Grass Lake, Michigan, July 27, 2026
Photo: roea.org
A troparion in honor of Archimandrite Roman (Braga), who has been proposed for canonization, has been composed and blessed for use in the Romanian Orthodox Episcopate of the Orthodox Church in America.
The troparion was composed by Very Reverend Abbess Christophora of Holy Transfiguration Monastery in Ellwood City, Pennsylvania, and blessed for usage by His Eminence Archbishop Nathaniel of the Romanian Episcopate of America in a letter dated July 20.
At the 2025 Episcopate Congress, delegates voted unanimously to propose Fr. Roman for inclusion among the canonized saints of the Orthodox Church. The matter then went before the Holy Synod of the OCA, which referred the matter to the Canonization Commission for the collection and examination of information concerning his life, ministry, and spiritual legacy.
While the process continues, Archbishop Nathaniel encouraged the clergy, faithful, and monastics of the Archdiocese to seek the intercessions of Fr. Roman, who labored for many years within the Romanian Orthodox Episcopate of America.
The troparion to Fr. Roman reads:
Tone 4
O blessed Father Roman of the Great Lakes, offspring of pious parents and the Orthodox Church in Romania. As did your namesake, you taught others to love and praise the Lord in song. When you suffered for the truth, you showed us how to love our enemies. Then you brought the spirit of Christ to the New World, adopting a new land and her people. You instructed us to remember the Lord in our hearts and minds, that we may glorify Him by word and deed in this world and in the Age to come!
Abp. Nathaniel also proposed that, following the dismissal of services and the commemoration of the Holy and Righteous Ancestors of God, Joachim and Anna, the following invocation be added: “Holy Father Roman of the Great Lakes, intercede for us!”
The Archbishop concluded the letter by giving thanks to God for blessing the Episcopate with the life and witness of Archimandrite Roman Braga, whom he described as “this humble icon of faith” in the Episcopate’s midst.
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