The bells will be drawn daily to Pope Francis's funeral in the churches of the Archdiocese of Alba Iulia and Făgăraș
Religious ceremony at St. Joseph's Cathedral in Pope Francis, in Bucharest, April 21, 2025. Inquam Photos / George Călin
The bells from all the Greek-Catholic churches of the Archdiocese of Alba Iulia and Făgăraș, the largest eparchy of the Romanian church united with Rome, Greek-Catholic, will be drawn daily at 12:00, until Pope Francis, Agerpres reports.
“Until the funeral of the Holy Father, in all the churches on the canonical territory of our archbishop, the bells will be drawn at 12:00, and at all the Holy Liturgy, after the Heruvic Ectenia, before the Cherubic, the Ectenia of the dead will be spoken for the eternal rest of the Holy Father,” Archbishop of Alba Iulia and Făgăraș.
The Holy Apostolic Chair of Rome became a vacancy by passing Pope Francis Monday, at the age of 88.
Cardinal Kevin Farrell, a chamber of the apostolic chamber, announced on Monday that Pope Francis had passed to the Lord at his residence at Santa Marta House.
Pope Francis, the first Latin American leader of the Catholic Church, had recently survived a double pneumonia. Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected Pope on March 13, 2013.
Over 740,000 Roman Catholics in Romania
According to the data of the 2021 census, in Romania there are 741,276 people who declared themselves Roman Catholics, that is about 4.5% of the population. This marks a significant decrease from the 2011 census, when 870,774 people identified as Roman Catholics, indicating a decrease of over 100,000 believers over a decade.
The Roman Catholic Church in Romania is organized in seven dioceses, two of which are archdiocese: Bucharest and Alba Iulia. The Archdiocese of Bucharest has a metropolis status and coordinates the diocese in the south and west of the country, while the Archdiocese of Alba Iulia mainly serves the Hungarian Catholic communities in central Transylvania. The other important dioceses are Iasi, Oradea, Timișoara, Satu Mare and Baia Mare.
