The historical resonance of a foundation

The Romanian Orthodox Christian calendar for 2017 is symbolically dedicated to the ‘commemoration of Patriarch Justinian’, the most distinguished, in my view, the most distinguished minister of the National Church, known at one time—and perhaps even today, out of ignorance or even bad faith—as the ‘Red Patriarch’, to whom, fortunately, time and a deeper understanding of his mission and work have restored his merits as a wise saviour of the Romanian Christian Orthodox spiritual landscape and, thus, as a courageous and diplomatic defender of national identity and the boundaries of that identity. The son of a peasant from a village nestled amongst the poor, pigeon-filled hills at the foot of the Oltenia mountains, this country priest, this village priest, hailing from a family that had spent its entire life battling poverty—a poverty more powerful than the diligence and ambitions of this world, which even today is characterised by the burden of leading a life that is more modest than wealthy— Justinian Marina, the future high dignitary in the patriarchal throne, andwho, throughout his life, preserved the peasant faith in the Church and in its role as the decisive unifying force for the entire country, and who struggled hard to make his way from the threshold of a church in Băbeni to the inner sanctum of the patriarchal altar, serving in turn—whilst holding the priesthood and the post of village schoolmaster—a small church in Râmnic’s market square, the leadership of the Vâlcea Theological Seminary, and the town’s printing press, just as Calinic, the Saint of Cernica, living the everyday lives of the faithful he shepherded and ceaselessly bearing witness to the keen peasant mind and, thus, of the wisdom of these peasants, which was reflected in all his deeds and, indeed, so eloquently in his very peasant appearance. Here, too, are the reasons why, having enjoyed the privilege of knowing him closely during my childhood and youth—even in my father’s schoolhouse, where he was a friend— and I still see him today, beyond my vivid memories of him, as one of the brave, hard-working, quick-witted and wise peasants of the rural world of Oltenia beneath the mountains; and I dare say that the quick-wittedness of this peasant mind, and the courage and patience to wait for the right moment to succeedfor every endeavour and every aspiration, and the centuries-old peasant diplomacy that has prevailed through adverse times, ensured that he discovered, championed and won the cause of a doctrine, one might say, which upheld and served as the moral foundation for the idea of recognition – a matter with legal and national budgetary implications – of priests as defenders of historical monuments. Here is the great idea, born of brilliant peasant wisdom, with which he convinced the leadership of the Communist State to retain in their posts, however modestly paid, Orthodox Christian priests in their posts, however modestly paid; and thus each remained close to his church, whereas otherwise they would have been forced to leave the altars and find work anywhere, in any trade, on any building site, in any job capable of supporting themselves and their families. It was from this idea that all his projects then sprang forth—carried out with equal courage and ever-present patience whilst awaiting the right moment—projects which, step by step, safeguarded and enriched the life of the monasteries, schools for cantors and priests, faculties of theology, missionary and research institutes, and the publication of books necessary for the promotion and historical and theological justification of Christian Orthodoxy, right up to the full recognition of the Orthodox Church’s place in society—a unique case throughout the socialist world following the Second World War. Our Church’s commemoration of Patriarch Justinian, and the publishing initiative accompanying it in some metropolises, archdioceses and dioceses across the country—which justifies this commemoration—could not be more welcome. Personally, I had suspected and hoped—and still hope—for a national symposium organised and supported by today’s Patriarchate, dedicated to Patriarch Justinian and his work, which would fully shed the light he deserves on his personality and, thereby lead to a better understanding of the history of Wallachia following the Second World War, and of Romanian spirituality during those post-war years, so that we may see even more clearly the merits of Romanian culture during those years, which have so often been—and still are—ignored or remain so poorly understood that, just as often, we find ourselves undeservedly beating our breasts in contrition. Well, the Year of Commemoration of Patriarch Justinian has, in my view, been marked by a destiny to become historic through the act of its establishment by the Archdiocese of Râmnic, served diligently and with clear vision by Archbishop Dr. Varsanufie, who built—I say, from the ground up—in the village of Suiești, that poor village I mentioned at the start, where the peasant priest who went on to become patriarch, Justinian Marina, was born, a church and a monastery in honour of the great patriarch, and the specific conversion of a peasant’s cottage, similar to the one in which the peasant-turned-patriarch was born, into a house-museum, also dedicated to him. At the consecration of this foundation, six bishops, the Archbishop and the Metropolitan of Oltenia, officiated, surrounded by thousands of peasants who had come from all corners of Oltenia to pay homage, they too, the peasants of today, the son of a peasant who became Patriarch and guardian of the very being, integrity and identity of the national Orthodox Christian Church. I have no hesitation in saying that I had long dreamt of and anticipated the consecration of the foundation at Suiești becoming a national event for the whole Church and for all those who today are the heirs to the work of Patriarch Justinian and indeed to his princely see. Fortunately, the foundation was established to honour not only the village of Suiești and the Church in Vâlcea, but our entire Church, and I believe its significance will be, and will remain, historic; and here, in Suiești, it will in time become a place of pilgrimage for ‘the veneration of Patriarch Justinian’.