ASTORIA — The official portraits of seven Romanian bishops, taken sometime before the late 1940s, are a startling contrast to their prison mugshots.

In the former set, they’re shown in the prime of life. In the latter, they appear emaciated with line-creased faces and sunken eyes. Their attire is shabby, having surrendered their pontifical vestments for prison stripes.

These are the seven Romanian Greek-Catholic bishop-martyrs who were arrested in 1948 after Communism seized control of their country. They all died in prison, and very few Catholics outside of Romania knew of their sacrifice until Pope Francis beautified them in 2019.

Now, relics from three of the bishops are on a pilgrimage in the United States that made a stop on Dec. 7-8 at the St. Mary Romanian Greek Catholic Mission in Astoria and its host parish — Holy Cross Ukrainian Catholic Church in Long Island City. 

The portraits of all seven, along with the relics, were arrayed at the front of the church.

The Eparchy of St. George, seated in Canton, Ohio, organized the tour, with Bishop John Michael Botean and Father Iuliu-Vasile Muntean, the eparchy’s vicar general, accompanying the relics.

“I did feel like all the bishops, the martyrs, were here,” said Elena Chindea, who is from Romania and a member of the St. Mary mission. “They are a vivid support for us and an example.”

Bishops Valeriu Traian Frentiu, Vasile Aftenie, Ioan Suciu, Tito Livio Chinezu, Ioan Bǎlan, Alexandru Rusu, and Iuliu Hossu were all declared by the Vatican in 2019 to have died “in hatred of the faith.”  

The arrests resulted from accusations of being “anti-democratic” for refusing to cut their ties with the regime’s perceived enemy, the Holy See. Their deaths occurred over two decades, from 1950 to 1970, due to the harsh conditions of incarceration.

The three relics are from bishops Aftenie, Bǎlan, and Hossu. There are no relics of the other bishops because their bodies were never found, no doubt discarded in mass, unmarked graves, according to Bishop Botean.

“I thought it would be a good idea for our people to be able to get close to the story of these bishops so that our own faith can be strengthened,” Bishop Botean said.

Shortly after the takeover of Romania, the new rulers outlawed Catholicism aligned with the Vatican because the Catechism of the Catholic Church rejects atheistic institutions such as Communism.

The regime, however, tolerated the Romanian Orthodox Church, an Eastern rite faith that does follow papal authority. Thus, Romanian Greek Catholics were offered the opportunity to reject the pope and merge with the Orthodox Church.

The seven bishops and many of the priests refused. Their faith was practiced clandestinely until after the 1989 Romanian Revolution when Communist leader President Nicolae Ceaușescu was ousted and executed on charges of economic sabotage and genocide. 

Bishop Botean said he only learned about the bishops after the demise of Communism in Romania; previously, the rulers kept a tight grip on religious issues. He also explained that his faith embraces ecumenism and works closely with Orthodox counterparts in hopes of one day bringing “the Church back together.”

“But that’s something to be worked toward, not decreed by a government, especially not one that has an ulterior motive,” Bishop Botean said. “Now, religion gets compromised. It gets used for political purposes and for economic purposes, and it develops its greater voice in prisons and underground.”

The veneration of the relics was attended by Father Patrick Keating, moderator of the curia for the Diocese of Brooklyn. He said the event reminded him of how St. Pope John Paul II wrote that Christianity must breathe with its two lungs, referring to the Eastern and Western churches.

“It was beautiful to pray and to venerate the relics,” Father Keating said. “I think you see here the faithfulness of the Church and the universality of the Church.”

Ovidiu Iogovan, who is from Romania and a member of St. Mary Mission, expressed hope that more people would learn about the seven bishops and appreciate what they died for.

“I’m really proud of them,” he said. “I believe that their sacrifice is going to bring some kind of fruit. That gives me a lot of joy and hope for the future, especially for my country, for this country, and for the world.”