Bucharest, November 30, 2022
Photo: basilica.ro
The director of the popular film Man of God, about the great 20th-century Holy Hierarch and Wonderworker St. Nektarios of Aegina, was honored by His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel of Romania at the film’s premier in Bucharest yesterday.
The Order of the Praying Theotokos, which was established by the Romanian Holy Synod in September, was given to the director, Yelena Popovic, by Patriarchal Advisor Fr. Nicolae Dascălu on behalf of the Patriarch, saying: “May the Mother of God protect Yelena Popovic so that she may continue to produce spiritual films, Orthodox films,” reports the Basilica News Agency.
“St. NeKtarios of Aegina is in recent decades at least, for us Romanians, a revelation, a discovery, and, often, the connection between our country and Greece is blessed by the holy personality of St. Nektarios of Aegina,” the Patriarchal Advisor emphasized.
“This honor leaves me speechless,” said Popovic. “The Mother of God is our mother, everyone’s, and this distinction humbles me.”
Popovic spoke about how St. Nektarios greatly loved the Mother of God, and about how she always prayed for her help in making the film. “I always carried a thread from the Belt of the Mother of God given to me by Vatopedi Monastery, which had a crucial role in the existence of this film,” the director said.
Earlier, Popovic visited Radu Vodă Monastery, which is dedicated to the Holy Trinity and St. Nektarios and which has a portion of the great saint’s relics. “You could feel the presence and the peace there. And the fact that you have a monastery dedicated to him in the city shows that you love him a lot,” the director said.
Popovic also spoke with the Basilica News Agency, the Romanian Patriarchate’s press service, about her path to faith, the making of the film, and much more. See here and here.
Man of God is now available for free on YouTube from within the U.S.
Follow OrthoChristian on Twitter, Vkontakte, Telegram, WhatsApp, MeWe, and Gab!
