Father Lyubomir Leontinow is one of three priests at the Cathedral of St Boris the Conqueror in Berlin and was the first priest ordained for the Western and Central European Diocese in 1994. After completing his theology studies in Bulgaria, he settled in Berlin, where he began working for the Ministry of Social Affairs. He later studied management and became the coordinator of social welfare in the East German state of Brandenburg.
During the Yugoslav wars, he was involved in delivering humanitarian aid to the war zones. After the conflict ended, under the influence of Metropolitan Simeon of Western and Central Europe, he decided to dedicate himself to the priesthood. Back then there was no Bulgarian temple in Germany, so he was ordained in the Russian church in Berlin by Metropolitan Simeon and the Russian Archbishop for Germany, Theophanes.
At the same time, the organisation of a Bulgarian community in Berlin and throughout Germany began. Since then, they have maintained warm, sisterly relations with other local churches that have their representatives in Germany.
In the early 1990s, when the reconstruction and renovation of St. Boris the Baptist Church in Berlin began, there was a very strong Bulgarian student community, says Father Lyubomir Leontinow in the second episode of Radio Bulgaria's "Bridge of Faith" podcast. In those first years when the Bulgarian Orthodox community was being established in Berlin. Young people came with all their enthusiasm to help at the temple, cleaning and renovating. They actively participated in all the activities, investing time, money, and effort to the best of their ability, but most of all, they put their heart and soul into building this spiritual home.
Separated from their parents, relatives, and friends in a foreign country, and without today's means of communication with their homeland, they saw the priests at the temple as their friends and kin - almost like fathers. With the priests they shared their struggles, their nostalgia, their joys, their successes and even their romantic feelings.
"There were many students, many of whom we supported in their challenges and celebrated their successes," recalls Father Lyubomir. "With each one of them leaving Germany, I became convinced of how true the words are: Closeness is measured by the heart, not by distance."
The Bulgarian priests later baptised their foreign spouses and their children. Father Lyubomir also remembers some of the young boys and girls from that time, each of whom left a lasting mark on his memory and heart.
"These people are here for a while, they move on, but if the relationship with them has been preserved, and it has, then we are rich - says Father Leontinov - we have extended our hands to everyone, anyone can come to us, pray together and become part of our community. Or he can leave, if his life's path takes him away from here" - says Father Lyubomir, adding that even today the Bulgarian Christian community in the German capital includes not only Bulgarians, but also Poles, Germans, Russians, Ukrainians, Romanians... They all come to the Bulgarian temple on a regular basis.
"This is probably due to the specificity of Orthodoxy, which is universal and independent of the language served in the temple, whether we understand it or not. You feel the grace of God, you feel that you are among your own, in the great family of Christ," concludes Father Leontinov.
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