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The Patriarch Offered a Particle of the Holy Relics of Saint Constantine Brancoveanu to Hurezi Monastery

 

The Patriarch of Romania celebrated the Divine Liturgy at Hurezi Monastery, county of Valcea, together with 15 hierarchs from the country and abroad. The Liturgy was preceded by the re-blessing of the church painting of the monastic place of worship founded by the Saint Martyr Prince Constantine Brancoveanu. The group of hierarchs consisted of: His Beatitude Daniel, Patriarch of Romania, His Eminence Irineu, Metropolitan of Oltenia, His Eminence Naum, Metropolitan of Ruse, His Eminence Varsanufie, Archbishop of Ramnic, His Eminence Calinic, Archbishop of Arges and Muscel, His Grace Lucian, Bishop of Caransebes, His Grace Nicodim, Bishop of Severin and Strehaia, His Grace Galaction, Bishop of Alexandria and Teleorman, His Grace Ambrozie, Bishop of Giurgiu, His Grace Sebastian, Bishop of Slatina and Romanati, His Grace Visarion, Bishop of Tulcea, His Grace Daniil, Bishop locum tenens of Dacia Felix Diocese, His Grace Varlaam Ploiesteanul, Assistant Bishop to the Patriarch, His Grace Andrei Fagarasanul, Assistant Bishop to the Archdiocese of Sibiu, His Grace Paisie, Assistant Bishop to the Archdiocese of Timisoara, and His Grace Emilian Lovisteanul, Assistant Bishop to the Archdiocese of Ramnic.

 

Faithful from all over the Archdiocese of Ramnic attended,  praying to the relics of Saint Constantine Brancoveanu, brought from Bucharest by His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel.

 

To end with the Divine Liturgy, the Primate of the Romanian Orthodox Church spoke to the thousands of pilgrims about the relationship between the man’s freedom to pray and his happiness.

 

“When man prays, it means that he is free. When he is no longer praying it means that something keeps him under unseen domination. This is why we say, Lord, I escaped to You, teach me how to do Your will. Man is really free only when he loves God and his fellow beings. When he hates his fellow beings and forgets about God, he is enslaved, limited, in a state of selfishness and loneliness. This is why lots of people who do no longer pray put up with sufferance and disease very hard, and many of them despair and commit suicide. Scientific studies show that the religious man passes through sufferance much easier than the atheist one”, His Beatitude explained.

 

The Patriarch of Romania said that only the good merciful man resembles God.

 

“It is not enough to be pious, you must also be merciful. There are lots of people who are pious, pray and fast a lot, but they are avaricious. They never give a dime, they never help anybody. Thus, Christ, the Lord, says not only that the heart must be pure, but it must also be good, namely the good, merciful man resembles the merciful God”, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel also explained.

 

After delivering the sermon, the Patriarch of Romania offered Hurezi Monastery a particle of the relics of the Saint Martyr Prince Constantine Brancoveanu which will remain forever in the church monastery he founded.

 

There followed the speech of His Eminence Irineu, Metropolitan of Oltenia who thanked the Patriarch of Romania.

 

“Your Beatitude have come and brought us this very precious holy relic. You have brought it for us and for the next generations. You have come together with Saint Constantine Brancoveanu to show us the sign of the love that you always have for us and for the Romanian Orthodox Church. Having come here today, Your Beatitude fulfill the wish of Saint Constantine Brancoveanu to have his own Patriarch not in an ordinary way, but in a perfect way” His Eminence said.

 

His Eminence Varsanufie, Archbishop of Ramnic thanked, in his turn, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel for the shrine of a particle of the relics of Saint Prince Constantine Brancoveanu.

 

“Thank you very much for the love you showed us on this holy day, having come here, at Hurezi Monastery, the dear place of worship founded by the Saint Prince Constantine Brancoveanu and for giving us this precious shrine of a particle of the relics of Saint Constantine Brancoveanu which will remain here, where he wanted to be the place of his eternal rest. We also thank you for having celebrated the re-blessing service of the church painting - together with a part of the members of the Holy Synod from four metropolitanates, Metropolitanate of Muntenia and Dobrudgea, Metropolitanate of Oltenia, Metropolitanate of Transylvania and Metropolitanate of Banat – after 320 years since this church was consecrated by the then Metropolitan of Wallachia”, His Eminence Said.

 

The Patriarch of Romania awarded the abbess of the monastic settlement, and all those who supported the work for restoring the painting, the order of the “Brancovean Saints Martyrs”. The Order of “Maria Brancoveanu Cross” and the Homage Diploma of the “Brancovean Saints Martyrs” were also awarded. His Beatitude offered an icon and several books of rite for the monastery.

 

The Primate of our Church offered to Surpatele and Brancoveni Monasteries an icon of the saint prince with particles of his relics embedded.

 

To end with, His Eminence Archbishop Varsanufie offered His Beatitude an icon of the Brancovean Saints Martyrs, and an embroidered cloth of the image of Saint Constantine to cover the shrine of the holy relics of Saint Constantine Brancoveanu at the church of “Saint George” – the New church of Bucharest.

 

Today, the shrine of the relics of the Saint Martyr Prince Constantine Brancoveanu left for Iasi, to be there at the feast of Saint Pious Parascheva.

 

Hurezi Monastery hosts a particle of the holy relics of Saint Prince Constantine Brancoveanu. His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel offered the shrine at the end of the events occasioned by the re-blessing of the church painting of the holy place of worship.

 

“A particle of his relics is offered as a present to this monastery founded by Saint Constantine Brancoveanu. In fact, Saint Constantine Brancoveanu wanted his grave to be in this church. The grave was already visible, but when his relics were brought into the country by his wife, lady Maria Brancoveanu, Oltenia was under Austrian occupation. This is why they were laid at another church he had founded, namely the church of Saint George the New of Bucharest”, the Patriarch of Romania said.

 

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