Saint, Martyr, Hero: Honoring the Legacy of Cardinal Iuliu Hossu
- RCI USA
- 1 minute ago
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About the Event
As Romanian Government has declared 2025 ”The Year of Cardinal Iuliu Hossu”, we are pleased to invite you to a commemorative evening dedicated to this towering figure of faith and history, revered for his unwavering devotion and moral courage as well as for the prominent role he played in the unification of Romanian historical provinces in one democratic state in 1918.
The program will feature addresses by Reverend Radu Titonea of St. Mary Byzantine Catholic Mission of New York and Very Reverend Petru Stanea of St. Helena Romanian Byzantine Catholic Church of Cleveland, followed by a conversation about the life, martyrdom, and legacy of Cardinal Hossu. Opening remarks by Mrs. Simona Florea, Consul General of Romania in New York. Selected passages from Tatiana Niculescu’s recent book “Saint No. 6”, translated into English by Monica Cure, will be read by actor Grant Neale, offering a vivid portrait of the first Romanian Cardinal, beatified (first step to sainthood) by Pope Francis in 2019.
Join us for an evening of remembrance and reflection on the enduring message of the beloved prelate, whose life of sacrifice, spiritual strength, and exemplary patriotism continues to inspire across generations.
About Cardinal Iuliu Hossu
Born in 1885, Iuliu Hossu was Bishop of Cluj-Gherla and later created Cardinal in pectore by Pope Paul VI. He is most remembered for reading the Declaration of Unification at Alba Iulia on December 1, 1918, which sealed Transylvania’s union with Romania. Arrested after the communist takeover, he spent years in prisons and under house arrest, refusing to renounce his faith or betray the Greek-Catholic Church. He died in 1970, a confessor of truth and freedom. In 2019, he was canonized by the Catholic Church among the seven Greek-Catholic bishop-martyrs of Romania.