LE SYMPOSIUM INTERNATIONAL LE LIVRE. LA ROUMANIE. L ...

Aspects in the Religious Life of Romanians... 183
cell of Gavanitzica (provata) were banished, and their estate was confiscated
because they had refused to hold the sermon in Greek and to sell their
estate for a small price to the Greek monastery of lavra. 26 In october 1929,
the romanian legation in Athens proposed to the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs certain measures for the improvement of the material situation of
the romanian monks in the prodromul hermitage and the resuming of the
proceedings with the Greek authorities for the payment of the compensation
due for the thasos island succursal monastery. 27
In August 1934, in a report addressed by the holy Synod of the
romanian patriarchy to the minister of foreign affairs nicolae titulescu,
one requested the maintenance of the number of Athonite romanian
monks and obtaining the autonomy of the prodrom hermitage, as well as
the returning of the properties that had been confiscated from the thasos
island 28 .
During the Second World War, within the policy employed by romania,
of supporting the Aromanian population in Greece, the romanian Athonite
monks were not forgotten either. In 1943 the romanian hermitage prodrom
received support from the romanian state. 29
After 1945, considering that the romanian monks at the Athos Mountain
no longer received any help from romania, they were facing a precarious
material condition. In 1958 the romanian orthodox church, through father
Moisescu, initiated an action to support the same, by sending two coaches
of food, as well as religious objects. the Czech Ambassador in Athens
notified the romanian embassy in Greece with respect to the condition
of “poverty” of the romanian Athonite monks, which determined the
organizing of a new action for assistance. 30
In difficult material condition, subject to multiple pressures, the
romanian monks at the Athos Mountain continued their existence,
so that “out of the over 700 monastic habitations existing today, 72 are
known as romanian, the most important being the prodromul and lacul
hermitages”. 31
the interest of the romanian society for the Athos Mountain, manifest
ever since the 14 th century, was maintained over the ages, even more so that
26 Ibidem, f. 101.
27 Ibidem, f. 168-171.
28 Ibidem, f. 163.
29 Ibidem, f. 210.
30 Românii de la sudul Dunării. Documente (Bucureşti, 1997), p. 364.
31 PăcurAriu, Mircea, Scurtă istorie a Bisericii Ortodoxe Române (Cluj-napoca,
2002), p. 255.