Nativity of the Lord

Patriarch Daniel says Christ came to sanctify the world from within in Christmas homily

His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel said on the Feast of the Nativity of the Lord that Christ came into the world to sanctify creation and to teach humanity, from within it, to give thanks to God for the very existence of the created universe and for human life itself. “Christ comes into the world to sanctify…

Dec 25, 2025Aurelian Iftimiu

Romanian Orthodox Bishop in Ireland and Iceland urges inner renewal in first Christmas pastoral letter

Bishop Nectarie of the Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Ireland and Iceland underscored the need for inner change and the rediscovery of spiritual purity in the face of contemporary challenges in his first Christmas pastoral letter since his enthronement. “Our renewal begins today — a perpetual today — for before the Lord there is no yesterday,…

Dec 24, 2025Aurelian Iftimiu

Metropolitan Serafim urges humility over comfort in Christmas message, highlights women’s role in Church and family

In this year’s Christmas pastoral letter, Metropolitan Serafim of Germany invites the faithful to move beyond the material comfort associated with the Nativity feast and to rediscover what he calls “the only new thing under the sun”: the humility of God who becomes Man. In the pastoral message titled “The Christian Woman in the Family,…

Dec 23, 2025Aurelian Iftimiu

Patriarch Daniel urges faith, peace and communion in Christmas and New Year 2026 message

In his Christmas video message, Patriarch Daniel of the Romanian Orthodox Church reflects on the mystery of the Incarnation as God’s saving descent into human history, emphasising that Christmas is fundamentally a celebration of forgiveness, peace, and communion among people. Recalling the prophecies of Isaiah and Micah, the Patriarch of Romania underscores that the birth…

Dec 23, 2025Aurelian Iftimiu

Christ the Pilgrim comes to us in every person in need, Patriarch Daniel says in his Christmas pastoral letter

In his Christmas Pastoral Letter, Patriarch Daniel of the Romanian Orthodox Church reflects on the mystery of the Nativity as a living encounter between God and humanity, presenting Christ as the divine “Pilgrim” who continues to come to people through love, humility, and mercy. Drawing on Scripture, patristic teaching, and the spiritual heritage of Romanian…

Dec 22, 2025Aurelian Iftimiu

Metropolitan Teofan urges unity and responsibility in Christmas encyclical

His Eminence Metropolitan Teofan of Moldavia and Bukovina calls on the faithful in his Christmas Pastoral Letter to cultivate unity, patience and responsibility towards one another. His Eminence reflected on the mystery of the Incarnation of the Son of God as the foundation of Christian life and as the source of a way of living…

Dec 22, 2025Aurelian Iftimiu

Bishop Benedict reflects on ‘theology of the cave’, linking Bethlehem to communist prisons

Bishop Benedict of Sălaj has proposed in his first Christmas Pastoral Letter a reflection on what he calls the “theology of the cave,” drawing a parallel between the humility of the manger in Bethlehem and the “cave” of suffering experienced in communist prisons. He stresses that no human suffering is too dark to be illumined…

Dec 22, 2025Aurelian Iftimiu

Whoever receives Christ receives the courage to love: Archbishop Atanasie’s first Christmas pastoral letter

“Whoever receives Christ receives the courage to love, to forgive, and to live without fear. In Him, fear is transformed into trust, and loneliness into a sacred encounter,” noted His Eminence Archbishop Atanasie in his first pastoral letter for the feast of the Nativity since his enthronement as shepherd of Orthodox Romanians in Great Britain…

Dec 22, 2025Aurelian Iftimiu

Metropolitan Nicolae of the Americas urges faithful to sing to God through deeds, not words, in Christmas message

The Christmas exhortation of His Eminence Metropolitan Nicolae, Romanian Orthodox Metropolitan of the Americas, calls on the faithful to sing to the Lord not only with their voices, but above all through their deeds. In his pastoral letter for the Feast of the Nativity of the Lord, Metropolitan Nicolae Condrea brings to the fore the…

Dec 19, 2025Aurelian Iftimiu

Patriarch Daniel: Romanian carols are a confession of the Incarnation of the Son of God

At the conclusion of the annual Christmas carol concert organised by the Romanian Patriarchate, held on Tuesday evening at the Palace of the Patriarchate, Patriarch Daniel of the Romanian Orthodox Church delivered a message reflecting on the theological, cultural and historical significance of the Romanian Christmas carol tradition. Addressing clergy, performers and the faithful gathered…

Dec 17, 2025Aurelian Iftimiu

Metropolitan Petru of Bessarabia’s Christmas Message to the Faithful

His Eminence Metropolitan Petru of Bessarabia delivered a video message to the faithful in the Republic of Moldova, who celebrate the Nativity of the Lord according to the unrevised calendar. “The Nativity of the Infant Christ reminds us that God came into the world to dispel the darkness of sin and guide us on the…

Jan 6, 2025Aurelian Iftimiu