In a message occasioned by the Sunday of the Myrrh-bearing Women, Patriarch Daniel addressed all women, emphasising their significance and role in the family and the Church’s mission: to become “disciples of the Lord.”
In March, the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church decided to begin the process of canonising several Romanian holy women and proclaimed 2026 as the Commemorative Year of Holy Women in the Church Calendar and the Solemn Year of Pastoral Care for Christian Families.
In his message titled “The Myrrh-bearing Women – Models of Faith and Witnesses of the Lord’s Resurrection,” Patriarch Daniel offered blessings and thanks to all women who witness to their faith through prayer, word, and deed.
The Myrrh-bearing Women – Models of Faith and Witnesses of the Lord’s Resurrection
The Orthodox Church honours on the third Sunday after Pascha the Holy Myrrh-bearing Women who, “very early in the morning, on the first day of the week” (Mark 16:2), went to the tomb of Jesus Christ with precious spices.
These women received from the angels the news that Christ had risen, becoming bold proclaimers of the Resurrection and being granted the joy of encountering the Risen Lord Himself.
Alongside the Mother of God were Mary Magdalene, Salome (wife of Zebedee and mother of James and John), Joanna (wife of Chuza, a steward of King Herod), Martha and Mary (sisters of Lazarus), Mary the mother of James and Joses (also called Mary of Clopas), Susanna, and all the other saintly women listed in the Church calendar, these holy women are icons and models of Christian womanhood who, in families, monastic communities, and other institutions, fulfil their calling as bearers of the Light of Christ.
Thus, on this Sunday, the Romanian Orthodox Church celebrates Christian Women’s Sunday. In two weeks, on May 18, 2025, it will celebrate the National Day of the Family, highlighting the vital roles of mothers, grandmothers, sisters, wives, and daughters in family life and the Church’s mission.
The Sunday of the Myrrh-bearing Women calls all women to become “disciples of the Lord” by seeking the Crucified Christ and proclaiming the great joy of His Resurrection.
Today’s Christian mothers, especially, can see in the Myrrh-bearing Women true role models who inspire a life of holiness and self-giving. Through faith and devotion, diligence and generosity, they help maintain harmony in the family, defend and promote Christian family values, and raise children in love for God and for others.
In this year of 2025, declared the Solemn Year of the Centennial of the Romanian Patriarchate and the Commemorative Year of Romanian Orthodox Spiritual Fathers and Confessors of the 20th Century, we gratefully remember our forebears: hierarchs, priests, deacons, monks, nuns, and faithful men and women who preserved and passed on the Orthodox faith in difficult times—uniting in their souls the suffering of the Cross with the hope of the Resurrection, the tears of repentance with the joy of meeting the Risen Christ.
It is worth noting that on Thursday, March 27, 2025, the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church approved the beginning of the canonisation procedures for several Romanian holy women, with 2026 proclaimed as the Solemn Year of the Pastoral Care of the Christian Family and the Commemorative Year of Holy Women in the Church Calendar (Myrrh-bearers, Martyrs, Venerable Women, Wives, and Mothers).
On the occasion of the Sunday of the Myrrh-bearing Women and the feast days dedicated to Christian women and the family, we extend congratulations, gratitude, and blessings to all women who cultivate and bear witness to faith in Christ the Lord, crucified and risen, through prayer, speech, and action—bringing much light and joy to the life of the Church, the Family, and Society.
We wish you all health and salvation, peace and holy joy, for many and blessed years!
† Daniel
Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church
Photo: Raluca Ene
Source: Basilica.ro
