On Wednesday, the Filantropia Federation of the Romanian Patriarchate joined Eurodiaconia, a European network of social organizations, expanding an eight-year-old collaboration.
The Romanian Patriarchate hosted the General Assembly of Eurodiaconia from May 14 to May 17. Representatives of over 60 member organizations attended this meeting.
The national representative of the Romanian Orthodox Church in Eurodiaconia was formerly the Filantropia Timișoara Foundation; however, that position has been relocated to Federation Filantropia.
“In recent years, Filantropia Federation has increased its social and philanthropic actions, implemented several projects with European funding, developed the training sector, and initiated fundraising campaigns,” stated Fr. Ciprian Ioniță, Patriarchal Counselor and President of Filantropia Federation.
“As an umbrella organization of representative NGOs within the Romanian Orthodox Church, we aim to become relevant internationally by developing and strengthening partnerships that will provide easier access to European funding, experience exchange visits, broader representation, and sustainability,” he added.
Regarding the collaboration with Eurodiaconia, Fr. Ciprian Ioniță mentioned that joining and collaborating with such a European network “can create opportunities to become strategic partners and be present when European-level discussions on social policies, migration, and professional training take place.”
Eurodiaconia President Olli Holmström enthusiastically spoke about the collaboration with the Filantropia Federation. He expressed his appreciation for the Romanian Patriarchate’s invitation to host the General Assembly and discussed the involvement of the Filantropia Timișoara Foundation in Eurodiaconia.
“We will strengthen our ties and relationships with Romania and other EU countries. Eurodiaconia has almost 60 members in various European countries, and Filantropia Filantropia, as a Romanian member, is very important for the network’s development,” said the Eurodiaconia president.
This year’s General Assembly theme was “Diakonia and Democracy.”
Photography courtesy of Basilica.ro / Raluca Ene
Source: basilica.ro
