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Page 112

 

Mani 8upert of Dents

in so far as their exercise does not violate public order or good morals. Further, it is provided that the Orthodox Church is independent of all foreign supervision, while thoroughly maintaining the unity with the ecumenical Church of the East in the sphere of doctrine. As early as 1864, subordination to the patriarchate of Constantinople was declared to be abolished, and the church of hhe land to be independent, national, and sutocephalous, this in order to avert outside political influence and unforeseen protection. For purposes of self-government the holy synod was organized, whose constituent members are the metropolitan primate of Hungary-Wallachia, or the archbishop of Bucharest; the metropolitan of Moldavia and Suzava, or the archbishop of Jassy; the three episcopal eparchs of Wallachia, respectively Rimnio-Valcei, Buzeu, and Arjish; and those of Moldavia, respectively, Roman, Galatz, and Hush. The synod convenes twice a year, with the minister of worship in attendance. These eight dioceses embrace 3,670 parishes, 370 of which are in the cities. In round numbers there are 8,000 priests. The clergy also comprises about 600 monks, distributed in four notable cloisters of Moldavia and five in Wallachia, in addition to which there are 160 small cenobitical abodes with two to four inmates to each. The education of the clergy is provided by six seminaries with a curriculum of four years and by the theological faculty of the University of Bucharest. The other university, at Jassy, makes no such provision. The archbishops are elected by popular representatives and the boyars (privileged classes) of the first class; and the bishops are appointed by the archbishops. By action of the synod in agreement with the state government, each diocese also receives a titular bishop as an alternate to the highest dignitary. Although the State, in 1864, sequestered most of the cloistral estates, it contributes only small amounts for the support of the bishops, and the parish clergy depend exclusively on the proceeds of the parochial real estate and the surplice fees.

The Roman Catholic Church, influential, espooially in Moldavia, till after the Middle Ages, lost the bulk of its following; but by immigration in the nineteenth century it has entered a more marked development. By 1818 Jassy had become the seat of a papal vicariate, and in 1884 of a bishopric embracing 26 parishes, most of which are in the southern part of the diocese, and are supplied mainly with Minorite pastors. This bishopric has about 90,000 Roman Catholics. The bishopric of Wallachia did not originate until 1883, when it was detached from that of Nicopolis in Bulgaria and erected into an archbishopric; although there are only 18 parishes and somewhat above 50,000 members. Evangelical Christians are much scattered, especially in Moldavia. Their number is estimated at 25,000 to 26,000, including about 8,000 Magyar Calvinists. There are from 15,000 to 16,000 German Evangelicals, and a small number of Methodists, Anglicans, and Presbyterians, principally at Bucharest and Galatz. Owing to the immigration from Transylvania, the German Protestants have a congregation in Bucharest of about 8,000, whose

THE NEW scHAFF-HERZOG formal constitution, together with the school estab lishments, was confirmed by the German and Aus trian consuls-general. Other congregations in Wal lachia are at Crajova, Turnu-Severin, Rimnic, and Braila. There has been one at Jassy, Moldavia, since 1754, now including six branch congregations, and there is one equal in size at Galatz. There are three congregations in the Dobrudja district (east of the Danube), among them, that of the port Constantza. There is no synodical bond between these church communities. Excepting Bucharest, they have subjoined themselves to the superior church council of Berlin (see PRuss1A, 111., 1, 11), and are related with the pastors of Rumelia and Bulgaria through conferences. The Jews, in spite of much emigration to the United States, number about 260,000. In 1878 they obtained an equality of status with the Christians, but can acquire no real estate before the end of a naturalization term of ten years. There are from 44,000 to 45,000 Mo hammedans in the country (43,470 in 1900), mostly in the Dobrudja, where they have many mosques. Armenians (16,598 in 1900) have a few small con gregations in the two capitals and7 the ports of the Danube. (7cr· ILHELM GSTzt).

Brsmoaa"af: J. Samuelson, Roumania Paat and Present, London, 1882; J. H. A. Ubieini, Lea Oripinea de rhist. roumaine. Paris, 1888; R. Bergner, Rumdnien, Breslau, 1887; T. Tamm, Ueber den Urrprung der Rumanen, Bonn, 1891; W. Miller, The Balkans: Roumania, London and New York, 1896; G. Benger, RunUlnien in Jahre 1900, Stuttgart, 1900; F. Dam_, Hiat. de la Roumanie contemyoroine, 1888-1800, Paris, 1900; Stourdsa, La Teme et la race roumainea, Paris, 1904; A. Bellesort, La Roumanie contempomine, Paris, 1905; N. Jorga, " Hist. of the Rumanian Church and of the Religious Life of the Rumanians," Valenii-de Munte, 1909 (in Rumanian); J. Gherghel, Zur Prape der Urheimat der Rumanen, Vienna, 1910.

RUMANIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA: In the year 1900 Rumanian immigration from Transylvania, in Hungary, began to flow toward the United States, and later followed immigration from Rumania itself. At present there are about 60,000 Rumanians in the United States and Canada. Of these about 35,000 are Uniates (Roman Catholic) from Transylvania and 25,000 Orthodox. Of these last about half come from Rumania and half froiu Transylvania, and for this reason of the six Orthodox congregations three are under the jurisdiction of the primate of Rumania and three under that of the metropolitan of Hermannstadt in Transylvania. The first congregation of the Orthodox was organized in 1904 at Cleveland, Ohio; other congregations are in East Chicago, Ill.; Lawyer, N. D.; and Regina, Canada. The first congregation of the Rumanian Uniates was also founded in 1904, at Cleveland, Ohio, only a little before the orthodox congregation of that place. Rumanian Uniate churches are at present located at Scalp Level, Pa.; Aurora, Ill.; Youngstown, Ohio; and New York City. The relations between the Orthodox and Uniate Rumanians are very friendly.

RU1fZE, run'tse, GEORG AUGUST WILHELM: German Lutheran; b. at Woltersdorf, Pomerania, Feb. 13, 1852. He was educated at the universities