A century ago, on July 30, 1925, the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople issued the synodal tomos officially recognising the establishment of the Romanian Orthodox Patriarchate.
This recognition affirmed the decision made by the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church on February 4, 1925.
Following canonical provisions, the decision of the Holy Synod was communicated to the sister Orthodox Churches through an irenic letter dated March 12.
The letter included a brief history of the Romanian Orthodox Church, from the formation of the earliest Romanian principalities to the establishment of the Patriarchate. It also highlighted that the Romanian people were among the first in the world to receive Christianity.
The letter was signed by Miron Cristea, who bore the title: “Archbishop of Bucharest, Metropolitan of Hungaro-Wallachia, and Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church.”
“The hierarchical head of the Romanian Orthodox Church, the Metropolitan of Hungaro-Wallachia, has under his moral authority, as president, five metropolises, including that of Bessarabia, each with a well-defined historical identity. In this context, he can only be what the exceptional importance of this reality and the historical precedent of other nationally organised Orthodox Churches call for: Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church,” the irenic letter stated.
Response from the Ecumenical Patriarchate
Ecumenical Patriarch Basil III responded to the irenic letter with joy:
“Most Blessed and Most Reverend Archbishop of Bucharest, Metropolitan of Hungaro-Wallachia, and Patriarch of the Autocephalous Church of Romania, in Christ our God, dearly beloved and much-desired brother concelebrant of our humility, Mr. Miron — we greet Your Beatitude, so dear to us, with a fraternal embrace in the Lord and a most sweet greeting.”
The synodal tomos recognising the foundation of the Patriarchate was officially presented at the Patriarchal Cathedral in Bucharest on September 27, 1925, by a delegation including Metropolitans Joachim of Chalcedon and Germanos of Sardis, accompanied by the Great Dragoman of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, Spyridon Constantinidis.
Patriarch Basil III also sent an encyclical letter to all the autocephalous Orthodox Churches, announcing the recognition of the Romanian Patriarchate.
The enthronement of Metropolitan Primate Miron Cristea as the first Patriarch of Romania took place on November 1, 1925, at the Patriarchal Cathedral in Bucharest.
To mark this historic milestone, the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church has declared 2025 as the Solemn Year of the Centennial of the Romanian Patriarchate, as well as the Commemorative Year of Romanian Orthodox Spiritual Fathers and Confessors of the 20th Century.
Photo: Romanian Patriarchate / Source: Basilica.ro
