On 10 May, 1953, the third ecclesiastical and national council in Sofia declared the Bulgarian Orthodox church a Patriarchate - from an Exarchate.
The Metropolitan Bishop of Plovdiv Cyril was elected patriarch after a 560-year break. In the years that followed, the Bulgarian Patriarchate was recognized by all Orthodox churches. On 27 July, 1961, the Patriarchate of Constantinople also officially recognized the Patriarchate of Bulgaria.
After the fall of Tarnovo under Ottoman rule in 1393, the independent Bulgarian church was done away with and was subordinate to the Patriarchate of Constantinople. It was only in 1870 that Sultan Abdulaziz, under pressure by the Bulgarians, signed a firman on the establishment of a Bulgarian Exarchate and the independent Bulgarian church was restored.
Photos: Bulgarian Patriarchate, BTA
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