{"id":546708,"date":"2025-10-28T17:07:41","date_gmt":"2025-10-28T15:07:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/basilica.ro\/?p=546708"},"modified":"2025-10-28T17:07:41","modified_gmt":"2025-10-28T15:07:41","slug":"ecumenical-patriarch-autocephaly-patriarchal-rank-church-romania","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/basilica.ro\/en\/ecumenical-patriarch-autocephaly-patriarchal-rank-church-romania\/","title":{"rendered":"Ecumenical Patriarch: Autocephaly and the patriarchal rank are not mere historical facts \u2014 they are the very life of the Church in Romania"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cAutocephaly and the patriarchal rank are not mere historical facts \u2014 they are the very life of the Church in Romania,\u201d said His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, on Monday, after concelebrating the Divine Liturgy with His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel at the Outdoor Altar of the Patriarchal Cathedral.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The service was attended by hierarchs of the Romanian Orthodox Church, hierarchs from the Ecumenical Patriarchate, fathers from Mount Athos, clergy of the Patriarchal Cathedral, and other clerics from the Archdiocese of Bucharest. The liturgical responses were chanted by the Tronos Byzantine Choir of the Patriarchal Cathedral.<\/p>\n

The event, honouring Saint Demetrius the New, Protector of Bucharest, was part of the anniversary program dedicated to the Centennial of the Romanian Patriarchate and the 140th anniversary of the Romanian Orthodox Church\u2019s autocephaly.<\/p>\n

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Bishop Varlaam of Ploie\u0219ti read the Synodal Act celebrating 140 years of autocephaly and 100 years of patriarchate on Monday, October 27, 2025. Photo: Basilica.ro \/ Mircea Florescu<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

At the end of the service, His Grace Patriarchal Auxiliary Bishop Varlaam of Ploie\u0219ti read a Synodal Act<\/a> of Commemoration dedicated to these anniversaries, signed by both Patriarchs and by all the hierarchs of the Romanian Orthodox Church.<\/p>\n

The Blessing of the Hesychast Saints<\/h2>\n

His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel offered His All-Holiness Bartholomew I an icon depicting Saint Demetrius the New, the Protector of the Patriarchal Cathedral and of Romania\u2019s capital city. The Patriarch noted that the saint is also the heavenly protector of His All-Holiness, who received the name Demetrios at baptism.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe wish him many years in good health and the joy of the Holy Hesychast Fathers, for Saint Demetrius the New was himself a hesychast saint,\u201d said Patriarch Daniel.<\/p>\n

His Beatitude went on to explain the meaning of hesychast prayer and spoke about the hesychast movement, which, he said, \u201cnourished Orthodoxy in Constantinople, on Mount Athos, and later throughout the Balkan lands.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Patriarch Daniel presented Patriarch Bartholomew with an icon depicting Bucharest’s patron Saint Demetrius the New, Oct. 27, 2025. Photo: Basilica.ro \/ Mircea Florescu<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cAmong the hesychasts of the time of Saint Gregory Palamas, who reposed in 1359\u2014the same year when the Ecumenical Patriarchate founded the Metropolis of Ungro-Wallachia and appointed Saint Hyacinth of Vicina as its Metropolitan, who was himself a hesychast\u2014we also find hesychast saints within the ruling family,\u201d said Patriarch Daniel, recalling Saint Theophano Basarab.<\/p>\n

During the lifetime of Saint Demetrius the New, \u201cthe entire valley of the Lom River was filled with caves carved into the mountains, where hesychast monks lived,\u201d His Beatitude added.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven today, there are hesychast fathers on Mount Athos, including four Romanian hesychast elders, Athonite monks, whom His All-Holiness has graciously included among the saints during the Synodal meetings of the Ecumenical Patriarchate held in August and October.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe thank you, Your Holiness, for having so many hesychast intercessors and friends. We all need the prayers of others, not only our own. And this is our joy\u2014that today we venerate these hesychast saints together,\u201d said the Patriarch of Romania.<\/p>\n

Autocephaly and Communion<\/h2>\n
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Autocephaly and the patriarchal rank are not mere historical facts \u2014 they are the very life of the Church in Romania, said Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in his address to the faithful on the feast day of Saint Demetrius the New, Oct. 27, 2025. Photo: Basilica.ro \/ Mircea Florescu<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The message of His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, read in Romanian translation by Bishop Siluan of Hungary, included references to the documents through which the Ecumenical Patriarchate granted autocephaly to the Romanian Orthodox Church and, later, elevated it to the rank of Patriarchate.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis double anniversary we celebrate today is not merely a historical commemoration \u2014 it is a spiritual calling and challenge in times when the world faces many trials: alienation, division, wars, and moral decline,\u201d conveyed Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese two events bear clear witness that only in unity, in love and peace, and above all in the wisdom that comes from God \u2014 only in our Lord Jesus Christ and in keeping His commandments \u2014 what is impossible for men becomes possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew censing at the patronal feast of the historical patriarchal cathedral in Bucharest, Oct. 27, 2025. Photo: Basilica.ro \/ Mircea Florescu<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The status of autocephaly bears fruit only within the framework of communion among the Churches, His All-Holiness emphasised.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnity in faith and the sharing of the Holy Spirit form the cornerstone of Orthodoxy. Therefore, the Great Church of Constantinople, from the beginning until today, has steadfastly upheld this truth \u2014 namely, that every autocephaly expresses freedom in love, and that unity is the bond that holds together the Body of the Lord.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSaint Demetrius the New, Saint Niphon, the venerable fathers Dionysius, Petronius, Niphon, and Nectarios \u2014 the multitude of saints of Orthodoxy, countless souls, brides of the Bridegroom \u2014 through their lives have inaugurated a spiritual renewal. They show mercy and bestow blessings upon the Orthodox people of Romania and remain forever with us,\u201d added Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe past and present of our two Churches together constitute an unbroken work of ministry to humanity and to the world. This is the meaning and the path of both autocephaly and patriarchal dignity: a divinely inspired institution that gives life and holds together the one Orthodoxy under heaven.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew presiding over the Divine Liturgy at the outdoor altar of the Patriarchal cathedral in Bucharest, Oct. 27, 2025. Photo: Basilica.ro \/ Mircea Florescu<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

His All-Holiness presented the Patriarch of Romania with a set of liturgical vessels for the National Cathedral, whose mosaic iconography was consecrated by the two patriarchs on Sunday, on the feast day of Saint Demetrius the Myrrh-Gusher.<\/p>\n

Gratitude toward Pilgrims and Volunteers<\/h2>\n

In conclusion, the Patriarch of Romania expressed gratitude and extended blessings to the faithful and to all those involved in the special events of these days \u2014 the autumn feast of the Patriarchal Cathedral and the consecration of the mosaic iconography of the National Cathedral.<\/p>\n

On Monday evening, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I visited the Cotroceni Palace, where he met with Romanian President Nicu\u0219or Dan.<\/p>\n