Petru Dugulescu
Encyclopedia
Petru Dugulescu was a Romania
n Baptist
pastor, poet, and politician. A member of the Baptist Union of Romania
and a representative of the National Peasants' Party
(PNŢ), he played a part in the 1989 Revolution
, being among the organizers of protests in Timişoara
.
, Dugulescu graduated from the Baptist Theological Seminary in Bucharest
, and became a pastor, while authoring works of Christian poetry
. During a period when the Communist regime
engaged in the persecution of Baptists, he was kept under surveillance by the secret police (the Securitate
). The latter institution pressured him to stop preaching, and threatened that he was to suffer a car accident were he to refuse; Dugulescu refused to comply. In September 1985, an unmarked bus crashed into the car he was driving, causing the pastor to suffer multiple fractures. Dugulescu's autobiography, Ei mi-au programat moartea ("They Programmed My Death", translated into English under the title Repenters), details this interval and includes his own account of the events.
Following the Revolution, Petru Dugulescu joined the PNŢ, and was elected to the Chamber of Deputies
for Timiş County
during the 1992 suffrage, and again in the 1996 election
. He served on the Committee for Human Rights, Religious Affairs and National Minority Issues, as well as on the Committee for Foreign Policy. He was the founder and president of Charity Foundation Jesus the Hope of Romania and Onesimus Brothers House for street children
in Timişoara
.
Dugulescu turned in his last book (Democraţie şi Persecuţie, "Democracy and Persecution") for publication on December 20, 2007, and on the afternoon of January 3, 2008 he suffered a fatal heart attack.
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
pastor, poet, and politician. A member of the Baptist Union of Romania
Baptist Union of Romania
The Baptist Union of Romania is an alliance of Baptist churches for cooperative ministry in Romania. Since independent churches have no legal standing in Romania, the Baptist Union also provides a mediatorial relationship between churches and government.The first modern-era Baptists in Romania...
and a representative of the National Peasants' Party
National Peasants' Party
The National Peasants' Party was a Romanian political party, formed in 1926 through the fusion of the Romanian National Party from Transylvania and the Peasants' Party . It was in power between 1928 and 1933, with brief interruptions...
(PNŢ), he played a part in the 1989 Revolution
Romanian Revolution of 1989
The Romanian Revolution of 1989 was a series of riots and clashes in December 1989. These were part of the Revolutions of 1989 that occurred in several Warsaw Pact countries...
, being among the organizers of protests in Timişoara
Timisoara
Timișoara is the capital city of Timiș County, in western Romania. One of the largest Romanian cities, with an estimated population of 311,586 inhabitants , and considered the informal capital city of the historical region of Banat, Timișoara is the main social, economic and cultural center in the...
.
Biography
Born in Chelmac, Arad CountyArad County
Arad is an administrative division of Romania roughly translated into county in the western part of the country on the border with Hungary, mostly in the region of Crişana and few villages in Banat. The administrative center of the county lies in the city of Arad...
, Dugulescu graduated from the Baptist Theological Seminary in Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
, and became a pastor, while authoring works of Christian poetry
Christian poetry
Christian poetry is any poetry that contains Christian teachings, themes, or references. The influence of Christianity on poetry has been great in any area that Christianity has taken hold...
. During a period when the Communist regime
Communist Romania
Communist Romania was the period in Romanian history when that country was a Soviet-aligned communist state in the Eastern Bloc, with the dominant role of Romanian Communist Party enshrined in its successive constitutions...
engaged in the persecution of Baptists, he was kept under surveillance by the secret police (the Securitate
Securitate
The Securitate was the secret police agency of Communist Romania. Previously, the Romanian secret police was called Siguranţa Statului. Founded on August 30, 1948, with help from the Soviet NKVD, the Securitate was abolished in December 1989, shortly after President Nicolae Ceaușescu was...
). The latter institution pressured him to stop preaching, and threatened that he was to suffer a car accident were he to refuse; Dugulescu refused to comply. In September 1985, an unmarked bus crashed into the car he was driving, causing the pastor to suffer multiple fractures. Dugulescu's autobiography, Ei mi-au programat moartea ("They Programmed My Death", translated into English under the title Repenters), details this interval and includes his own account of the events.
Following the Revolution, Petru Dugulescu joined the PNŢ, and was elected to the Chamber of Deputies
Chamber of Deputies of Romania
The Chamber of Deputies is the lower house in Romania's bicameral parliament. It has 315 seats, to which deputies are elected by direct popular vote on a proportional representation basis to serve four-year terms...
for Timiş County
Timis County
Timiș , , Banat Bulgarian: ) is a county of western Romania, in the historical region Banat, with the county seat at Timișoara. It is the largest county in Romania in terms of land area....
during the 1992 suffrage, and again in the 1996 election
Romanian legislative election, 1996
Legislative elections were held in Romania on 3 November 1996, together with the Presidential election. The elections were won by the Romanian Democratic Convention, an alliance of liberal, Christian Democratic and green parties. This marked the first time that the Party of Social Democracy was out...
. He served on the Committee for Human Rights, Religious Affairs and National Minority Issues, as well as on the Committee for Foreign Policy. He was the founder and president of Charity Foundation Jesus the Hope of Romania and Onesimus Brothers House for street children
Street children
A street child is a child who lives on the streets of a city, deprived of family care and protection. Most children on the streets are between the ages of about 5 and 17 years old.Street children live in junk boxes, parks or on the street itself...
in Timişoara
Timisoara
Timișoara is the capital city of Timiș County, in western Romania. One of the largest Romanian cities, with an estimated population of 311,586 inhabitants , and considered the informal capital city of the historical region of Banat, Timișoara is the main social, economic and cultural center in the...
.
Dugulescu turned in his last book (Democraţie şi Persecuţie, "Democracy and Persecution") for publication on December 20, 2007, and on the afternoon of January 3, 2008 he suffered a fatal heart attack.