BOC Patriarch: Like 11 other Churches, we do not recognize OCU and support UOC

Bulgarian Patriarch Daniel. Photo: YouTube video screenshot

Bulgarian Patriarch Daniel has stated that the Bulgarian Orthodox Church does not recognize the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) and, like the overwhelming majority of the Local Orthodox Churches, continues to recognize and support the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church headed by His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry. He made the remarks in an interview for the Question of Measure program.

“Our position is the same balanced position held by the other eleven Local Orthodox Churches that have not recognized this church structure in Ukraine (the OCU – Ed.) and continue to support and recognize as the canonical Orthodox Church in Ukraine the Ukrainian Orthodox Church under Metropolitan Onuphry. Therefore, the Bulgarian Orthodox Church stands with the majority of the Orthodox Churches,” Patriarch Daniel said.

He stressed that this position should not be interpreted as support for the Russian Orthodox Church, noting that the Bulgarian Church has not broken Eucharistic communion with Constantinople and continues to concelebrate with its representatives.

According to Patriarch Daniel, the eleven Churches that have not recognized the OCU cannot reasonably be accused of being aligned with Moscow.

“For example, to whom is the Albanian Church supposedly aligned? Yet it expressed a very serious position on this issue. Both under the previous primate, Archbishop Anastasios, and under the current primate, Archbishop Ioannis, very firm and purely canonical positions have been articulated. Therefore, I call on people who consider themselves great experts and who seem to spend more time on social media to show respect for the institution of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church,” Patriarch Daniel emphasized.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that Patriarch Daniel had supported Bulgaria’s decision not to back sanctions against Patriarch Kirill, the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church.

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