Twenty five years since the passing away of Patriarch IUSTIN MOISESCU of the Romanian Orthodox Church

31/7/2011

Patriarch IUSTIN MOISESCU of the Romanian Orthodox Church passed away in Bucharest at 31 July 1986.

Studies at the Seminary of the war orphans in Campulung-Muscel (1922 – 1930) and at the Faculty of Theology of Athens (1930 – 1934), with specialisation at the Faculty of Roman Catholic Theology of Strasbourg (1934 – 1936) and again at the Faculty of Theology of Athens (1936 – 1937), where he was awarded the doctor’s degree, in 1937, with the thesis Evagrie from Pont. His Life, Writings and Teaching (in Greek, Athens, 1937, 155 p), which was awarded a prize by the Academy of Sciences of Athens. He passed equalization examinations at the Faculty of Theology of Bucharest. Professor of Latin language at “Nifon” Seminary of Bucharest (1937 – 1938), professor of the New Testament at the Faculty of Orthodox Theology of the University of Warsaw (1938 – 1939), temporary professor (1940), then titular (1942) of the Exegesis of the New Testament at the Faculty of Theology of Cernauti-Suceava, transferred in 1946 for the same chair to the Faculty of Theology of Bucharest (from 1948 University Theological Institute); in 1956, he was ordained unmarried priest and, the same year elected Archbishop of Sibiu and Metropolitan of Transylvania (ordained hierarch on 15 March, enthroned on 18 March); on 10 January 1957, elected Archbishop of Iasi and Metropolitan of Moldova and Suceava (enthroned on 13 January), where he served for 20 years. On 12 June 1977 elected Archbishop of Bucharest, Metropolitan of Ungrowallachia and Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church (enthroned on 19 June 1977), serving till his death.

As Metropolitan of Moldova he unfolded a fruitful activity that ranks him among the great scholars and hierarchs of our Church. New buildings were built, real monuments of architecture – in the precincts of the Eparchial Centre of Iasi – and the cathedral and residence were renovated; many monasteries and churches, historical monuments of the eparchy, were restored; most of these churches and monasteries were added museums or museum collections.

The Holy Synod delegated him to represent the Romanian Orthodox Church at tens of Inter-Christian meetings, where he brought a special contribution to the Christian ecumenism. He headed a few Romanian Orthodox delegations on the visits paid to other Churches: England (1958), Syrian Church of Malabar (1961), U.S.A. (1070), Lutheran Church of Denmark (1971), Ecumenical Patriarchate (1974) and he was a member of a few synodal delegations headed by Patriarch Justinian; he received many foreign delegations in Iasi or within the Archdiocese of Iasi.

As Patriarch, he paid special attention to the editorial activity. For example he initiated the great collection entitled Church Fathers and Writers, in 90 volumes, as well as the collection Christian Art in Romania, in 6 volumes, a new synodal edition of the Bible (1982) was printed, a new edition of the New Testament (1979), manuals for the high theological education and for the theological seminaries, doctorate thesis, books of rite; the church central magazines and the metropolitan ones continued to be published, just like the bulletins of the Romanian Orthodox communities abroad. Due to his rich cultural, ecumenical and pastoral activity, Patriarch Iustin ranks his name among the very prestigious hierarchs of the entire Orthodoxy.

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