Mt. Athos, March 14, 2023
Photo: basilica.ro
The Romanian Prodromou Skete on Mt. Athos said farewell to one of its most beloved monks, Hieromonk Iulian (Lazăr), on Saturday.
Fr. Iulian, who hailed from Botoșani in northeastern Romania and spent 46 years on the Holy Mountain, reposed in the Lord at the age of 97 on Friday, March 10.
“The separation from their father, as well as the solemnity and simplicity with which the fathers of the community read and sang the funeral service, caused many of those present to shed tears,” writes the Basilica News Agency.
After the funeral served in the church, Fr. Iulian’s body was carried in procession to the site of his grave.
“No speech or words of farewell were given other than those in the text of the service. According to the monastic order, the hieromonk’s body was buried without a coffin, with bricks at the head,” reads the report.
Watch a video of the procession and burial of Fr. Iulian:
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Photo: basilica.ro Hieromonk Iulian was born on January 8, 1926, in the town of Vorona, Botoşani County. In 1946, at the age of 20, he moved to the famous Sihăstria Monastery in Neamț.
In 1950, he finished his mandatory military service. After 10 years of prayer and obedience, he was ordained to the diaconate and priesthood in 1956.
In 1977, at 50 years of age, Fr. Iulian moved to Mt. Athos, where he remained for the rest of his life. He first spent 4 years at the Lacu Hermitage, then moved to Prodromou in 1981, where he became a father confessor.
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