Bulgarian Orthodox Church Celebrates the Great Christian Feast of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary

On 15th of August, the Bulgarian Orthodox church celebrates the Assumption of Virgin Mary.

The day, also known as the Dormition of the Holy Mother of God, is one of the twelve great feasts in the church calendar. Festive liturgies will be held in temples across the country.

Assumption of the Blessed Virgin, Assumption of the Blessed Virgin or Great Mother of God is one of the greatest Christian holidays, celebrated equally by Orthodox, Catholics and other Christian communities. This day is dedicated to the death of the Mother of God or her “Dormition,” that is, her passing into eternal rest.

On this day, the apostles gathered from the places where they were preaching to bid farewell to the Holy Virgin and bury her most pure body. According to Holy Scripture, this was the day when the Mother of God, at the age of 64, left her earthly life and went to her son. Her final wish was to see the Holy Apostles together. Miraculously, they were brought to the doors of her home in Jerusalem.

Three days later, Jesus Christ himself, in heavenly glory and surrounded by hosts of angels and saints, descended from heaven for the soul of the Holy Virgin. She was buried in a cave near Gethsemane, and the entrance was sealed with a stone. When it was opened several days later so that the apostle Thomas, who had arrived late, could pay his respects to the saint, they found only her burial shroud. As they rose from the table, the apostles heard angelic singing and saw the most pure Mother of God in the clouds, surrounded by angels. She said to them: “Rejoice, for I am with you always.”

In memory of her appearance to the apostles, the Church ordained that a solemn liturgy be celebrated on this day and that the ritual of the “raising of the bread” be performed.

According to folk tradition, the feast is called Golyama Bogoroditsa, or Dormition of the Mother of God, to distinguish it from Malka Bogoroditsa, or the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, when the birth of the Mother of Christ is celebrated. On Golyama Bogoroditsa, following a solemn liturgy in church, ritual loaves of bread are blessed, which women then distribute for the health of the living and in memory of deceased relatives.

The faithful seek the protection of the Holy Virgin in the face of life’s difficulties. Families gather on this day and extended-family reunions are held. Traditional dishes served at the table include fresh bread, chicken stew, boiled wheat, corn and pumpkin. Fish is permitted.

President Iliana Iotova will visit the Troyan Monastery of the Dormition of the Mother of God for the monastery’s feast day. The head of state will take part in the traditional procession with the miraculous icon of the Holy Mother of God of the Three Hands, which has been kept in the monastery church since the 17th century. The Troyan Monastery is marking its feast day with a series of festive services. A solemn procession carrying the miraculous icon of the Most Holy Mother of God will proceed from the monastery church to the place where the first miracle attributed to the icon is believed to have taken place.

On Golyama Bogoroditsa, Kyustendil celebrates its spiritual feast day. His Holiness Bulgarian Patriarch Daniil will lead a hierarchal Divine Liturgy in the city.

Those celebrating their name day include everyone named Maria, Mario, Mariyka, Mari, Marin, Marian, Mariana, Mariana, Marian, Masha, Mika, Marieta, Mariela, Preslav and Preslava.

Happy name day to everyone celebrating today!