#death and mourning

This homily, attributed to Saint John Chrysostom, explains why the faithful gather outside the city, at a martyrion, to celebrate the Cross and Christ’s Descent into Hell, since the Saviour suffered outside the city gates. The sermon explores the theme of Christ’s victory over death and the devil through the Cross, highlighting the symmetry between Adam’s fall through wood and the salvation of the human race through the wood of the Cross.

This excerpt from a work of fiction presents a dialogue between Abbot Partenie and the writer-philosopher Voina, set in a monastery, centred on the themes of authentic preaching, the Church’s role in relation to young people and society, and the political crisis in which a character named Rusceanu is proposed as prime minister. The narrative tension deepens through the revelation of Voina’s personal tragedy — Sonia’s sudden death and Pavel’s despair — and through the contrast between the writer’s worldly eloquence and the monk’s inner prayer.

The poem A Father’s Sorrows explores three aspects of fatherhood: a father’s joy at the birth of his daughter, a dying father’s repentance towards the son he has neglected, and a reflection on the spiritual identity of the Romanian people, rooted in the Orthodox faith and in the sacrifice of past generations.