The German (Swabian) community of Banat will celebrate in 2030 a millennium since the founding of the Timisoara Diocese (originally Csanád) and, starting in 2025, will organize every year major events dedicated to the upcoming grand jubilee.

Between June 13 and 15, the city of Timisoara shines the spotlight on the Cultural Days of Banat Germans, a celebration that is now at its 17th edition and which includes a string of cultural, spiritual, gastronomic events, exhibitions and performances, traditional dances and brass band music.

The festivities began on Friday with the opening of the exhibition 'Millennium Csanadiense 1030 - 2030' at the Dome in the city's Union Square, which presents pages from the history of the oldest diocese in this Christian area having as a spiritual patron Saint Gerard, a Venetian Benedictine monk who later became Bishop of the Diocese of Csanád, at the request of Saint Stephen I, the first King of Hungary.

Bishop Emeritus of Timisoara, Martin Roos, declared for AGERPRES that today's Timisoara Diocese originates from the Csanád Diocese created in 1030, and that the exhibition will also travel to Szeged (Hungary) and Zrenjanin (Serbia).

'The two major churches, Orthodox and Catholic, are the oldest institutions in this area of Banat and in our Diocese. (...). After so many historical changes, we must make this jubilee broadly known, especially to our priests, but also to the Roman Catholic faithful. Therefore, on behalf of the Bishopric, we have organized a small exhibition about the first 500 years, starting with 1030 and ending with 1552 with the fall of Timisoara into Ottoman hands. Today, as we live here in the midst of several ethnic groups, we have also published a brochure dedicated to the jubilee, in the four languages that are spoken around us: Romanian, German, Hungarian and Serbian. We will also take this traveling exhibition to Szeged and Zrenjanin. The ancient Diocese of Csanád is today divided among three countries - Romania, Hungary and Serbia, following the resolutions taken after the end of World War I,' said Bishop Martin Roos.

He pointed out that the centre figure of the exhibition is Saint Gerard, who died as a martyr in today's Budapest, on September 24, 1046, and was canonized in 1803. 'He left us a philosophical-theological body of work that is preserved today at the Bavarian State Library in Munich,' mentioned the Timisoara Bishop Emeritus.

The entire 1000-year history of the bishopric will be presented in five stages, until 2030: the first 500 years, until the Ottoman domination, then the Turkish times until 1716, followed by the Baroque era, illustrated with rich information materials and documents, then the 19th and 20th centuries.

Several hundred Banat Swabians, most of whom traveled from Germany, met on Friday with their fellow citizens in Timisoara's Dome Square, listened to Swabian brass music, and visited the exhibition inside the Dome.

The day continued at the Adam Muller Guttenbrunn House with readings paying homage to Nikolaus Lenau 175 years after his death, and photo projections with musical accompaniment. A show was scheduled from 18:00 at the Banat Village Museum with traditional music bands from Banat and Germany.

An official celebration will take place on Saturday at the Romanian National Opera House in Timisoara beginning from 11:00, and as of 16:00, the exhibition '110 Years of Banat Aviation History' will open at the Adam Muller Guttenbrunn House, along with the presentation of the volume 'Airships in the Balkan Skies 1915-1918'.

A parade of folk costumes is slated for Sunday morning in the Dome Square, followed by the Pontifical Holy Mass, shows and choirs.

Just over 8,000 ethnic Germans still live in Banat, half of whom reside Timis County. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Otilia Halunga; EN - writing by: Simona Klodnischi)