Message of His Beatitude DANIEL, Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, addressed at the funerals of Patriarch IGNATIUS IV of Antioch and All the East, Beirut, Lebanon, 9 December 2012:
The Romanian Orthodox Church has received with profound Christian sorrow the news of the passing away from this world of our brother in Christ and concelebrant, Ignatius IV, Patriarch of Antioch and all the East.
In his sacred mission as Christ's servant, Patriarch Ignatius has added to the outstanding God-given charismata bestowed upon him his personal endeavours fulfilled through a
vast theological culture, a tireless sacrifice for the Church and
a great openness towards the inter-Christian and interreligious dialogues.
Patriarch Ignatius has been constantly preoccupied in
defending and promoting the Orthodox faith and ethos being, at the same time, sensitive to cultural changes and in the mentality within the contemporary world, affected not only by social and economic crisis, but especially in the spiritual realm. Thus, he has paid a
special attention to young people, helping them spiritually to respond to the challenges of today's world. In this regard, his direct support of the Faculty of Theology of the University of Balamand represents an important contribution to the education of future clergy and theologians who are called to continue to defend and promote the values of Orthodoxy in the Middle East.
A faithful follower of Christ's prayer '
that all may be one' (John 17:21), Patriarch Ignatius has distinguished himself as
a fervent advocate of Pan-Orthodox unity and
tireless supporter of the efforts of rapprochement between Christians. At the same time,
he has promoted good understanding between peoples with different religions, by cultivating hope, solidarity and mutual respect in order to solve common problems.
For us, the Romanian Orthodox, his visits to Romania as Patriarch of Antioch (1981, 1996 and 1998) will remain memorable, especially the consecration of
Saint Spyridon the Old church in Bucharest (26 October 1996), the first church rebuilt after 1990 among those demolished by the former communist regime. At the same time,
the exemplarily practical cooperation between our sister Churches has been highlighted by the
pastoral care that Patriarch Ignatius IV has shown towards the Romanian Orthodox believers from within the Patriarchate of Antioch and the Arabic speaking Orthodox believers living in Romania, respectively. At pan-Orthodox, inter-Christian and interreligious levels, he has been
a promoter of co-responsibility and practical cooperation.
In these days of mourning, on behalf of the hierarchs, clergy and faithful of the Romanian Orthodox Church we convey top all hierarchs of the Holy Synod, the clergy and the entire Orthodox people within the Patriarchate of Antioch our esteem and compassion, praying the Merciful God to rest the soul of Patriarch Ignatius with the saints, in the love, light and peace of the Most Holy Trinity.
May his memory be eternal!†DANIEL
Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church
