The religion of Roumania--The head of the Church must be a monk,
and therefore a celibate--The priests are of the peasant
class, unlearned and little respected--A priest’s monthly
rounds--Prayers for a girl’s marriage--St Demetre the patron saint
of Bucarest--His vocation as a rain-maker--He is brought out when
the priests see the rain coming--Roumanian churches--The legend
of Curtea d’Argesh--The well of Manole’s wife’s tears--Easter
customs--The Roumanian monasteries: dens for lazy people--A
wonderful grotto--The convents--Princess Marie as a nun.
Roumanians, as everybody knows, belong to the Greek Church. There are
no divisions in the orthodox religion as there are, unhappily, in our
own, and complete freedom of worship is allowed to all foreigners in
the country. The forms and ceremonies of the Greek Church resemble very
closely those of the Roman Catholic. Ikons (or holy pictures) hang
in all the churches as well as in private houses, and are kissed by
the faithful whenever a prayer is said. The sign of the cross is also
universal; it is always made when one passes a church.
It is rather amusing to watch the Olteni (the equivalent of the London
coster) with the vegetables crossing himself most devoutly in passing
a church, well knowing that he will cheat you immediately afterwards
if you give him the chance. However, he does not look upon his little
dodges as sins, he simply prides himself upon his cleverness in getting
the better of you.
The head of the Greek Church is always chosen from amongst the monks.
The monks are vowed to a life of celibacy, and live enclosed in the
numerous monasteries scattered throughout the country. The priests, on
the contrary, are allowed to marry; that is, they may have one wife,
but if she dies they are not allowed to re-marry. The priests are
usually of the peasant class; no member of even a middle-class family
would dream of entering the Church. They have little education, and are
not looked on with any respect. The garb is rather peculiar. Over his
ordinary clothes a priest wears a long coat, with wide hanging sleeves,
reaching almost to his feet, and on his head a sort of brimless hat
made of red, purple or black velvet, according to the wearer’s status
in the Church.
As a priest is not allowed to cut his hair after taking orders, he is
obliged to wear it plaited like a Chinaman’s pigtail. He seems to be
rather ashamed of this distinction, however, as the queue is always
stuffed under the collar of the coat.
On the first day of the month every priest goes round his own parish
with an acolyte carrying incense. Every house is entered in order to
bless it for the coming month, prayers are said and incense waved in
every room. Only the room of the English or French governess is left
out, as she is a heretic.
Should a young girl find it difficult to meet with a suitable husband,
the priest, at the special request of her parents, proceeds to her room
and remains there for some time reciting prayers specially arranged for
such an occasion, the end in view being marriage for the girl.
The patron saint of Bucarest is St Demetre--his mummy, enclosed in a
silver casket, lies in the church named after him. On his “name-day”
special services are held. The silver casket containing the holy
remains is placed outside the church, and as all Bucarest is present
on that day, everyone who passes by, and feels so disposed, may kiss
the hand of what was once St Demetre. The saint is supposed to have
great influence over the weather. If a drought continues too long, then
Demetre is appealed to. He is carried round the town in great state,
surrounded by numbers of attendant priests, banners flying and music
playing.
It has sometimes happened that the rain has come down like a deluge
before St Demetre could be brought under shelter again. Then great
is the jubilation, and the gratitude to him for what he has done is
unbounded. But from private observations that I have made, my opinion
is that the wary priests wait till they see a little cloud like a man’s
hand in the sky before they risk disturbing St Demetre.
The Roumanian churches are circular in form, with no seats for
the worshippers, save a very few near the altar for some favoured
individuals, or for royalty should they favour the church with a
visit. Behind the reredos is a room for the priests, from which they
sally forth at stated intervals to take their part in the service. No
instrumental music is allowed in the church, the vocal music being
provided by men and young boys; and very fine it is, as Roumanians are
a musical race with a well-developed taste for what is best.
The beautiful church of Curtea d’Argesh, a couple of hours’ journey
from Bucarest, is built in the Byzantine style. The exterior appears
to be of marble, but in reality it is a kind of limestone, easy to
work, which becomes quite hard on exposure to the air. The church is
square in shape, and a dome rises from the centre. At each corner of
the building is a little tower, and the most curious feature of the
structure is that these four towers have such a twisted appearance that
they seem about to fall on one another. The truth is that each tower is
encircled by spiral bands from top to bottom in such a fashion as to
make them appear to be out of the perpendicular, although in reality it
is not so.
