Day. Therefore, we have the moral and spiritual duty to remember those who departed to the Lord, in our prayer and especially we must show signs of spiritual love towards the bereaved families, because, along with the prayers for the departed, the Church has to console, to spiritually comfort the living who are in pain, who remained with an immense void in the soul. Therefore, beside the prayers for those who fell asleep, we have to show brotherly love, mutual material and spiritual help for the grieving families. In this case, we have to show much prayer, much brotherly and paternal love for those who are still in hospitals, are injured, in great suffering due to the accident. Many of this people who are in suffering need our prayers, our encouragement. Therefore, when we pass through trials God wants to see from us fraternity, support, appreciation of the memory of those who departed to the Lord, and much care for those who are grieving, for the bereaved families, but also for those in hospitals, are suffering, and for their sorrowed families.
Services for the victims in the hospitals of Bucharest
During these days, our charity priests from hospitals have officiated the Sacrament of Holy Unction in almost all of the chapels within the medical institutions where injured people are and they have encouraged their families. Also, in these days when the funeral services will be officiated it is important to intensify our prayer for those who passed away from this world and who will now be buried. We will attend to several funeral services, and pray for their absolution and also address a word of consolation. We pray the Most Merciful God to grant us merciful love, as we said in our press release, let us unite prayer with the merciful deed, let us help those who are bereaved, in grief, in order to show that the Church is the mystical Body of Christ, the hands of His merciful love, for the glory of the Most Holy Trinity and for the salvation of the humans. Amen. Their eternal remembrance from generation to generation”,the Primate of the Romanian Orthodox Church said.
After the fire at the Collective Club in Bucharest more than 30 people passed away and over 130 people have been injured.
