Today, 24 December 2014, the servant priests of the Patriarchal Cathedral announced the Nativity of the Lord to His Beatitude Daniel, Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church.
According to the tradition of the Orthodox Church, the priests went the feast icon in their hands to the Patriarchal Residence as soon as the celebration of the Divine Liturgy was over. Here, a polichronium service was celebrated, and His Beatitude addressed a speech to those present, in which he spoke about the significance of the tradition of the annunciation of the Nativity of the Lord: “This tradition according to which the children and young people should first announce the Nativity of the Lord through chants and then the spiritual shepherds of the communities to go with the icon of the Nativity of the Lord from house to house is a visual memory of the event of Bethlehem itself, because first the hosts of angels sang: “Glory to God in the highest heaven and on earth peace to those on whom his favour rests” (Luke 2:14) and then they announced the shepherds of Bethlehem that the Saviour of the world was born. The shepherds received the news of the Nativity of Infant Jesus, the Saviour of the world from the angels and then they announced, in their turn, this great joy to the inhabitants of Bethlehem. Thus, we imitate the angels and the shepherds of Bethlehem when we receive first the groups of children and young people who bring the good news through carols and then receive the spiritual shepherds of the church communities, of the parishes and cathedrals, in our houses. The good holy healthy tradition shows us that the Church has the memory not only of the words, but also of the images, not only of the Gospel, but also of the icon. The mystery of the humanisation of the Son of God, of His coming on the earth and living together with the humans is designed to raise the people to the eternal life. Through this wonderful work of our raising from the sin and death, through Christ who has no sin and is the defeater of the death, we feel the everlasting love of God, His blessing full of gifts and joy”.
His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel remembered the sacrifice of the young people in December 1989: “We thank God because we can confess our faith in freedom now, in the month of December, when 25 years ago a lot of young people gave their lives for having had the courage to say that they wanted to be free, to say during the communist period that there is God, kneeling down in the streets and saying the Lord’s Prayer and the Creed, although they had not studied religion at school. This thing showed that the Church never ceased to convey faith from generation to generation although very often there were persecutions or limitations of the freedom of faith. Thus, we remember Infant Jesus, as well as the crowd of young people who sacrificed themselves and the adults too who gave their lives so that we should be free. If we use our freedom to intensify the love for God in prayer and for humans in good deeds, then our freedom is holy and saving”.
The Christians have fasted and received the priests with the icon of the Nativity of Lord in their houses, on the Eve of Christmas, ever since the 4th century, to announce them the glorious feast of the next day. According to tradition, on this day the priest accompanied by the singer goes to every house of the parish the icon of the Nativity of the Lord in his hands, announcing the Wonder of the Nativity. On the Christmas Eve, the carollers also go to the people’s houses bringing the good news of the Nativity of the Lord, just like the angels and shepherds who announced the Wonder of the Bethlehem of Judaea.