In the interior of the church the walls are adorned with fresco
paintings and carvings. Here is also to be seen a copy of the Gospels
done in the style of the illuminated missals of olden times, the work
of the late Queen of Roumania. Here and there in this interesting work
small sketches have been introduced by way of illustration. Princess
Marie, the little daughter of the late Queen, figures there as an
angel. This is entirely in consonance with one’s sense of the fitness
of things, but when St John is seen represented by the face of Monsieur
J. K., it does give one rather a shock.
The windows in the body of the church are very narrow, but are arranged
in such a fashion that every corner of the building is well lighted.
The ornamentation on the outside is both interesting and beautiful. A
large moulding encircles the church, and above this are round shields
beautifully decorated with flowers and leaves. Little gilt birds are
suspended at intervals, from whose beaks hang tiny bells. When the wind
blows from a certain quarter, agitating these little bells, the effect
is very pretty.
Just opposite the door of the church there is a most beautiful little
building resembling a shrine. It is composed of four pillars which
support a series of mouldings, and is crowned with a dome just like the
church itself. The _tout ensemble_ is so beautiful that it impresses
the visitor with the idea of its being a fairy structure.
At a short distance from the church is a monastery at which Carmen
Sylva used to stay for weeks at a time. She was very fond of the old
legends of Roumania, and especially of that connected with Curtea
d’Argesh.
The architect and builder of the church was one Manole, and according
to the legend he was extremely anxious to get the building completed
by a certain date. He spurred on his men to their utmost endeavours;
but alas! no matter what progress they made during the day, the work
which they accomplished was always destroyed in the night following.
This continued to happen, and the only conclusion to be arrived at was
that evil spirits were at work who were opposed to the building of
churches. Manole tried all sorts of plans to circumvent them, but in
vain. Finally he made a vow that, in order to appease their wrath, he
would build into the church wall the first person to come this way on
a certain day, if the evil spirits would, on their part, refrain from
interfering with his work. The day arrived, and Manole eagerly looked
for a victim. For hours no one passed that way, and the day dragged
slowly along. At length a figure appeared in the distance, and Manole
eagerly awaited its approach. What was his horror, when the figure drew
nearer, to discover that it was his young wife coming to see how the
work was progressing. She was the idol of his life, but the vow must be
kept. There was no alternative. With a heavy heart he asked his wife
to stand in a niche in the wall. She, poor thing, taking it as a joke,
willingly consented. The workmen began to build her in, she talking and
laughing meanwhile with her husband. However, as the bricks and mortar
slowly but surely began to enclose her she became frightened. She
begged Manole to stop jesting and take her out. Despairingly he turned
his eyes away and spurred the men on to fresh endeavours.
Now the wall reaches her knees, her chest, her eyes. She becomes
desperate, and screams and implores her husband to free her. His only
answer is to urge the men to greater haste. Her cries become fainter
and fainter, till, some minutes after the completion of the wall, her
voice ceases for ever.
From this day forward the work on the church went on splendidly, no
interference whatever taking place during the night. Evidently the evil
spirits were propitiated. The legend continues that Manole kept up till
the church was quite finished, then threw himself from the roof and was
killed.
Three minutes’ walk from the church there is a well of beautifully cold
clear water of which every visitor must have a draught. This well is
supposed to have originated from the tears of Manole’s wife as she was
being built into the wall of the church.
Roumanians are not very diligent churchgoers, but twice a year at least
they do turn out--that is at Easter and at Christmas. In the Greek
Church Easter is _the_ great festival. The churches are crowded, people
kneeling on the steps and along the pavement when it is impossible to
get standing room inside. Service begins at 10.30 on Easter Eve, and
on the stroke of midnight all the gaily decorated candles with which
the people have provided themselves are lighted, and a procession
is formed, headed by the priests, the chief priest walking under a
canopy borne by four others. The procession wends its way three times
round the church, then the blessing is pronounced and the congregation
disperses. Whoever succeeds in reaching home with his or her candle
still alight will be happy through the coming year, but woe to the
unhappy one if an unlucky blast should extinguish it. All sorts of
misfortunes may then be looked for.
It is a very pretty sight, as the different groups are seen returning
home, carefully shading the twinkling little lights, which appear to
dance hither and thither. The churches are profusely decorated with
flowers at such times.
