Prayer - source of peace, joy, and communion[1]

At the beginning of the 2022-2023 school year, with paternal love, we congratulate and bless all Romanian students, parents, teachers and professors, carrying them in the prayers of the Church, so that the Most Merciful God sends them all "the spirit of wisdom and understanding, to enlighten their mind and conscience and open their heart to receive the teachings of the good."[2]

The Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church proclaimed the year 2022 as the year of prayer in the life of the Church and the Christian.

Prayer is the presence and work of the Holy Spirit in the faithful man, which brings comfort, peace and joy; it unites us with the Holy Trinity and the Church of Christ from all times and from all places. In this sense, St. John of the Ladder shows that "prayer, according to its properties, is the state of talking and union of man with God, and according to its power, it supports the world (...), reconciliation with God (...), angelic work (...), enlightening of the mind."[3] Therefore, it is the foundation of human life and spiritual growth, which helps us to face hardships, and to taste the light and joy of resurrection and eternal life even in this world.

Prayer is the victory over man's alienation from God, from himself and from his peers, it is a source of peace, joy and communion. At the same time, common prayer is a sign of the mysterious presence of our Savior Jesus Christ, who said: "Where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am in their midst" (Matthew 18, 20). Therefore, children and young adults, parents and teachers are called to value and cultivate prayer in the ecclesial community, in the family, in school and in society, this being the source of pure love towards God and fellow human beings.

Without prayer there is no Church and no Christian life. When we lose the joy and peace of the soul, it is a sure sign that we no longer pray as we should or as much as we should. Today, when, under the influence of secularization, spiritual values ​​are neglected and education is subject to paradigm changes, children and young adults need to discover the deep Christian meaning of life, the importance of prayer, the joy of communion with God and fellow humans, to cultivate virtues essential, such as: respect for the dignity of the person, friendship, sincere love, solidarity and gratitude. Also, children and young adults need a thorough education for life, which includes personal experiences, lived within a concrete community, starting with the family and continuing in school, in the life of the Church and society.

It is known that the Romanian school came into being in the porch of the Church and continued to develop in close connection with the Church. Through the presence of Religion class in school and through parish catechesis, the Church offers children and young adults essential milestones for their development both personally and in the community. In order to cultivate man's relationship of communion with God and with his neighbor through prayer, in the context of the Year of Prayer in the life of the Church and the Christian, between November 15, 2021 and May 21, 2022, the Romanian Patriarchate organized, in partnership with the Ministry of Education, The National Catechetical Competition entitled "Prayer in my life". Parish catechetical groups, made up of children and young adults from both the country and the diaspora, participated in the competition, the winners being awarded on May 21, 2022, on the occasion of the historical patron of the Patriarchal Cathedral, the Holy Great Emperors, Constantine and his mother, Elena.

On the beginning of the 2022-2023 school year, we pray to the Most Merciful God to bless all Romanian students, parents, teachers, and professors, giving them full health, the joy of prayer and spiritual growth, for many happy years!

With much appreciation and paternal blessing,

† DANIEL

Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church

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[1] The message of His Beatitude Daniel, Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, at the beginning of the 2022-2023 school year.

[2] The typicon of the religious service at the beginning of the school year, in Euchologion, Publishing House of the Biblical and Orthodox Mission Institute, Bucharest, 2019, p. 650.

[3] Saint John of the Ladder. The Ladder (translated by Metropolitan Tit Simedrea, edited by Archimandrite Benedict Ghiuş) "Cuvântul Vieţii" Publishing House of the Metropolis of Muntenia and Dobrogea, Bucharest, 2020, p. 401.