Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov presented Pope Leo XIV with a specially crafted omophorion during an audience at the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican. This liturgical vestment symbolizes spiritual and episcopal authority, according to the Council of Ministers press service. The late Pope Francis wore a similar Bulgarian-made omophorion during his last public appearance on Easter. He received it as a gift during his visit to Bulgaria in 2019, crafted especially for him by a master of church vestments.
The Prime Minister also gifted Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican Secretary of State, an icon depicting St. Boris (Mihail) the Baptizer of the Bulgarian people.
"We discussed all the important topics, from faith to the current agenda," Rosen Zhelyazkov stated after the audience with the Pope. The war in Ukraine was discussed, as was the Vatican's role as a mediator for peace negotiations. “We even talked about artificial intelligence and its dimensions regarding how human virtues should not be replaced by the virtual environment,” he added.
The Prime Minister is leading the Bulgarian delegation for the traditional visit to Rome and the Vatican on the eve of 24 May, the Day of the Saints Cyril and Methodius. On this day, Bulgarians celebrate the Bulgarian alphabet, education, culture, and Slavic literacy.
Later, Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov visited the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, where in 867, Pope Adrian II blessed Slavic writing and books in the Slavic language, the government press service reported.
In the 9th century, the Pope welcomed the holy brothers Cyril and Methodius, proclaimed them equal to the apostles and blessed their great work and literary heritage. Centuries later, in 1980, Pope John Paul II declared them co-patrons of Europe.
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