Bulgaria: The Russian Church will Reopen and will have Bulgarian Priests taking over the Services

Patriarch Neophyte has appointed priests from Sofia who will take over the usual services in the Church of St. Nicholas the Miracle-Maker, known as the Russian Church. This was announced by the Holy Synod.

“By his order of today, 25.09.2023, His Holiness the Bulgarian Patriarch Neophyte, in exercise of his powers as the Metropolitan of Sofia, in whose diocese is located the church ‘ the Miracle-Maker’, personally appointed priests from Sofia who will take care of of the temple, performing the usual services. The Holy Metropolitan of Sofia guarantees that no part of the property of the church will be destroyed or damaged. As before, the faithful will be able to bow before the relics of Saint Seraphim of Sofia and beg for his gracious help and support.

The action of His Holiness is dictated by care for the faithful, preservation of good order in the church and should be understood only in its spiritual aspect. It does not affect the real or other rights of anyone as guaranteed to them by secular laws.

Any other questions of a secular legal and administrative nature related to the case will be discussed at the regular meeting of the Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church – Bulgarian Patriarchate.

His Holiness the Bulgarian Patriarch Neophyte has informed the Patriarch of Moscow Kirill about the actions taken in his special letter.

His Holiness expects assistance from the Embassy of the Russian Federation in Sofia for the opening of the temple and the continuation of its blessed life, which plays an important role in the spiritual upliftment of Orthodox Christians.

Before assuming their duties, the clerics were received by His Holiness in the building of the Holy Metropolitan of Sofia, who blessed them and gave them his Prime Minister’s instruction in carrying out the upcoming responsibilities,” the announcement of the Holy Synod reads.

Meanwhile, BNR reported that the Bulgarian ambassador in Moscow Atanas Krastin was summoned in the early afternoon to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in connection with the expulsion from Bulgaria of three representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church.

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