Cuconeștii Vechi, Moldova, September 15, 2022
mitropolia.md
Yesterday, September 14, marked the 20th anniversary of the repose of the great Romanian elder Archimandrite Sofian (Boghiu), who spent his life in monasticism and suffered for 15 years in a communist prison.
His memory was solemnly commemorated with a full day of events in his hometown of Cuconeștii Vechi, Moldova, beginning with a memorial service at a gazebo named in his honor on the banks of the Prut River served by His Eminence Metropolitan Vladimir of Chișinău and His Eminence Archbishop Nicodim of Edineț and Briceni, reports the Moldovan Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate).
mitropolia.md
Following the service, Met. Vladimir addressed those present with an edifying word about the life and personality of Fr. Sofian.
mitropolia.md
Then a spiritual concert was held, including a performance by a local children’s choir. Next, the participants moved to the Archimandrite Sofian (Boghiu) Memorial House, which was opened two years ago. Items at the house include copies of Fr. Sofian’s manuscripts, his books, a series of signed icons, and photos from his meetings with ecclesiastical and cultural personalities.
The program ended with a visit to the ruins of the Church of the Archangel Michael on the banks of the Prut and the Cuconeștii cemetery.
In the video below, Fr. Sofian talks about the prayer of prisoners who were persecuted for their faith under the communist regime in Romania:
***
Fr. Sofian was born on October 7, 1912 in Cuconeștii Vechi. He became a brother of Rughi Monastery in Soroca County in 1926. He studied at the school for singers at Dobrușa Monastery, at the monastic seminary in Cernica Monastery (1932-1940), at the Academy of Fine Arts in Bucharest (1940-1945), and at the Department of Theology in Bucharest (1942-1946).
He was tonsured as a monk with the name Sofian at Dobrușa Monastery in 1937. He was ordained as a hierodeacon in 1939 and as a hieromonk in 1945 for the Antim Monastery in Bucharest. He served as abbot of the monastery from 1950 to 1955 and again in the last years of his life.
He was arrested in 1958 and sentenced to 15 years in prison, though he was released in 1964. He spent the rest of his life at Antim Monastery, where he reposed on September 14, 2002. He was buried at Căldărușani Monastery in Gruiu in Ilfov County.
Read more about Fr. Sofian at Pemptousia.
Follow OrthoChristian on Twitter, Vkontakte, Telegram, WhatsApp, MeWe, and Gab!
