February 7, 1915 – born in the village of Tocileni, Botoşani county, the 10th child of Dumitru and Marghioala Arăpaşu; was given the name Teodor at baptism.

1921-1927 – attends primary school in his native village

1928 – enters as a brother at the Sihastria Voronei skete

1929 – admitted to the Monastic Seminary at Neamţ Monastery

1932-1940 – student in the Monastic Theological Seminary at Cernica Monastery

August 6, 1935 – takes monastic vows at Bistriţa Monastry in Neamţ County, receiving the name Teoctist

1940-1944 – student at the Theological Faculty of the University of Bucharest

1945 – receives degree in theology with honors “magna cum laude”

March 25, 1945 – ordained hieromonk at the Metropolitan Cathedral in Iaşi

March 1946 – appointed Grand Ecclesiarch of the Metropolitan Cathedral in Iaşi

1948 – elevated to rank of archimandrite

February 28, 1950 – chosen as Patriarchal Vicar Bishop by the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church, at the request of Patriarch Justinian Marina

March 5, 1950 – elevated to the office of Bishop by Patriarch Justinian Marina, Metropolitan Firmilian of Oltenia, and Bishop Chesarie of the Lower Danube Region

1950-1954 – Rector of the Theological Institute of Bucharest

July 28, 1962 – elected Bishop of Arad, Ienopol and Halmagiu

1969-1970 – appointed locum tenens of the Oradea Diocese by the Holy Synod

January 28, 1973 – elected Archbishop of Craiova and Metropolitan of Oltenia

September 26, 1977 – elected Archbishop of Iaşi and Metropolitan of Moldova

1981-1982 – appointed locum tenens of the Metropolis of Transylvania by the Holy Synod

November 9, 1986 – elected Archbishop of Bucharest, Metropolitan of Ungro-Wallachia, and Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church

Titles and Distinctions

Honorary member of the Romanian Academy

Honorary Doctorate from the University of Bucharest (1995) and other Romanian universities

Honorary Doctorate from the Catholic University of Lublin, Poland (2000)

Recipient of the Romanian Academy’s “Timotei Cipariu” Award for the publication in 1988 of the jubilee edition of the Bible in Bucharest (1991)

Various ecclesiastical distinctions conferred by the Patriarchs of Antioch, Jerusalem, and Moscow, as well as the Orthodox Churches of Greek, Czechoslovakia, and Finland.

Published Works

Published a Monograph dedicated to Metropolitan Iacob Putneanul (1750-1760)

Edited the 1679 Romanian Liturgikon of Metropolitan Dosoftei

Authored the studies “Metropolitan Dosoftei—Author of Liturgical Language” and “The Works of St. Basil the Great in the Cultural Life of the Romanian Orthodox Faithful”

Edited the “Bucharest Bible” (transliterated jubilee edition – 1988)

Author of 13 volumes of sermons, homilies, meditations, occasional speeches, and studies collected in the series “On the Steps of Christian Service”

Contributed studies, memorials, accounts, and documents in various journals and publications on the occasion of anniversarial, ecclesiastical and national events