Romanians celebrate new church in San Antonio

(ROMA) - Sunday, November 3, 2019 represented the fulfillment of a great and beautiful dream for the Romanian Orthodox community of San Antonio, Texas. HE Metropolitan Nicolae along with several priests officiated the service of the blessing of the water and the Divine Liturgy for the first time in the new church of the parish, placed under the protection of St. John Cassian.

The Romanian parish of St. John Cassian of San Antonio continued the mission started in 2002 by a group of Romanian and American Orthodox Christians from ​​San Antonio area under the pastoral care of Fr. Julian Aniței. The new St. John Cassian Mission was registered and started operating in February 2014. From February 2016, Father Valentin Ilieș received the blessing of HE Archbishop Nicolae to serve at this Mission. Surrounded by a handful of faithful and courageous people, Father Valentin set out for the pastoral and administrative organization of the Mission. The services began in a space rented from a Presbyterian Church on Ramsey Road in San Antonio, a space adorned for the needs of the Orthodox services. On June 2018, Father Valentin has been appointed parish priest of this community.

The enthusiasm of the priest and the believers continued and soon a land was purchased for the construction of a future Romanian Orthodox church. HE Metropolitan Nicolae served the blessing of the foundation stone service for the new church in March 2018. The multitude of difficulties regarding the construction of a church on this piece of land forced the community to abandon this project. But God listened to their prayers and they found a Baptist church located at 1801 Thorain Blvd, San Antonio, TX. After an exemplary mobilization the community managed to buy this church and begin its consolidation and adorning according to the Orthodox tradition.

On Sunday, November 3, 2019, the parish priest and the faithful of St. John Cassian parish welcomed HE Metropolitan Nicolae for the service of the blessing of the water and the first Divine Liturgy in the new church building. Together with HE Nicolae served Fr. Valentin Ilieș, the parish priest, Fr. Dumitru Ilieș from St. Mary’s parish of Austin, TX, and Hieromonk Petru Pruteanu from Portugal. At the time of the sermon, HE Nicolae explained the Gospel of the day: “The parable of the rich man and the poor Lazarus speaks to us about a reality of the world we live in and where we have the chance to work a communion with God and with others and about a reality of the future life about which we would sometimes choose to ignore, that of heaven and hell. The gratitude for the benefits of God poured out upon us, the gratitude shown in caring for others, has a correspondent in the afterlife where we continue to enjoy the communion begun here."

"Enjoy your new home now" continued HE Nicolae, encouraging the faithful to continue the beautiful activity they started. The new house is proper to be adorned with the souls of the believers, with their presence at the services and activities proposed for children, youth and adults. After the service there was a moving artistic moment in which children recited poems and sang on the theme of the Romanian Village in this Homage Year established by the Romanian Patriarchate.

We ask God to bless the work of the Romanian Orthodox community in San Antonio and to reward them for their sacrifice for the Christ’s Church.