Synod of Bulgarian Church declines trip to receive Holy Fire
The building of the Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church in Sofia Photo: Facebook
On April 9, 2026, the Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church decided not to send a delegation to Jerusalem to receive the Holy Fire, according to a statement published on the Synod’s official Facebook page.
The decision was linked to the ongoing military hostilities in the Middle East and the high level of security risk. “In view of the continuing military actions in the Middle East region and the highest travel risk level in place for Israel and Palestine, the Holy Synod has decided not to send a delegation,” the statement said.
The Synod noted that Bulgarian authorities had issued the corresponding warning, urging citizens to refrain from traveling to the region and to leave it.
At the same time, the Holy Fire will still be available to the faithful in Bulgaria. “The Fire kept in the capital may be received in the Synodal Chapel of St. Tsar Boris-Michael after 2:00 p.m. on Great Saturday,” the statement said.
The faithful were also called to prayer. “We call on Orthodox Christians to offer fervent prayer for an end to the conflict in the Middle East and for peace in the Holy Land and throughout the world,” the Synod said.
As previously reported by the UOJ, the authorities reopened the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem on Great Thursday.
Read also
Bulgarian Primate supports Patriarch Theophilos' initiative on Ukraine
The Primate of the Bulgarian Church called Patriarch Theophilos III's peacemaking initiative on the war in Ukraine a living testimony to the call for reconciliation.
Forum of volunteers and social workers held in Kharkiv Eparchy
Metropolitan Onuphry of Kharkiv and Bohodukhiv thanked the volunteers for their work and presented eparchial awards.
In Zakarpattia monastery, UOC hierarchs consecrate new chapel
At the St. Stephen's Monastery in Zakarpattia, a new Chapel of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos was consecrated.
In Kharkiv region, Azov military personnel set up pagan shrine
The initiator of the creation and arrangement of a pagan shrine in the Kharkiv region was the commander of the 96th separate battalion of the 3rd Army Corps.
Holy Cross Church of UOC in Kyiv damaged by shelling
The night drone and missile attack on Kyiv on September 27 damaged the shrine in Podil, an architectural monument of the 19th century.
UOC believers celebrate 200th anniversary of Holy Cross Church in Rakhiv
Metropolitan Mark of Khust performed the rite of consecration of the renovated frescoes of the two-hundred-year-old church in Rakhiv.