Romanian Orthodox Youth Meeting in North Rhine-Westphalia#

Published on 06 December 2017

The Düsseldorf chapter of the Association of Romanian Orthodox Youth in Germany (ATORG), through the dedicated efforts of Mr. Sebastian Vulcan, ATORG Düsseldorf coordinator, and Ms. Luiza Antonescu, organized the meeting of Romanian Orthodox youth in North Rhine-Westphalia on 2–3 December 2017.

The program began with the seminar “Youth without Old Age,” led by Protopresbyter Dr. Iosif-Cristian Rădulescu. Using varied methods of active learning, the young people—working in teams—explored both the challenges of this stage of life and the gifts they can offer to the world in general and to the Church in particular.

The seminar ended with a Q&A session in which the protopresbyter stressed the importance of maturing, of moving from childhood to adulthood, a central step in preparing to assume the responsibilities of founding a family and engaging in social life.

On the afternoon and evening of 2 December 2017, the young people visited the state capital and used the time for getting to know one another and outlining new projects for the coming year. On Sunday morning they attended the Divine Liturgy in the “Sfânta Treime” and “Sfântul Nicolae” Parish in Düsseldorf, and at the end enjoyed the artistic program presented by the parish children for the feast of St. Nicholas.

The program concluded with an agape offered by the parish, providing another opportunity to reflect on the need to motivate young people for more active involvement in the life of the Church. The children received special gifts left by St. Nicholas, which each received with great enthusiasm, leaving a strong feeling of joy in the hearts of those present.