Over 150 participants in the county-level round of the National Interdisciplinary Olympiad Romanian Culture and Spirituality and at the county level of the National Religion Olympiad, they were awarded prizes today, March 28, 2023, in the „Archbishop Pimen” Hall of the Suceava Diocesan Center.
The awards ceremony began with a blessing from His Grace Damaschin Dorneanul, Vicar Bishop of the Archdiocese of Suceava and Rădăuți.
His Grace congratulated everyone present, students and teachers alike, and emphasized that these young people, who demonstrate excellence and lead lives pleasing to God, through the blessing of the Almighty, will contribute to creating a better, more beautiful, and brighter future for society as a whole. At the same time, the bishop read an excerpt from The Wisdom of Solomon, emphasizing that this virtue can be cultivated through study, mindfulness, and prayer.
His Grace Bishop Damaschin Dorneanul then presented the special „Doxologia Copiilor” awards to the students and young people who achieved outstanding results at the National Interdisciplinary Olympiad Romanian Culture and Spirituality, „for preserving, understanding, living, and promoting the truth of the faith, for embracing and upholding one’s own spiritual identity and for sensitivity toward sacred literature, demonstrated by achieving excellence in the academic competitions and contests on the school competition calendar organized by the Ministry of Education.”.
The event, held with the blessing of His Eminence Calinic, Archbishop of Suceava and Rădăuți, was moderated by Prof. Daniela Ceredeev, school inspector for the subject Religion within the Suceava County School Inspectorate.
Awards ceremony for the students who achieved the best results in the county round of the National Olympiad Romanian Culture and Spirituality The event continued with the presentation of awards to middle and high school students by Fr. Ștefan Mihalcea, diocesan advisor for the Sector Media and Communication of the Archdiocese of Suceava and Rădăuți.
At the same time, the „Children’s Doxology” Special Award was also presented to the diocese’s cultural and catechetical centers, which have distinguished themselves through their rich and consistent activity and their involvement in „current volunteer and community initiative projects and programs.”.
As a token of encouragement and gratitude for their witness and for their spiritual growth, each award-winning student, as well as the supervising teachers, on behalf of His Eminence Archbishop Calinic, books signed by His Eminence, published by Crimca of the Archdiocese of Suceava and Rădăuților.
The event was punctuated here and there by special artistic performances. Students from Brodina Middle School staged „The Sacrifice of the Brâncovenis,” a play written by Prof. Elena Dinu Gavrilă, a moving moment that commemorated the martyrdom of the family of Lord Constantin Brâncoveanu.
The traditional group „Dor” from Moara, led by Prof. Constantin Irimia and his daughter, Alexandra, performed a series of authentic folk songs from the Bukovina region, while the traditional vocal ensemble „Flori de Merișor” from Poiana Ștampei performed songs emblematic of the Dorna region.
From April 6 to 8, 2023, the Archdiocese of Suceava and Rădăuți will host an important event, the national phase of Olympics religion for Orthodox theological seminaries and high schools, held at the „Metropolitan Dosoftei” Orthodox Theological High School in Suceava.
