Glory to God for everything, we should all say this on this feast day of September 26, 2021, when our church of the Annunciation celebrates 85 years since its founding. It is a day in which we think of 1936, when a handful of brave people put themselves in the service of God and responded to that mysterious call of man to build a place of worship where everyone has the opportunity to meet God through the Holy Sacraments, the gateway to the Kingdom of Heaven together with all the saints.

This year, as in other years, the joy of the feast was fulfilled through the presence in our midst of His Eminence Archbishop and Metropolitan Nicolae who, each time, manages to bring confidence that we are not alone in this world that is suffering from loneliness and despair, caused by the pandemics that are destroying humanity on all levels.

Our celebration began on Sunday morning with the celebration of the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy together with the V. Rev. Fr. Ion Gherman. We thanked God for all His gifts poured out on our parish, we commemorated all its founders and benefactors, and asked Him to continue to watch over this holy place.

At the end of the Holy Liturgy, HE Nicolae held a sermon for spiritual strengthening in the face of the times in which we are living in:

“This Sunday's Holy Gospel presents us with a beautiful story of the encounter of God incarnate with man, a story of man's call to mission, the beautiful story of man's obedience to God. In this story we discover how God works with man and how man should respond. Christ addressed the word, and then showed that His word has the power to work miracles, that of catching the multitude of fish, but also to change the soul of man ...

What should we learn from this beautiful story of God's encounter with man? That we must be patient and be ready to receive the call of Christ. Waiting for it with patience and humility, the call will make sense to us and we will respond by assuming the mission.”

A Christian agape followed, attended by all our believers. I want to thank V. Rev. Fr. Ion Gherman, the former parish priest, for his speech, reminding us of the historical course of our church from 1936 until today. HE Metropolitan Nicolae wanted to remind each of us of the role that have in the life of a parish, giving the example of the few Greek families who, desperately seeking the Church in this period of pandemic, when some churches were closed, became faithful members of our parish. We embrace them dearly and enjoy their presence in our midst.

I would like to mention some important facts from the history of our parish. The Annunciation Church was founded on September 1, 1936, on September 15, its first minister, Archimandrite Ioachim Popescu, was chosen, and the first place of worship was in Cleveland, OH, at 5603 Detroit Ave, a former store. On the ground floor there was a chapel, and on the first floor a house for the priest. On July 30, 1938, the parish of the Annunciation purchased a $15,000 Jewish temple at 1791-1793 W 57th St. Cleveland, OH. A period of flourishing followed for our parish, which at the end of 1939 already had 50 families.

The General Assembly of September 14, 1969, in which HE Archbishop Victorin also participated, decided to sell the property on W 57th St. for $79,400 and to purchase the Greek church of Holy Great Martyr Demetrius in Rocky River for $170,000. Here, the parish of the Annunciation functioned for 54 years until 2016 when a new 10-acre property was purchased for $615,000 from a Methodist organization. The property includes a large building where we had the opportunity to arrange a place to serve, classrooms, office, social room, bookstore and kitchen. All this makes members of our parish feel that this new location is the right place to build a new church according to the Romanian Orthodox church architecture and tradition.

In conclusion, I want to thank HE Nicolae and all the members of our parish for the love manifested in the loving sacrifice of God and neighbor. We ask God to continue to help us to remain in communion in the Church of our Lord Jesus Christ, who deserves all the glory, honor, and worship, forever and ever. Amen.

Rev. Fr. Petru Neaga,

Olmsted Falls, OH