#the German-Bulgarian occupation of Romania

On the night of 16–17 February 1918, Bulgarian soldiers stole the holy relics of Saint Dimitrie Basarabov from the Metropolitan Cathedral in Bucharest, and the intervention of the German military authorities, alerted by Metropolitan Primate Konon, led to their recovery on the evening of 20 February 1918. As a token of gratitude, the faithful presented a candle to the reliquary, which was subsequently, through the care of Patriarch Justinian, taken to the church in the village of Ciunget, in Vâlcea County.

Bishop Sofronie Vulpescu of Râmnic (†1923) is portrayed in the context of his pastoral and cultural work carried out before and during the First World War: the construction of new premises for the Theological Seminary in Râmnicu-Vâlcea, the reorganisation of the diocesan printing press, the publication of the Orthodox Church Calendar for 21 years, and the publication of works such as Man’s Free Will as a Principle of Moral Action and General Observations on the Life and Works of Immanuel Kant, alongside his contribution to the Synod and the hardships he endured under German occupation.