Bishop of Maramureș (Romanian)
Vasile Bizău is Bishop of Maramureș of the Romanians, Romania. He was born on 14 October 1969 in Dragomireşti, Maramureş county, in a Greek-Catholic family active even during the period when this Church was prohibited in Romania. Throughout the period of clandestinity, his parents' home functioned as a meeting place for the faithful of his native village, united in prayer under the aegis of the Marian Reunion, led by his mother herself. He attended general school in Dragomireşti. In 1988 he graduated from Industrial High School nr. 9, now the Mihai Eminescu National College, in Baia Mare, in the Philology-History profile. Between 1990 - 1993 he attended courses at the Ep. Dr. Alexandru Rusu Theological Institute in Baia Mare. He completed his formation for the priesthood with philosophy studies (1993 - 1994) at the Faculty of Philosophy of the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome and theology studies (1994 - 1997) at the Faculty of Theology of the same university. There he also undertook specialization studies, at the master's level, between 1997 - 2000, in patristic theology and the history of theology. In 2001 - 2002 he followed doctoral courses at the San Anselmo Institute in Rome. His ecclesiastical path began on 15 August 1996, when he was ordained deacon on the feast of the Dormition of the Mother of God at Giuleşti, Maramureş. On 31 August 1997 he was ordained priest by Bishop Ioan Şişeştean at Baia Mare. With his return to Romania in 2000, he served as a priest within the Eparchy of Maramureş, fulfilling the office of counsellor, and carried out pastoral activity in the parishes of Bogdan-Vodă and Holy Cross in Baia Mare. In the same year he also began teaching activity as an associated teaching staff member in the Department of Philosophy - Theology - Arts of the Faculty of Letters, University of the North, Baia Mare. On 20 June 2007 he was elected by the Synod of Bishops of the Romanian Church United with Rome, Greek-Catholic, as bishop of the Curia of the Major Archiepiscopate, and on 27 October 2007 he was proclaimed by the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI as titular bishop of Appiaria. He received episcopal ordination in the Holy Trinity Cathedral of Blaj on 16 December 2007.