Saint Liviu Galaction was born on May 16, 1898, in the village of Cristian, Brașov County. His father, Nicolae Munteanu, was a teacher, and his mother, Maria, was a homemaker. They had six children, of whom Liviu Galaction was the second.
From childhood, he showed great love for God and deep reverence for the Holy Church. He first studied at the Romanian school in Cristian, founded and led by his father. He then attended Andrei Șaguna High School in Brașov and the Theological Institute in Sibiu, graduating in 1920. In 1923, he earned a doctorate in theology from the Faculty of Orthodox Theology in Chernivtsi.
That same year, he married Silvia, and God blessed them with three children. In 1924, after Bishop Nicolae Ivan founded the Theological Academy in Cluj, the young Liviu Galaction was called to serve as a professor at the school that would form future priests and servants of the Holy Altar in the Diocese of Cluj. He received the grace of the priesthood through the laying on of hands by the same bishop on February 17, 1927.
