His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel on Monday officiated a Te Deum service at the Patriarchal Cathedral in Bucharest, marking the 163rd anniversary of the Union of the Romanian Principalities.
At the end of the service, the Patriarch reminded that on January 24, 1859, the works of the Electoral Assembly of Muntenia, which elected Prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza of Moldavia as Prince of Wallachia, took place on the famous Metropolitan Hill, in a building of the Metropolis of Wallachia.
“Before the election, the members of the Electoral Assembly swore on the Holy Gospel and the Holy Cross, before the icon of the Holy Trinity, that they would vote for the Union of the Romanian Principalities,” the Patriarch of Romania said January 24.
“Today, at the Te Deum service in the Patriarchal Cathedral, we prayed to the Most Holy Trinity, the eternal Source of unity and communion, to help us preserve and permanently cultivate national unity, peaceful coexistence and dignified cooperation with other peoples for the welfare of the Romanian people and of Romania,” His Beatitude noted.
The event was attended by representatives of state authorities, including Vasile Dîncu, Minister of National Defense, and Victor Opaschi, State Secretary for Religious Affairs.
In his speech, the Patriarch of Romania underlined the essential contribution of the Church in the process that culminated with the Union of Romanian Principalities: “Through hierarchs, priests, monks and lay theologians, the Romanian Orthodox Church contributed to this fundamental act of our history both in Moldavia and in Wallachia.”
The contemporaries of the event called January 24, 1859, “The Great Day of the Century,” Patriarch Daniel recalled, adding that they understood that the Union of Romanian Principalities was the cornerstone of the new Romanian unitary state.
“I have often stated that the Union of January 24, 1859, must be considered the ‘Basic Union’, not the ‘Small Union’ because it was the basis for the formation of the Romanian unitary state in 1862, called ‘Romania’.”
“This holiday is a day in which we thank God and commemorate with gratitude all those who contributed to the Union of Romanian Principalities, thus showing the importance of our unity and national dignity in the context of present and future international cooperation.”
After the thanksgiving service, wreaths were laid at the statue of Prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza near the Patriarchal Cathedral.
On January 24, 2022, a Te Deum service was held in all churches of the Romanian Patriarchate. The bells of all churches rang for one minute.
