„A celebration of the school community, of the creative and uplifting word, of books and their authors.” —this is how the event held on the evening of Tuesday, February 11, 2025, at the Suceava Diocesan Center was described, with the blessing of His Eminence Father Calinic, Archbishop of Suceava and Rădăuți, entitled „The Religion Teacher: Blessing and Challenge,” whose guest was Sister Filoteia Cosma from Agapia Monastery.
Together with the Diocese of Suceava and Rădăuți, through the Sector Media and Communication and Sector Cultural, in partnership with the „Maria de Mangop” Orthodox Women’s Society, the educational and cultural event was organized by the Suceava County School Inspectorate.
Founded „in the joy of befriending the healing and beautiful word, books, art, and lifelong learning,” the gathering that brought together clergy, religion teachers, students, and parents was marked „by lofty, cathartic emotions and motivation,” and was led by the former teacher of The Study of the Old Testament at the „Saint Paraskevi” Monastic High School of Theology in Agapia, and also served as the principal of that educational institution from 1992 to 1996.
The event, held in the „Archbishop Pimen” Hall of the Suceava Diocesan Center, began with the communal recitation of The Lord's Prayer and with a welcoming message from the woman who initiated and promoted this event, Prof. Daniela Ceredeev, inspector for religious education. Recalling the exhortation of His Eminence Father Calinic found in one of the Decalogues that have already become a tradition, the inspector invited all those present to be timeless by serving others, especially in my role as a teacher.
They then recalled the events of the early 1990s, when classes at the Agapia seminary resumed, a girls' school, set within a monastic community, with many nuns serving as teachers, and featuring a rigorous and complex liturgical and educational program, in which every passing hour marked a new step toward self-discovery, one of the teachers of the first generations of female seminary students being Sister Filoteia Cosma.
„And Sister Filoteia, our incredible teacher, into whom the Lord had placed a vast piece of heaven, proved to us through the self-sacrifice she demonstrated every day that: If God’s will is within us, and heaven is within us, through the fulfillment of His commandments. I am speaking of a teacher whom I personally regarded then, as I do now, as an iconostasis, with professional virtues carefully arranged and perfected over the years in every respect. She loves books and has honed her erudition in the light of countless libraries. She speaks several languages fluently, and her remaining dream is to translate some of the writings of the Holy Fathers from French and Italian.” —Prof. Daniela Ceredeev.
The audience then enjoyed the lecture „The Religion Teacher: A Blessing and a Challenge,” which highlighted the importance of free will in everyone’s spiritual journey, drawing on a quote from the Old Testament in the fifth book of Moses (Deuteronomy 30, 19). Highlighting the relevance The Ten Commandments, ...the guest speaker for the day cited examples from the writings of contemporary holy fathers, such as Saint Paisios the Athonite, Saint Nicholas Velimirović, Porphyrios Kavsokalivitis, and others. During her presentation, the nun and professor also highlighted the blessings and challenges that are all too familiar to religion teachers, as well as to other teachers who take on the mission of helping children grow closer to Christ the Savior, talking about the journey toward becoming better teachers for the world’s children.
Present at the event was Fr. Constantin-Ciprian Blaga, diocesan advisor for the Sector Cultural, ... expressed her joy at conveying the message of His Eminence Calinic. As a sign of appreciation and gratitude for her outstanding contributions to the promotion and support of Romanian Orthodox Christian values, Sister Filoteia Cosma was awarded Order „Bukovina Cross”, the highest honor bestowed by the Archdiocese of Suceava and Rădăuți on behalf of the diocesan bishop, „for her outstanding service to the Church and the community.” The Reverend Mother Filoteia expressed her gratitude for this gift and for the moving moment, thanking the local bishop for the gift he had bestowed.
Next, Prof. Dr. Aurica Daneliuc, from the „King Ferdinand I” Technical College in Rădăuți, shared her memories of the years when Mother Filoteia was her teacher, mentor, and role model at Agapia, the advice and lessons from that beautiful period having accompanied her throughout her life and helped her in her teaching career.
It was in this context that the first book in the Collection was launched Crimca Junior by the Publishing House Crimca published by the Archdiocese of Suceava and Rădăuți at the end of 2024, *Luminola, în căutarea luminii* (Luminola, in Search of Light), a book written by Cătălina Gheorghian, a children’s book author.
Fr. Ștefănel-Stelian Ciurciun, Director of the Publishing House Crimca, spoke about how the project came about Crimca Junior With the blessing of His Eminence Bishop Calinic, a new division of the diocesan publishing house, dedicated to children. „The Publishing House Crimcahas always sought to offer readers works that nourish their souls and enrich their spiritual lives. But today, through Crimca Junior, we want to take things a step further and have set out to create a special space for children—a true world for young Christians— as reflected in the motto of our collection, where every child can find joy, wisdom, and light. In the pages of our new publications, children will discover characters who teach them kindness, new stories that show them the path of love, and illustrations that ignite the sparkle of beauty. Whether they are picture books or coloring books, the lives of the saints or stories full of meaning, we want to fulfill an ideal: to fill childhood with colors and spiritual meaning. (…) We want both children and adults to have access to quality books, and these books must weave together literary beauty with artistic beauty and Christian teaching. That is why we believe that a child’s soul is fertile ground, and the seeds we plant in the early years of life can later bear fruit in steadfast faith and good deeds. Thus, it is essential for our editorial team to make such resources available to families, to be a support and a reliable partner in the education of their children.”
The headmaster spoke about the first volume of this series to be published, written by Cătălina Gheorghian and illustrated with great sensitivity by Cristina Diana Enache. „This illustrated book aims to offer children a story full of color and meaning, in which the main character, Luminola, journeys through various trials and discovers, step by step, what it means to seek the true light. On every page, young readers will be embraced by a story full of warmth, inviting them to believe with all their hearts and to share smiles, courage, and hope every day.”
Following the author’s presentation, in which she outlined the narrative of this inspiring book that highlights the importance of our connection with God through prayer, confession, communion, and the reception of other sacraments of the Church, the event offered those present a unique workshop, to which students from Class 3A from Suceava’s Middle School No. 4, accompanied by their teacher, Ms. Isabela Apăvăloaie, and their religion teacher, Ms. Magdalena Marișca. Thus, the Salon Book by book, for the Christian mother's library The event kicked off with an interactive workshop led by Ms. Cătălina Gheorghian.
At the end of the storytelling session, the children in attendance received a copy of the book in which Luminola discovers and rediscovers the true light—a therapeutic story through which the author sought to bring joy and comfort.
Last but not least, event attendees had the opportunity to visit the glass painting gallery A Journey into the Light with Christ the Savior and His Mother, created by students in grades 2–7 at the „Metropolitan Dosoftei” Orthodox High School Seminary “Metropolitan Dosoftei” in Suceava and by seminary students in grades 9 and 11, coordinated by Ms. Livia-Teodora Țebrean, a religion teacher.
Since gatherings centered on books are always so inspiring, before the book-signing session, the event’s moderator, Prof. Daniela Ceredeev, made a special reading recommendation: „The Triodion – Golgotha of Repentance. Sermons and Exegetical Meditations” by His Eminence Calinic, Archbishop of Suceava and Rădăuți, especially since the Triodion period began a few days ago, on the 33rd Sunday after the Descent of the Holy Spirit.
The event, which highlighted the importance of a teacher’s mission, emphasized the extraordinary bond between teacher and student, and demonstrated how books can enhance and reflect the light within people, concluded in a spirit of prayer, with a prayer that begins was given to Christians by the Archangel Gabriel, It is truly fitting.
Irina Ursachi
Photo credit: Cristi Turculeț
