The Holy Gospel. The Greek Catholic Gospel Book of Blaj, 1918

There are books meant to be read. There are books meant to be preserved. And there are books that belong to an altar, a church, a living memory. The Greek Catholic Gospel Book printed in Blaj in 1918 is such a book.

The reprinting of this volume is not a mere editorial act, but a recovery of liturgical identity. In Greek Catholic churches, the Gospel proclaimed at the Holy Liturgy must carry the voice of its own tradition, the form and spirit of the liturgical books that have nourished entire generations of priests and faithful united with Rome. To once again have on the Holy Table a Greek Catholic liturgical book, born in Blaj, in the heart of the Romanian United Church, means to restore to the liturgy a part of its natural character.

This Gospel Book was printed in the year of the Great Union, “with the blessing of our Most Reverend Archbishop and Metropolitan of Alba -Iulia and Făgăraș, Dr. Victor Mihályi de Apșa,” and is presented as “The Holy and Divine Gospel of Our Lord and God Jesus Christ, revised according to the original Greek and now printed for the second time in the ancient script.” From the very title page, the book bears the ecclesiastical and cultural prestige of Blaj, as well as the clear awareness that the liturgical Romanian language is a treasure, not merely a tool.

Its pages resonate with the sweetness of the Romanian language as it was in 1918—solemn and clear, with a musicality that is increasingly rare in contemporary liturgical speech. Phrases such as “The Lord said to the Jews who had come to him…” or “At that time…” are not merely archaic expressions, but the rhythm of the spoken Gospel, language crafted for reading in church, with gravity, warmth, and authority. The book preserves intact the charm of an era in which the sacred word was carefully printed, to be not only understood but also lived.

This is, at the same time, the Gospel Book of the generation of Greek Catholic martyr bishops. It is the liturgical book of the era in which the hierarchs who would bear witness to the Romanian United Church even unto imprisonment and death served, were formed, and shepherded: Valeriu Traian Frențiu, Vasile Aftenie, Ioan Suciu, Tit Liviu Chinezu, Ioan Bălan, Alexandru Rusu, and Iuliu Hossu. In their ministry, such books rested on the Holy Table and carried, Sunday after Sunday, the Gospel they would bear witness to through their lives. For this reason, this edition does not merely evoke a publishing history, but directly touches upon the martyrdom of the Greek Catholic Church.

The interior design preserves the nobility of the original: color printing, elegantly framed pages, ornamental initials, decorative frontispieces, and an airy layout, designed for liturgical use, yet of a beauty that also transforms it into a heritage object. The entire work reflects the care of an edition conceived with solemnity and refinement.

This new edition is crafted to match its significance: a durable cover in gold-embossed faux leather, with a sewn binding, designed for long-term use in the church and to remain, for years to come, a sturdy, beautiful, and dignified liturgical book. It is not a decorative edition, but a Gospel Book ready to be placed once again on the Holy Table, carried in procession, kissed by the faithful, and opened at every proclamation of the Word of God.

For Greek Catholic priests, this work is a return to their own liturgical home. For the faithful, it is a visible sign that the Church’s memory has not been lost. For parish communities, it is an opportunity to restore to worship a book that embodies the Blaj of 1918, the beauty of the old Romanian language, and the continuity of a Church that has been tested but never defeated.

The Greek Catholic Gospel Book from Blaj is not returning as an archival artifact. It is returning to its purpose: in the church, on the altar, in the priest’s hands, before the people.