“Only half-wits and fools despise the Church”

Engineer Ioan Bujoiu, whom I consider to be one of the seven best engineers in the country, planned the work at the mine with engineer Balș. I had known him since I was a teacher in Lupeni, and he was the general manager of the Petroșani coal mining company in the Jiu Valley.

One day I asked him this question:

– Mr. Engineer, have you ever felt God’s presence and help in your work?

He replied:

– Yes, I was a fierce rationalist and followed my own mind. But sometimes I felt that I had reached a dead end from which I could not get out. Then I would get down on my knees and pray. And suddenly everything would clear up before me. A light would come from above and illuminate my heart and mind. That’s why I believed in the purpose of the Church and its sacred function, and I helped her. I know what an important role the priest plays among our people, especially among the lower classes. Only the half-witted and the stupid despise the Church.

(Fr. Nicolae Grebenea – Memories from the Darkness)