Bucharest, July 18, 2024
Photo: wikimedia.org The press office of the Romanian Patriarchate issued a communiqué yesterday in response to a press release from the Elie Wiesel National Institute for the Study of the Holocaust in Romania that criticized the Church for canonizing certain saints who had been involved with the controversial Legionary (Iron Guard) movement.
At its session last week, the Romanian Holy Synod canonized 16 martyrs and confessors who suffered under the communist persecutions of the 20th century, including Fr. Ilarion Felea, Fr. Ilie Lăcătușu, and Fr. Dumitru Stăniloae.
The Elie Wiesel National Institute published its press release yesterday, “not[ing] with sadness the decision of the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church on July 12, 2024, to approve for canonization … certain clerics who expressed antisemitic opinions or promoted the toxic Legionary movement in the 1930s and 1940s.”
However, as the Church notes in its response, to canonize someone is not to necessarily approve of every aspect of his life.
According to the Elie Wiesel National Institute, Fr. Ilarion Felea (canonized as a hieromartyr) “carried out militant political activities during the National Legionary State [September 1940–February 1941—OC] as a member of the Legionary Movement.” He also advocated for an ethnocratic state program that included the “destruction of the Jewish parasitism.”
Fr. Ilie Lăcătușu (canonized as a confessor) “carried out Legionary activity as a nest leader and later as a Legionary sector leader. He took part in the Legionary rebellion of January 1941 as the leader of an insurrectionist group. He also compiled lists of adversaries of the Legionary Movement who were to be shot after this fascist group had fully taken power.”
According to the Institute, Fr. Dumitru Stăniloae (canonized as a confessor) wrote for far-right publications, advocating for Nazi Germany and the Legionary movement. He praised the Legionaries’ coming to power, writing: “Our nation once again grasps the sword of the guardian archangel of Christianity that God extends to it. Today we constitute ourselves in a state imbued with faith in God, in an advanced citadel that stands firm and impregnable in the face of pagan chaos.”
The press release refers to the words of His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel on July 11 that canonized saints are given as a model to follow, and asks “whether the elevation to sainthood of people who, during their lifetime, shared, through word or deed, the values of fascism is consonant with Christian ethics?”
In response, the Romanian Patriarchate issued a statement noting that the canonization of a saint doesn’t mean that person never made any mistakes, even serious mistakes, and never had anything to repent of.
a) In light of the principles of religious freedom and Church autonomy enshrined in both international legislation (Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Art. 18) and national legislation (Constitution of Romania, Art. 29; Law No. 489/2006 on religious freedom and the general regime of cults), the Romanian Orthodox Church, in its capacity as a recognized cult, has the right to analyze and pronounce, according to its own religious criteria, regarding the canonization of persons from the Romanian Patriarchate.
In the canonization process, the Romanian Orthodox Church conducts a thorough investigation of the lives of proposed persons in relation to how they have changed their lives. The canonization process consists exclusively of recognizing holiness based on consistent evidence and credible testimonies. Thus, in the case of each person’s passage into the ranks of saints (canonization), several canonical, historical, and pastoral-missionary criteria were taken into account, of which we note the following:
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Their pure and holy life;
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Confession of the right faith until the end of life;
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Severe asceticism, adorned with many virtues;
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Love and spirit of sacrifice manifested towards those in need;
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Confessor of Christ in communist prisons;
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Has received from God the gift of working miracles;
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Has enjoyed constant veneration from the faithful.
b) We also mention that some saints who are honored in the Orthodox Church had, at certain moments in their lives, attitudes and gestures that are difficult to understand or even contrary to Christian teaching, but the Church takes into account the change in the sinner’s life and, especially, the way they ended their lives, without, however, encouraging (sanctifying) certain deviations that these persons had during their lifetime through this attitude.
As we observe from the examples of the holy Apostle Paul, St. Mary of Egypt, or even that of the holy Prophet and King David, even saints had some falls, so we must look especially at how they ended their lives—that is, at a high measure of perfection—not just at the mistakes or sins committed during their earthly existence. In fact, this is also the testimony of Holy Scripture: “Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conduct (Heb. 13:7).
We also specify hereby that the Romanian Orthodox Church publicly dissociates itself from any ideological affiliation or partisan politics, while inviting any person interested in studying the lives of canonized persons to dialogue.
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