Upon his return from the pilgrimage in Cappadocia, performed during the brotherly visit at the Ecumenical Patriarchate between May 27 - June 2, 2009, His Beatitude Daniel, Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, has issued the following press statement:

'We are grateful to discover the connections which Cappadocia had with our homeland, Romania. During our pilgrimage we have admired the beauty of the faith, of Byzantine painting, next to the beauty of nature. We are very joyful that over these days many Greek and Romanian hierarchs have joined us, and many faithful pilgrims We have prayed together at the Vespers on Saturday evening, May 30, in the Holy Emperors Constantine and Helen Church in Sinassos, and Sunday, May 31, we have participated together at the Holy Liturgy celebrated in the St. Theodor Church in Malakopos, where both Greek and Romanian pilgrims have sung at the services.

Also, during our journey, we had meetings with several local Greek authorities of this area, who assured us that we can send as many tourists as we want to visit the Christian places, for they will receive authorization or they will receive the key necessary for entry in the churches which once belonged to the Greek Orthodox Christians here.

And I personally feel that this visit was not only a source of joy and blessing, as we bear in our official title this quality of locum tenens of the throne of Caesarea Cappadocia since 1776, when the Ecumencial Patriarchate granted this honorific title to the Metropolitan of Ungro-Wallachia.

We are also joyful that we were joined by both the Greek television and the television station of the Romanian Patriarchate, TRINITAS TV, whom we are extending our thanks for the media mission they are unfolding, bringing into light the richness and beauty of Orthodoxy.'

His Beatitude Daniel and the delegation of the Romanian Orthodox Church will return to Romania on the evening of June 2, 2009.

THE PRESS OFFICE OF THE ROMANIAN PATRIARCHATE