Patriarch Daniel of Romania has published a heartfelt message expressing his joy and gratitude for the invitation to participate in the International Theological Conference of Pavleia, dedicated to the Apostle Paul, the founder of the Metropolis of Veria in Greece. This year’s event holds special significance as it marks the 30th anniversary of the election of Metropolitan Panteleimon.
Patriarch Daniel’s message includes warm congratulations to Metropolitan Panteleimon of Veria, along with prayers for many blessed years in his ministry.
Read the Message:
“We gladly accepted the invitation to take part in the International Theological Conference of Pavleia, dedicated to the Apostle Paul, the founder of the Metropolis of Veria.
This year’s meeting has an exceptional and commemorative character, as it marks 30 years since Panteleimon was elected Metropolitan of Veria, Naoussa, and Campania. On this blessed occasion, we congratulate Metropolitan Panteleimon of Veria, and we pray to the All-Good God, as well as to the Holy Apostle, for fruitful years in his holy activities.
This year’s theme of the International Theological Conference in Pavleia – Apostle Paul and the liturgical life of the Church – is highly relevant because the Divine Liturgy is the center, the essence, and the expression of the teaching of faith of our Holy Church, for every generation, until the Second Coming of our Lord, as the Apostle Paul confesses to us.
At the same time, the Apostle Paul is the one who skillfully theologized the aspects related to the life of the first Christian communities, some of which he founded himself, as well as the aspects related to the Incarnation of the Son of God for our salvation and for the renewal of our union with the Holy Trinity, in the Holy Spirit, through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior (2 Corinthians 13:14).
The teaching of the Apostle Paul, nourished by his experience as a performer of the Divine Liturgy and of communion with the Body and Blood of our Savior Jesus Christ, remains ever-relevant and protects the fundamental values of humanity, especially in today’s world characterized by multiple moral, social, and economic crises.
Thus, we eagerly await and bless the work of the 30th International Theological Conference under the title Pavleia, and we pray to the All-Good God that the outcomes of the Conference will be fruitful and beneficial for the Orthodox Church, as well as for the current generations of Christians who, like Paul on his way to Damascus, discover Christ and return to the Way of Life, His Church, through the Divine Sacraments and the Divine Liturgy, to become true and dynamic members of it, following the example of the Apostle Paul.
With paternal love in Christ God,
DANIEL
Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church”
Translated by: Konstantinos Menyktas