On 17 December 2015, the celebration day of Saint Daniel the Prophet and the name day of the Patriarch of Romania, a Te Deum service was celebrated in the Patriarchal Cathedral at the end of the Divine Liturgy, in the presence of His Beatitude and of several hierarchs, as a gratitude to God for the protection and help offered to the Patriarch of Romania in the service of the Romanian Orthodox Church and of the Romanian people.
The religious service was celebrated by His Grace Varlaam Ploieşteanul, Assistant Bishop to the Patriarch, assisted by a group of priests and deacons.
We need the peace of God during the days we are living in
At the end of the celebration, His Grace Visarion, Bishop of Tulcea, addressed a solemn speech on behalf of the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church.
“The grace of the Holy Spirit gathered us today, in this place of joy and hope, on this special day when our Holy Church celebrates Saint Daniel the Prophet, “the trumpet of truth, pillar of faith and endless hope”, as liturgical chants of the day so nicely call him. We have come here today to pray God to continue to bless the life and laborious activity of the Primate of our Church and give us at the same time quiet days, peace and much joy, because we need the peace of God during the days we are living in, the peace that overwhelms the mind, the peace that Jesus Christ, our Saviour, who has come into the world brought“, when the <<appropriate time>> had fully come”, as Saint Paul the Apostle says”, His Grace said.
His Grace Varlaam Ploieşteanul, Assistant Bishop to the Patriarch, offered His Beatitude a bouquet of flowers on behalf of the Standing Committees of the National Church Council and of the Eparchial Council of the Archdiocese of Bucharest, as a sign of appreciation.
Congratulatory messages
The congratulatory messages on behalf of the representatives of the central and local state authorities have also been presented during the event.
The congratulatory message of the President of Romania, Mr Klaus Werner Iohannis, addressed to His Beatitude Daniel, Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, was presented by Mr. Sergiu Nistor, presidential counsellor at the Department for Culture, Religious Denominations and Centenary within the Presidential Administration.
“Your Beatitude, I wish to thank you for the warm wishes you addressed me on the occasion of the feast of Saint Hierarch Nicholas. I have the great pleasure to congratulate you, in my turn, on the occasion of your name day. May the celebration of Saint Great Prophet Daniel bring you good health, strength to work and every success in everything you do as Primate of the Romanian Orthodox Church and joy with the faithful whom you serve! May you live many blessed years, Your Beatitude!”, the message of the President of Romania reads.
On the occasion of the celebration of Saint Daniel the Prophet, Mr Victor Opaschi, State Secretary for Religious Affairs, addressed the Patriarch of Romania a message in which he wished him “many years of fruitful service and accomplishment of all projects” assumed “to the benefit of the Orthodox Church and to the common welfare of the Romanian society”.
“If I must evoke here only the eight years since you have been serving the Orthodox Church as its Patriarch, I know that Your Beatitude have always worked to re-establish the Church in the middle of the city, in its proper position, through the development of the partnership with the Romanian state on one hand, and through the full engagement of the Church in society, on the other hand. As for the steps taken for this purpose, I mention here the development of the social philanthropic work of the Romanian Orthodox Church which you have sustained and promoted ever since the beginning of your service as hierarch, as well as the educational projects, more and more numerous during the last few years, cultural projects for youth and last but not least the endowment of the Orthodox Church with modern means of public communication”, Mr Victor Opaschi said.
The message of Mr Adrian Curaj, Minister for Education, was conveyed by counsellor Romeo Moşoiu.
“Your Beatitude, on the occasion of the celebration of Saint Daniel the Prophet, the spiritual protector of Your Beatitude, I convey you best wishes of good health, spiritual fruits and help from God in the patriarchal service you have been called to. May you live many blessed years, Your Beatitude!”, the message of the Minister for Education reads.
We must not wait for recognition or reward from the people
Then, the Patriarch of Romania spoke about the help received from God through His Saints and showed that we must not wait for reward from the people.
“We must not wait for recognition or reward from the people. Lots of great people have not been honoured and recognised by their contemporaries, but only the following generations emphasised their work through its beneficent results for society. We also thank those who work together with us at the Patriarchate and at Archdiocese, and all those who helped and are helping us, because there are few faithful and sincere friends in hard times. Many characters are verified in hard times, when one can see what the value of the people is, in the sense of verticality. In good times everything is good. Therefore, no matter the times, good or bad, we go on hoping that Christ, who carried the cross and brought us the resurrection, will help us”, His Beatitude said according to Trinitas Radio station.
To end with, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel offered all those present the Pastoral letter for the feast of the Nativity of the Lord – 2015 and thanked the Te Deum Laudamus chorus for the answers given at the Divine Liturgy and at the Te Deum service.
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