Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

Patriarch Daniil calls on the faithful to pray for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church

Photo: BTA

Bulgarian Patriarch Daniil has called on the faithful to pray for the strengthening of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which is threatened with closure. He presided over the holy liturgy celebrated today in the church "St. Ivan Rilski" in Pernik.

"Let us earnestly pray that the Lord will strengthen our brothers and sisters from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, enlighten the statesmen, give peace to the Ukrainian land. End this war, this fratricide", declared the patriarch.

President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a law banning the Moscow-linked Ukrainian Orthodox Church, and the official text of the law was published on the parliament's website, world news agencies reported. 

"Ukrainian Orthodoxy is today taking a step towards freeing itself from the demons of Moscow," Zelensky said on the country's Independence Day from the Soviet Union. 

The Russian-linked church has about 9,000 parishes in Ukraine – roughly the same as its independent rival, the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, which was granted ecclesiastical independence by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in Istanbul.



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Sofia supports the peace plan in Ukraine, but wants EU's interests to be taken into account

Bulgaria welcomes the consistent efforts of the US and President Donald Trump to establish a just and lasting peace in Ukraine, the Council of Ministers wrote on the government's Facebook page. The final terms of a future peace..

published on 11/24/25 8:54 AM

It will be warm and windy with possible precipitation in the southeastern regions

On Saturday , the lowest temperatures will be between 9 and 14°C; in Sofia - it will be around 9°C. In the morning there will be fog and poor visibility in the valleys and fields in Western Bulgaria. During the day there will be..

published on 11/21/25 7:50 PM

Father of 12-year-old Siyana, who lost her life in a road accident, hands over resignation request to Supreme Court of Cassation Chairperson

Nikolai Popov - the father of 12-year-old Siyana, who lost her life in a heavy road accident, handed over to the Chairperson of the Supreme Court of Cassation Galina Zakharova a request from over 22 thousand people against corruption in the judicial..

published on 11/21/25 7:01 PM