Metropolitan Antonie enthroned as Archbishop of Chișinău and Metropolitan of Bessarabia
On 12 July 2026 the Holy Father Antonie was formally installed as Archbishop of Chișinău, Metropolitan of Bessarabia and Exarch of the Plains at the St Three Holy Hierarchs Church in Chișinău. The solemn liturgy was celebrated by a nine‑member episcopal choir led by Metropolitan Teofan of Moldavia and Bucovina, acting as the Patriarch of Romania’s delegate. Clergy, civil officials and large numbers of faithful from both sides of the Prut attended.
Antonie, a former Bishop of Bălţi and a trained physician, received the traditional vestments – mantle, pectoral cross, engolpion, black camel‑cap and pastoral staff – from the delegating Patriarch. In his inaugural address he urged “peace, tolerance and brotherly love” and pledged close cooperation with other confessions and state authorities. He succeeded Metropolitan Petru, who retired for health reasons earlier in the month.
The ceremony reaffirmed the Romanian Orthodox Church’s canonical jurisdiction over the Metropolia of Bessarabia and highlighted its role in the spiritual and cultural life of the Republic of Moldova.