28 April 2019, UPDATE
Orthodox and Greek Catholic Christians celebrate Easter.
Newsroom, 28.04.2019, 18:41
Easter. Orthodox Christians, who are
the majority in Romania, as well as the Greek-Catholic, celebrate Easter, the
resurrection of Christ. At midnight on Saturday, people went to church to
receive light from the priest and sing Christ is risen. People light their
candles from the Holy Light, which is brought from Jerusalem’s Church of the
Holy Sepulchre. In his Easter message, the patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox
Church Daniel has urged people to bring joy and light to the souls of those who
are orphaned, sick, elderly, poor, in mourning or alone, by word and deed.
He said Romanians living abroad should not be forgotten either, urging
believers to pray for their health and redemption. Florentin Crihălmeanu, the bishop of the Greek-Catholic diocese in Cluj-Gherla, in the
north-west, recalled in his Easter message that Christian life is a permanent
fight, but a beautiful fight, that gives us cause for celebration every time
Lord emerges victorious in our life. He again welcomed the upcoming visit to
Romania by Pope Francis, who will beatify the seven Greek-Catholic bishops who
died as martyrs in communist prisons.
Easter messages. In an Easter video message posted on social media, president Klaus
Iohannis wished Romanians to enjoy peaceful holidays together with their loved
ones. Prime minister Viorica Dancila also wished Romanians a happy Easter, good
health and to enjoy the pleasant moments spent with their loved ones. She said
in a press release that Easter is a blessed time, full of faith and hope and
bringing us closer to the divinity that exists in people and giving us the
chance of a new beginning. The royal family also wishes the Romanian people
happy holidays, good health and inner peace together with their families and
friends, writes the custodian of the Crown of Romania, princess Margareta in an Easter message.
Holidays. More than 22,000 police,
security and border forces, firefighters and paramedics have been mobilised in
Romania for the Easter and Labour Day holiday to oversee traffic and large
gatherings of people. Over 900 public events are held over this period,
attracting around 1 million people. The Romanian authorities are also working
with their counterparts in the neighbouring Hungary and Bulgaria at the busiest
border crossing points. The customs authorities in Romania and the Republic of
Moldova have agreed on a set of measures to speed up traffic across the common
border during the Easter holidays. This involves additional border administrative
staff, opening all border check point lanes and coordination with the regional
border police structures.
Handball. The men’s handball side CSM Bucharest have reached the
Challenge Cup final, having defeated the Russian side HC Neva Saint Petersburg
at home, 25-20, in the second leg of the semifinals. CSM had also won the first
leg, 26-24. In the final, they will face the Portuguese side AM Madeira Andebol
SAD. The Challenge Cup is the third-tier European club competition. The Romanian
side Potaissa Turda are the current title holders. Three other sides from
Romania have won the title so far: CSA Steaua Bucharest in 2006, CS UCM Resita in
2007, 2008 and 2009 and HC Odorheiu Secuiesc in 2015, while CSU Bucovina
Suceava were runners-up in 2009. In women’s handball, CSM Bucharest were
eliminated this month in the Champions League quarterfinals by the French side
Metz, after making the Final Four for the last three years and winning the
trophy in 2016.
