On Sunday, May 1, 2022, His Eminence Metropolitan Nicolae consecrated the church of the “Life-Giving Fountain” Parish in Long Valley, New Jersey, together with His Grace Bishop Iustin of Maramureș and Sătmar and Bishop Ioan Casian of the Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Canada. The sanctuary is dedicated to the Reunification of Romania and was built in the Maramures style. The event of consecration began with the Holy and Divine Liturgy on the day of the patronal feast of the parish, the Life-Giving Fountain, on Friday, April 29, officiated by His Eminence Nicolae in the old church of the parish. At the time of the sermon, the hierarch spoke about the history of the feast and its significance.
The event continued on Saturday, April 30, with Vespers officiated by HG Iustin, Bishop of Maramureș and Sătmar, in the presence of HE Metropolitan Nicolae. Among the concelebrating priests were Archimandrite Dr. Casian Filip, social-philanthropic and missionary adviser, and ecclesiarch of the “Holy Trinity” Episcopal Cathedral in Baia Mare, V. Rev. Fr. Ioan Socolan, Dean of Sătmar, Rev. Fr. Gabriel Gorgan, from “Holy Emperors Constantine and Helen” Parish in Satu Mare, Rev. Fr. Ionuț Voicu, the parish priest, Rev. Fr. Constantin Magdalena of Suceava, Temporary Priest for two months at Holy Trinity Parish in Philadelphia, Archdeacon Teodosie Bud, economic adviser, Archdeacon Dr. Nifon Motogna, administrator of the Episcopal Cathedral, and Deacon Adrian Oistric. At the end, His Grace addressed a beautiful word of instruction to the faithful present, referring to God’s plan revealed in the construction of a new church and the sacrifice of the martyrs whose holy relics are placed in the foot of the holy table at the consecration service, respectively the relics of the Holy Martyrs Epictetus and Astion of Dobrogea.
On the next day, Sunday, May 1, more than 900 believers from the parishes of the Romanian Orthodox Metropolia of the Americas on the east coast of the United States gathered for the great event of church consecration. The consecration service was preceded by the blessing of the water and followed by the Hierarchical Liturgy. The three hierarchs were joined by members of the Maramureș and Sătmar diocesan delegation, V. Rev. Fr. Nicholas Apostola, Administrative Vicar of the Metropolia, V. Rev. Fr. Chad Hartfield, President of St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary in New York, V. Rev. Fr. Daniel Ene, Dean of New York, New England and the Eastern United States, Protosyngellos Ieremia Berbec, Abbot of New York State Middletown Monastery, Protosyngellos Vincențiu Temirov, Director of Spiritual Formation at St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary, and other priests and deacons from the parishes of the Metropolia on the east coast of the USA.
The event was also attended by Mr. Dan-Andrei Muraru, Ambassador of Romania to the United States of America and Mr. Radu Ancuța, Interim Manager of the Romanian Consulate in New York.
After reading the Holy Gospel, His Grace Iustin spoke about the significance of the second Sunday after Easter, dedicated to St. Thomas the Apostle: “God by no mean forces anyone to believe. From here, we realize that Jesus Christ shows Himself only to those who have loved and cherished Him since His earthly activity. For this reason, he shows himself to the disciples in the Cenacle, entering through the locked doors and accepting a "Check-in" from Thomas. Why? Because there was a need for a further confession from the apostles, for the confirmation and strengthening of the Resurrection of the Savior from the dead.”
At the end of the Divine Liturgy, His Eminence Nicolae briefly explained the consecration service of the church:
“It is the baptism of a Church as a place containing all the baptized, who gather in the name of Christ, of the Most Holy Trinity, in order to bring thanksgiving and a bloodless sacrifice by celebrating the Divine Liturgy. The names of the founders and benefactors of the church placed on the pulpit placed in the foot of the Holy Table share in the sanctity of the Holy Relics of the martyrs .... In the Church, each of us work our salvation, which we hope to foretaste even during this earthly life, through the flowing of God’s blessing. This church built in the Maramureș style will be for each of you a business card of the Orthodox faith…
As we can understand, this spiritual meaning of the consecration service of the new church is an invitation to a personal spiritual pilgrimage towards the Kingdom of Heaven. We begin this pilgrimage outside the church, meaning outside the Kingdom of Heaven and, step by step we are approaching the holy altar. By entering the Church we enter the kingdom and we see the iconostasis, the image of the second coming of our Lord, of His Revelation to the people of God. This invitation to a spiritual pilgrimage means also a call to receive the new life in Christ. We are blessed with the same holy water and we are invited to venerate the new consecrated holy table, the Gospel and the Cross. These are signs of our renewed life in the Holy Spirit, likewise the building was renewed.”
The Metropolitan offered to the Parish an icon of the Life-Giving Fountain and a cross of blessing. On behalf of His Beatitude Daniel, Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Nicolae conferred on Parish Priest Ionuț Voicu the Patriarchal Cross for Clerics, which is the highest distinction in the Romanian Patriarchate. At the same time, His Eminence offered the American Metropolitan Cross for lay people to Daniela Weinberger, Delia Cotigă, and Cristina Maria Nițulescu, president of the Parish Council. In his turn, His Grace Bishop Iustin offered to Father Ionuț Voicu the highest distinction of the Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Maramureș and Sătmar, the Maramureș Voivodeship Cross. The hierarch of Maramureș also awarded two distinctions: Dr. Radu Crăciun received the Order of Saint Joseph the Confessor, and Bogdan Krintea received the Order of Justinian the Archbishop. Radu Crăciun and his family donated the bell of the new church, on which he writes: “We, the sons of the Romanian nation everywhere, are of the same origin, of the same nature, with one and unitary language and culture.”
In conclusion, the parish priest Ionuț Voicu thanked the three hierarchs for having come to serve and for the blessing that they brought, and, as a sign of gratitude and appreciation, gave to each of them an icon with the patronal feast of the church and a bouquet of flowers. The festive meal that followed was a moment of joy springing from this great fulfillment. His Eminence Metropolitan Nicolae offered over 200 diplomas of merit to the founders of the new wooden church in Maramureş as a gesture of gratitude for their love for the Church of the Savior Jesus Christ.
The Romanian Orthodox Life-Giving Spring Parish was founded in 2011 by a group of Romanian Orthodox who wanted to have a Romanian Orthodox church in the state of New Jersey. The first service was held on October 2, 2011 at St. George’s Macedonian Orthodox Church in Randolph, NJ. On April 5, 2013, His Eminence Nicolae appointed Father Ionuț Voicu as the parish priest of the church. On May 27, 2016, the deeds of purchase of the current property, which includes a church and a plot of land, were signed. The wooden church from Maramureș was built on this lot, dedicated to the anniversary of the Centenary of the Reunification of the Romanian people.
The foundation stone was consecrated by His Eminence Metropolitan Nicolae on the second Sunday after Easter in the Centenary of the Great Union, April 15, 2018. The sanctuary is 32 meters high, 13 meters wide and 30 meters long and was built by Rev. Father Ionut Voicu with his own hands, as a true master and founder of it, helped by believers and benefactors. The iconostasis and the church furniture were made by Father Teodor Bârsan, the son of the famous sculptor Toader Bârsan from Bârsana, Maramureș County.
