With the blessing of His Eminence Archbishop and Metropolitan Nicolae, from the 3rd to the 10th of November 2023, Father Daniel Ene visited Romanian communities in Brazil, Chile and Argentina.
On the 3rd and 4th of November, Father was among the Romanian community in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Being the largest city in Latin America, Sao Paulo also has a diverse Romanian community that is led by Mr. Adrian Petruțiu, first violinist of the Sao Paulo Symphony Orchestra. The Romanians in Sao Paulo still feel and live in a Romanian way, even if they are far from their native country. The weekly public fair even has a Romanian stand where a Romanian, Mr. Gabriel Toea, shares Romanian culinary products and Romanian history with the Brazilians.
But it was time for this small community to gather once again at the Greek Cathedral of St. Ap. Peter (R. Bresser, 793 - Brás, São Paulo - SP, 01000-000, Brazil) in Sao Paulo where they listened to the Divine Liturgy in Romanian, celebrated by Father Daniel. The agape meal afterwards was the occasion to plan for a lively and active Romanian church in Brazil that would continue the tradition of the Romanian church in the 1960s under the pastorate of Father Roman Braga that existed in Brazil. Towards the evening, the priest travelled to Chile.
On Sunday, November 5, 2023, starting at 8:30 a.m., the Divine Liturgy was celebrated in Romanian at the San Jorge Orthodox Cathedral in Santiago de Chile, by Father Daniel Ene, where many Romanians participated together with their families and Chilean friends. The Liturgy took place with the blessing of His Eminence Metropolitan Sergio of the Antiochian Orthodox Church of Chile.
Immediately after the Divine Liturgy, there was a Panikhida for those who had passed to the Lord from the families present, as well as a special remembrance for the 40th anniversary of the passing of the young Andrei Florea, the son of Diana and Adrian Florea.
After the memorial service, a meeting was organized in a room next to the church, hosted by the parish priest George Abed, who shared small cocktails with specific Romanian dishes (coliva, cornish pastries, spinach pie, meat pie, coffee, juices). Father Daniel gave a short talk about the Gospel of the day, encouraging and hoping that in the future, with the help of the Good Lord and His Mother, the church life of the Romanians in Chile will take on a new dimension. Father distributed an icon to all, with the blessing of His Eminence Metropolitan Nicolae from the Consecration of the Protection of the Mother of God Monastery in Allegan, Michigan, on October 1, 2023.
The whole afternoon was spent at a meal with the blessing of His Eminence Sergio, who accepted the invitation of Mrs. Ioana Galea to the dinner prepared in honor of Father Daniel. It was a truly blessed evening where the Antiochian Cathedral's psalters, together with His Eminence Sergio, performed a true concert of Byzantine music.
The desire of the Romanian community to have a Romanian church in Chile was also discussed, and the presence of Romanians from southern Chile from the towns Valvidia and Conception were welcomed. The Sunday Liturgy was also attended by Consul Roxana Mocanu from the Romanian Embassy in Chile.
On Monday, Father Daniel met with His Excellency Floricel Mocanu, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of Romania to Chile. In the discussions we had, we felt the Ambassador's real desire to support an eventual Romanian parish in Chile.
Tuesday, November 7, the eve of the Feast of the Holy Archangels, was the occasion of Father Daniel's trip to Buenos Aires, Argentina. On Wednesday, November 8, Father Daniel served at the Serbian Orthodox Cathedral in Buenos Aires at the invitation of the Serbian Orthodox Diocese of Central and South America, with His Eminence Bishop Kirilo and His Holiness Porfirie, Patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church, who visited Argentina for 10 days.
This was a day of great importance for the Orthodox Church in Argentina, which received for the first time the visit of a Primate of an Autocephalous Church.
The service was also attended by several members of the Romanian community, who, after the banquet prepared in honor of His Holiness' visit, met with Father Daniel. For this visit, Father Daniel Ene presented to the Patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church, on behalf of His Eminence Archbishop and Metropolitan, the icon of the Year of the Pastoral Care of Romanians Abroad 2021, an icon specially prepared by the Romanian Orthodox Metropolia of the Americas.
Iuliana Gheorghe