There are many curious ceremonies performed at Easter, of which the
following is an example. A table is placed at the upper end of the
nave and upon it an image or picture of our Saviour. As each person
reaches the table he drops down and proceeds on hands and knees under
it. This is done three times, and is supposed to be typical of the
great humility of the worshipper. This part of the service delights
the children, who sprawl under the table with great goodwill but not
apparently with any appreciation of the significance of the ceremony.
Reverence on the part of the congregation is not one of the features
of the Greek Church services. A good deal of talking and laughing goes
on, so much so that it is no unusual thing for a priest to stop in the
middle of the service and request the people to be silent. Even at
weddings the same thing may be seen. The bride and groom appear to be
holding a reception rather than having a service celebrated which is
to unite them for life--or rather till such time as they think fit to
dissolve the union.
The monasteries are a great feature of social life in Roumania. At
a time when there were no hotels, hospitality was always shown to
travellers by the monks. One could remain there for a week or two
without being under an obligation to pay anything. At each monastery
there are from twenty to thirty monks. Each one has a tiny apartment
that he can call his own, to which is attached a small plot of ground.
In this plot the monk grows his vegetables, or keeps a couple of fowls.
He is allowed about forty bani a day (4d.) from Government, and to eke
out his living he has recourse to all sorts of devices. The favourite
one is the making of certain liqueurs which are offered for sale to
any traveller who may happen to pass. It is a great pity that these
monasteries should be allowed by Government, as they are simply dens
for lazy people. One may imagine that with twenty monks attached to one
church the services required from each are not very arduous, especially
when the church is in a remote district. They are expected to officiate
at stated intervals day and night, and recite prayers. That done, the
time is their own to use as they think fit.
In olden times, and more especially during the rule of the Turk, the
monasteries were often used as places of refuge by the oppressed, or
as storehouses for their valuables. They are generally built on very
high eminences, and command a good view of the surrounding country.
One monastery in particular which I have visited is situated at such a
height in the Carpathians that in winter communication with the outside
world is absolutely impossible; the monks are completely snowed up.
But in summer what a difference! The monastery is surrounded by lovely
meadows, where one walks knee-deep in grasses and most beautiful
wildflowers. Through these meadows a babbling brook winds its way under
overhanging willow branches to the river further down.
Close to the chapel of the monastery there is a natural grotto which is
always shown to visitors.
I remember exploring it once with a party of friends, and the uncanny
sensation it gave me. Each member of the party was provided with a
candle, and a monk acted as guide. As we passed further and further
into the grotto, we appeared to be accompanied by a rushing river, but
no river was to be seen. The effect was weird. The thick darkness,
seeming to be rendered only more opaque by the feeble light of the
candles, surrounded us like a pall, and we scarcely ventured to speak
above a whisper. The monks assert that there is an underground river,
but whence it starts and whither it goes no one seems to know. The
cave itself is vast, and extends for miles under the mountains. It is
thought that it communicates with the natural grotto at Campulung,
which is very similar, and may really be a part of it; but this has
never been proved. No one seems to have had either the time or the
inclination to undertake such an expedition. A Royal Geographical
Society for research has not yet been formed in Roumania.
There are numerous convents for women scattered all over the country.
The costume of the nuns is not at all pretty. Over the dress, which
is of ordinary stuff, a long cloak is worn, and a band of black cloth
is bound round the forehead, the ends falling in pleats at the back,
completely covering the hair. To crown all and complete the picture, a
round flat cap or hat, also black, is perched on the top of the head.
The system of Roumanian convents differs somewhat from that of the
Roman Catholic convents. Roumanian nuns are quite free to go about and
visit friends and relatives. They are only vowed to celibacy, and they
live together in communities, working for the poor and visiting the
sick. No branch of education is, however, undertaken by them, as they
themselves are not sufficiently instructed for that. Before the present
Queen of Roumania ascended the throne one of her greatest pleasures
was to stay for a few weeks at the convent near Campulung. There she
donned the garb of a nun--such a pretty nun had never been seen before
in Roumania,--occupied herself with embroidery or painting, and ate
the ordinary fare of the inmates. I believe a favourite sweet of hers
on these occasions was musca, made of flour, butter, and sugar, which
when cooked is completely covered with burnt sugar. It tastes very
good indeed. This convent is situated in a very beautiful part of the
country, and the chapel belonging to it is a curiosity in its way,
having been excavated out of the solid rock.