Shanghai, June 20, 2024
Photo: Basilica News Agency
On May 26, the first-ever Romanian-language Divine Liturgy was celebrated in China.
The service, officiated by Fr. Constantin Prihoanca from the Romanian Diocese of Germany and Central and Northern Europe, gathered numerous local Romanians at the Consulate General of Romania in Shanghai, reports the Basilica News Agency.
Fr. Constantin was on a missionary visit to China from May 18 to 31, including several catechetical meetings.
“Many Romanians in this part of the world had the opportunity to confess and receive Holy Communion, to commemorate their departed, and also to hear the Divine Liturgy in Romanian for the first time in this part of the world,” the priest said.
During the meetings, the need to establish a Romanian parish for nearly 300 Romanians and Moldovans living in the area was discussed. The nearest Romanian parish is more than 1,000 miles away in Tokyo.
Fr. Constantin gifted the community a Holy Gospel, a set of liturgical vessels, icons, and a censer. The Romanian consulate also commissioned four icons.
The Russian Orthodox Church first brought Orthodoxy to China in the late 17th century. Today it has an autonomous Chinese Orthodox Church with a handful of parishes throughout the country. The Patriarchate of Constantinople also has a Metropolis of Hong Kong and Southeast Asia.
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