Bishop Ioan Casian: Diocese of Canada Congress seeks God’s will for Church and communities

“This is not merely an administrative meeting or an occasion to present activity reports, but a moment of ecclesial responsibility, in which we seek together to discern God’s will for the life of the Church and for the communities we serve,” said Bishop Ioan Casian of Canada at the Congress of the Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Canada .

The bishop said the gathering was a time for reflection, evaluation and shaping the diocese’s future mission.

“The verse chosen as the theme of our reflection – ‘Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away; behold, all things have become new’ (2 Corinthians) – expresses the very essence of the Christian life,” His Grace added.

“The Apostle Paul is not speaking simply about a change of behaviour or an external reform, but about the ontological transformation of the human person through an encounter with Christ crucified and risen.”

Prayers and lectures The event began on Friday evening with a lecture at the Romanian Orthodox Cathedral in Saint-Hubert, delivered by Bishop Siluan of Italy together with Rev. Prof. Vasile Mihoc of the Orthodox Theological Faculty in Sibiu, in the presence of Bishop Ioan…