Bishop Sofronie of Oradea attended the festivities marking 100 years of diplomatic relations between Romania and Japan organized at the Medieval Fortress of Oradea by the Embassy of Japan to Romania on Friday, December 10, 2021.
The event was attended by Hiroshi Ueda, Japan’s Ambassador to Romania, and by local officials.
The Orthodox Bishop of Oradea received an anniversary medal issued by the National Bank of Romania, dedicated to the 100 years of diplomatic relations between Romania and Japan.
“You’re probably wondering why an Orthodox bishop is present at a cultural event related to Japan. Well, the presence is not accidental, because Japan, although so far away and despite the dominance of other religions, has a Christian presence and, more precisely, has even a Japanese Orthodox Church, which is a minority, it is true, but quite so strong and well-organized that it is pastored by Japanese clerics, born and raised in Japan, with many believers,” Bishop Sofronie said.
The Bishop highlighted Romanian missionaries’ role in creating the Christian Orthodox communities in Japan. One of them was the Bessarabian Archimandrite Anatolie Tihai.
“Even after the brilliant presence of Anatolie Tihai, the connections between Romanian Orthodoxy and Japan, not only as Orthodoxy but also in the religious field, I would dare say, continued and diversified.”
“It is less known that after the tragedy in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which mourned the great holiday of Orthodox Christianity – the Transfiguration of the Lord on August 6 – there were solid ties from a cultural point of view,” Bishop Sofronie added.
“Beyond the passion, I have for literature and arts and the admiration I have had from an early age for Japan, for the resilience of the Japanese people, for their fantastic culture, for the patience they have shown in history, and for the exceptional way in which Japan managed to take on the catastrophes of history, to get over it and to look at the light, with serenity and a lot of confidence towards the future. A good lesson for all of us,” he concluded.
The event included the opening of two exhibitions entitled: “Heaven, man and earth” and “People and landscapes of Romania and Japan”.
Source: basilica.ro