Concepción, Chile, September 25, 2025
Photo: mitropolia.us
A newly constructed Romanian Orthodox church in Concepción, Chile, was consecrated this weekend in a service led by His Eminence Metropolitan Nicolae of the Romanian Orthodox Archdiocese of the Americas, marking a significant milestone for the growing Orthodox community in South America.
The church, dedicated to Sts. Silouan the Athonite and Philothea of Argeș, welcomed the Metropolitan’s delegation on Saturday morning at Concepción’s airport with traditional bread and salt. The delegation included Fr. Daniel Ene, Administrative Vicar of the Romanian Orthodox Archdiocese of the USA, Fr. Călin Barbolovici, Dean for the Central US, and Claudiu Bărdăzău, cantor at Holy Trinity Parish in Rochester, NY, the Romanian Orthodox Metropolia of the Americas reports.
The consecration incorporated relics of Sts. Epictet and Astion, the first documented martyrs on Romanian soil from the 4th-century fortress of Halmyris. These relics were sealed within the altar according to ancient Orthodox tradition.
“The consecration of a church is a great, holy and blessed event. It happens once every 100-200 years and represents for the community an occasion to thank God and invoke His sanctifying grace, so that this work—the fruit of the faithful’s sacrifice—may be transfigured like the gifts offered upon the holy altar,” Met. Nicolae said during his homily.
Photo: mitropolia.us
His Eminence also interpreted the consecration rite as a mystical journey: the procession around the church—a gradual entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven; the opening of the doors—an encounter with the “gates of Heaven”; the altar—an image of the crucified, buried, and risen Savior.
“Through the consecration of a church,” said Met. Nicolae, “not only the walls are sanctified, but also the souls of the faithful, who are called to become living churches of Christ themselves.”
Parish priest Fr. Alex Vladimir Aedo Vilugrón received the Order of Sts. Constantine and Helen from the Metropolitan in recognition of his dedication to establishing the new church. Fr. Petru Neaga from Cleveland’s Annunciation Church, which maintains a sister-parish relationship with the Concepción community, participated in the service alongside Fr. Alexis Peña-Alfaro from Recife, Brazil, representing the Serbian Orthodox Church.
The consecration comes on the heels of another major milestone for the parish earlier this month, when nine new members received Baptism and Chrismation into the Orthodox faith, demonstrating the community’s rapid growth.
Photo: mitropolia.us
Following the liturgical services and a fellowship meal, Met. Nicolae and the visiting clergy met with more than 20 young parishioners who engaged in discussions about Orthodox theology and practice. The youth gathering reflected the parish’s emphasis on nurturing the next generation of Orthodox Christians in Chile.
The new church building represents the culmination of years of effort by the local Romanian Orthodox community in Concepción, providing a permanent worship space for the growing congregation in Chile’s second-largest metropolitan area.
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