Metropolitan Luke urges Bulgarian faithful to back their Patriarch
Metropolitan Luke of Zaporizhzhia comments on criticism of Bulgarian Patriarch Daniil, urging the faithful to support him.
Metropolitan Luke of Zaporizhzhia and Melitopol commented on the criticism of Patriarch Daniil, Primate of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, and called on the faithful to offer him prayerful and moral support.
The UOC hierarch noted that the deep disappointment of some of the faithful was caused by Patriarch Daniil's concelebration with Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople at the Rila Monastery, with the commemoration of the head of the OCU, Epifaniy Dumenko.
The Metropolitan called the flock's reaction to the contacts with Patriarch Bartholomew understandable but urged not to rush to conclusions. "However, against the backdrop of righteous indignation and the bitterness of the moment, one must ask oneself the main spiritual question: can and should Patriarch Daniil alone be judged with a hasty and categorical judgment?" the archpastor said.
Metropolitan Luke recalled that Patriarch Daniil had consistently opposed the recognition of the OCU for years. "The Bulgarian Church has still not officially recognized the Ukrainian schismatics. This is an indisputable fact that convincingly testifies in favor of Patriarch Daniil," the hierarch stressed.
He pointed out that the Primate of the Bulgarian Church has faced threats, media harassment, intrigues in the Synod, and blackmail with an internal schism of the Bulgarian Church. "The Patriarch is not a soulless mechanism, but a living person of flesh and blood, for whom it is incredibly hard to bear the colossal burden of his duties," the archpastor noted.
According to the hierarch, under pressure, Patriarch Daniil bears his cross virtually alone and is waging an unequal struggle. "The Primate needs prayerful and moral help," Metropolitan Luke stated. Instead of emotional accusations, he urged the Orthodox "to unite and surround him with intensified prayerful support, helping their archpastor to withstand the blows of both external enemies and fierce ill-wishers within the ranks of the BOC episcopate."
Earlier, the UOJ reported that the Bulgarian Primate responded to criticism of Patriarch Bartholomew's visit.
