The Most Famous
RELIGIOUS FIGURES from Romania
This page contains a list of the greatest Romanian Religious Figures. The pantheon dataset contains 2,238 Religious Figures, 8 of which were born in Romania. This makes Romania the birth place of the 44th most number of Religious Figures behind Peru and Denmark.
Top 8
The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Romanian Religious Figures of all time. This list of famous Romanian Religious Figures is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.
1. John Cassian (360 - 435)
With an HPI of 64.02, John Cassian is the most famous Romanian Religious Figure. His biography has been translated into 33 different languages on wikipedia.
John Cassian, also known as John the Ascetic and John Cassian the Roman (Latin: Ioannes Eremita Cassianus, Ioannus Cassianus, or Ioannes Massiliensis; Greek: Ίωάννης Κασσιανός ό Ερημίτης; c. AD 360 – c. 435), was a Christian monk and theologian celebrated in both the Western and Eastern churches for his mystical writings. Cassian is noted for his role in bringing the ideas and practices of early Christian monasticism to the medieval West.
2. Peter Mogila (1596 - 1647)
With an HPI of 59.57, Peter Mogila is the 2nd most famous Romanian Religious Figure. Her biography has been translated into 21 different languages.
Petro Mohyla (born Petru Movilă; 21 December 1596 – 1 January [O.S. 22 December] 1647) was the Metropolitan of Kiev, Galicia and all Rus' in the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople in the Eastern Orthodox Church from 1633 to 1646.
3. Stephen Pongracz (1582 - 1619)
With an HPI of 53.42, Stephen Pongracz is the 3rd most famous Romanian Religious Figure. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.
Stephen Pongracz (Hungarian: Pongrácz István; 1584–1619) was a Hungarian Jesuit priest, martyr and saint of the Catholic Church.
4. Lucian Mureșan (1931 - )
With an HPI of 53.07, Lucian Mureșan is the 4th most famous Romanian Religious Figure. His biography has been translated into 22 different languages.
Lucian Mureșan (born 23 May 1931) is a Romanian prelate of the Romanian Greek Catholic Church who has been the first Major Archbishop of the Greek Catholic Archdiocese of Făgăraș and Alba Iulia since 2005. He was archbishop there from 1994 to 2005 and bishop of Maramureș from 1990 to 1994. He has been a cardinal of the Catholic Church since 2012. As Major Archbishop of Făgăraș and Alba Iulia he is based in Blaj and is the head of the Romanian Greek Catholic Church.
5. Sabbas the Goth (334 - 372)
With an HPI of 51.16, Sabbas the Goth is the 5th most famous Romanian Religious Figure. His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.
Sabbas the Goth (Romanian: Sava Gotul, Greek: Σάββας ο Γότθος; died 12 April 372) was a Christian martyr venerated as a saint.
6. Iuliu Hossu (1885 - 1970)
With an HPI of 47.52, Iuliu Hossu is the 6th most famous Romanian Religious Figure. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.
Iuliu Hossu (30 January 1885 – 28 May 1970) was a Romanian Greek-Catholic prelate who served as the Bishop of Cluj-Gherla. Pope Paul VI elevated Hossu to the rank of cardinal in pectore, that is, secretly, in 1969 but did not publish his appointment until after Hossu's death. The Communist authorities arrested Bishop Hossu on 28 October 1948. From 1950 to 1955 he was detained as political prisoner at the Sighet Prison. He spent the rest of his life under house arrest and died in 1970. Pope Francis confirmed Hossu and six other prelates' beatification in 2019 and it was celebrated in Blaj, Romania, on 2 June 2019. Pope Francis personally presided over the beatification as well.
7. Alexandru Todea (1912 - 2002)
With an HPI of 47.40, Alexandru Todea is the 7th most famous Romanian Religious Figure. His biography has been translated into 18 different languages.
Alexandru Todea (5 June 1912, Teleac, Mureș County–22 May 2002, Târgu Mureș) was a Romanian Greek-Catholic bishop of the Alba Iulia Diocese and later cardinal. He was also a victim of the communist regime, suffering at Jilava, Sighet, and Pitești prisons. Born into a peasant family, Todea was the 13th of 16 children. After attending primary school in his native village, and high school in Reghin and Blaj, Metropolitan bishop Vasile Suciu send him to pursue his theological studies in Rome. He received his doctorate from the Pontificio Collegio Urbano de Propaganda Fide and returned to Romania in 1940. He was created cardinal on 28 June 1991 and given the titular church of Sant'Atanasio a Via Tiburtina. Todea is buried at the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in Blaj.
8. Solomon Schechter (1847 - 1915)
With an HPI of 44.32, Solomon Schechter is the 8th most famous Romanian Religious Figure. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.
Solomon Schechter (Hebrew: שניאור זלמן הכהן שכטר; 7 December 1847 – 19 November 1915) was a Moldavian-born British-American rabbi, academic scholar and educator, most famous for his roles as founder and President of the United Synagogue of America, President of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, and architect of American Conservative Judaism.
Pantheon has 8 people classified as religious figures born between 334 and 1931. Of these 8, 1 (12.50%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living religious figures include Lucian Mureșan. The most famous deceased religious figures include John Cassian, Peter Mogila, and Stephen Pongracz. As of April 2022, 3 new religious figures have been added to Pantheon including Stephen Pongracz, Iuliu Hossu, and Solomon Schechter.
Living Religious Figures
Go to all RankingsDeceased Religious Figures
Go to all Rankings
John Cassian
360 - 435
HPI: 64.02
Peter Mogila
1596 - 1647
HPI: 59.57
Stephen Pongracz
1582 - 1619
HPI: 53.42
Sabbas the Goth
334 - 372
HPI: 51.16
Iuliu Hossu
1885 - 1970
HPI: 47.52
Alexandru Todea
1912 - 2002
HPI: 47.40
Solomon Schechter
1847 - 1915
HPI: 44.32
Newly Added Religious Figures (2022)
Go to all RankingsStephen Pongracz
1582 - 1619
HPI: 53.42
Iuliu Hossu
1885 - 1970
HPI: 47.52
Solomon Schechter
1847 - 1915
HPI: 44.32
Which Religious Figures were alive at the same time? This visualization shows the lifespans of the 3 most globally memorable Religious Figures since 1700.
