HOLY FRIDAY BECOMES NATIONAL HOLIDAY IN ROMANIA
Silhouettes of crosses in a Romanian cemeteryTransylvania
Orthochristian.com – 15/3/18
Holy Friday has become an official public non-working holiday in Romania, the Romanian Orthodox Church’s Basilica News Agency reports.
With Romanian President Klaus Iohannis’ signature on the completion of Paragraph 1 of Article 139 of the Labor Code, Romania joined 16 other EU countries on Monday where Holy Friday is already a public holiday.
The bill was initiated by Deputy Szabo Odon of the Democrat Hungarian Union and adopted by the Senate on February 21 by a vote of 86-1 with one abstention. The Chamber of Deputies approved the legislation on February 28 by a vote of 223-7 with 19 abstentions, reports Business Review.
“Romania should also make Good Friday legal holiday, as it is one of the most significant religious events of the year,” Szabo Odon said, as quoted by The Romania Journal.
Several other Church feasts are already established as holidays in Romania: Pascha and Bright Monday, the first and second days of Pentecost, the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos (August 15 new style), the feast of St. Andrew the First-Called (November 30 new style) and the first and second days of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ (December 25 and 26 new style).
