Appointed by Pope Francis auxiliary bishop of Iaşi on September 30^th, mgr. Petru Sescu will be consecrated in the cathedral of Our Lady Queen, in Iaşi, tomorrow morning, November 11^th. The consecration will be officiated by mgr. Iosif Păuleţ, bishop of Iaşi; the co-consecrators will be mgr. Aurel Percă, metropolitan archbishop of Bucharest, and mgr. Petru Gherghel, emeritus bishop of Iaşi. The apostolic nuncio to Romania, mgr. Miguel Maury Buendía, bishops from other Catholic dioceses and eparchies of Romania, lots of priests, religious men and women, devotees and public authorities will take part in the solemn rite. The celebration will take place in compliance with measures for the protection from and prevention of the pandemic, which is plaguing the country. Therefore, some of the devotees will watch the service on a large screen in the courtyard of the cathedral. In addition, the Mass will be streamed online and on several Catholic media. The episcopal motto chosen by mgr. Sescu is “Servite Domino in laetitia”, from Psalm 100, and in a press release the diocese showed the episcopal coat of arms, the distinctive signs of which are a red shield and four golden symbols: the Chrismon “Ihs”, the monogram of the Virgin, the gospel, and a rose.
“Through faith we receive God’s Word and surrender to the intercession of Jesus, of Mary and the saints, represented by the rose of Saint Therese of Lisieux”, father Iosif Dorcu explains. The diocese of Iaşi has had no auxiliary bishop since November 2019, when mgr. Aurel Percă moved on to lead the archdiocese of Bucharest. The area served by the diocese of Iaşi has a population of over four million, 4.6% of whom are Catholics.