In the address delivered at the end of the Te Deum service celebrated on Saturday in Alba Iulia to mark the Coronation Centennial, Patriarch Daniel of the Romanian Orthodox Church said that this landmark moment is an occasion to show gratitude to God and to everyone who contributed to the accomplishment of the Greater Union, told Agerpres.
"The 100th anniversary of the Coronation of King Ferdinand I and Queen Maria as sovereigns of Greater Romania is a moment of great celebration and an opportunity to show our gratitude to God and to all those who, by word and deed, have contributed to the accomplishment of the Greater Union of the Romanian people. We congratulate and bless all those who currently contribute through their multiple efforts to cultivating and promoting the importance of our national unity and dignity against the backdrop of present and future international cooperation," said Patriarch Daniel.
He went on to remark that this anniversary is also an occasion to recall the crucial role of the symbolic city Alba Iulia in the birth, fostering and passing on of the Romanian people's consciousness of unity and national identity, a mission confirmed by the enactment of the first union of the three Romanian principalities under the rule of Michael the Brave in 1600, and of the Great Union of Transylvania with Romania, on December 1, 1918.
"Collective memory, as we know, is short-lived, particularly when a nation goes through collective traumas: wars, totalitarian oppressive regimes, critical times, as was the communist period which manipulated consciences through aggressive atheistic propaganda in a bid to demolish faith and erase the historical truth of the contribution of the Romanian kings to the accomplishment of the ideal of the Romanian people's freedom and unity. Compared to other European nations, the Romanians have only few 'sites of memory' related to the historical past, in general. Alba Iulia is one of these sites! A visible, tangible landmark meant to keep alive in our and our descendants' memory the appreciation and gratitude for the sacrifice of the ancestors who laid down their lives for the fulfillment of the Romanian people's ideals of freedom and unity," the Patriarch said.
He also referred to the importance of the city's "Coronation" or "Reunification" Cathedral, as it is also known, as the place for the consecration of the crowns of the monarchs of Reunited Romania.
Several high Orthodox clergy were present at the Te Deum service: Metropolitan of Transylvania, Laurentiu; Metropolitan of Cluj, Andrei; Archbishop of Alba Iulia, Irineu; Bishop of Oradea, Sofronie; Bishop of Covasna and Harghita, Andrei; and Bishop of Deva and Hunedoara, Nestor.
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