Thirty-six years have passed since Patriarch Daniel of Romania was consecrated as a bishop of the Romanian Orthodox Church. The anniversary was marked on Wednesday, recalling the moment when the future Patriarch began his episcopal ministry.
On March 4, 1990, the first Sunday of Great Lent that year, Patriarch Daniel was ordained as Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Timișoara, receiving the title “Lugojanul.”
Born on July 22, 1951, in the village of Dobrești, Timiș County, he was the third child of Alexie and Stela Ciobotea. In 1974, he graduated in Theology from the Orthodox Theological Institute of Sibiu. He later pursued doctoral studies under the guidance of the renowned theologian Dumitru Staniloae and continued his academic formation through study programs in Strasbourg, France, and Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany.
In 1987, the future Patriarch embraced monastic life at Sihăstria Monastery in Neamț County, where his monastic sponsor was Saint Cleopa of Sihastria. In the same year, he was ordained hierodeacon and later hieromonk. A year later he was elevated to the rank of protosinghel and appointed patriarchal adviser, serving as director of the Department for Contemporary Theology and Ecumenical Dialogue while also teaching at the Theological Institute in Bucharest.
On June 7, 1990, he was elected Metropolitan of Moldavia and Bukovina, where he initiated numerous pastoral, administrative, and cultural projects. Among these were the restoration of the Metropolitan Cathedral in Iași, the establishment of the “Providența” Medical Center, and the founding of the newspaper Lumina and the radio station Radio Trinitas.
On September 12, 2007, he was elected Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church and was enthroned on September 30 of the same year. During his patriarchal ministry, he has continued to strengthen the Church’s mission both in Romania and among Romanian communities in the diaspora.
One of the most significant achievements of his tenure has been the construction of the National Cathedral in Bucharest, considered a symbolic project for the Romanian Orthodox Church.
In a congratulatory message delivered on the Sunday of Orthodoxy, Patriarchal Vicar Bishop Bishop Varlaam Ploiesteanul highlighted the enduring impact of Patriarch Daniel’s ministry, stating: “These 36 years of episcopal service of His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel have given our Church a distinct rhythm and ethos.”
He also recalled Patriarch Daniel’s earlier years as Metropolitan of Moldavia and Bukovina, quoting Metropolitan Bartolomeu Anania, who once described the activity of the metropolitanate as “a beehive of the Holy Spirit.” According to Bishop Varlaam, after the Patriarch’s enthronement in 2007, this “beehive of the Holy Spirit” expanded to encompass the entire Romanian Patriarchate, making the Church’s work increasingly visible in society.
Source: Basilica.ro / Photo: Basilica.ro / Raluca-Emanuela Ene
