Patriarch Daniil: "There is only one Orthodox Church!"

The Bulgarian Patriarch and Metropolitan of Sofia, Daniil, on December 29, described the entering of the Old Calendar Orthodox Church of Bulgaria into the Register of Religious Denominations with the Sofia City Court as unacceptable.

During his remarks, Patriarch Daniil emphasized that according to the Religious Denominations Act, there is only one Bulgarian Orthodox Church, which is the Bulgarian Patriarchate.

photo by Ali Misankov, BNT

He expressed concern that this decision by the Supreme Court of Cassation, despite the Holy Synod's statement on the matter in 2012, could lead to confusion and chaos. The Patriarch emphasized that, according to the church canons, there cannot be two Orthodox churches in the same canonical territory.

Patriarch Daniel: "The Church is one, the Orthodox Church is one. According to the canons of the Church, there cannot be two Orthodox Churches in one place on one canonical territory."

"I am perplexed by the judgement because back in 2012 when registration was attempted, the court (Sofia city Court) approached the Religious Denominations Directorate which asked the Holy Synod for an expert opinion. The court has had the opportunity to read this opinion, and it is very clear that this case cannot be treated in a way similar to commercial corporations, where a slight variation in the corporate name is not an impediment to registration. In the case at issue, there is a confusion of legal persons," the Patriarch commented.

photo by Ali Misankov

"The Statute of the Old Calendar Church says that it is based on Holy Scripture and church canons— the same foundation as the Bulgarian Orthodox Church."

He stated that if the Old Calendar Church claims its presence in Bulgaria under the presumption that there is no other exponent of Eastern Orthodoxy, it inherently challenges the authority of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. If they acknowledge the Bulgarian Orthodox Church as the true representative, it would automatically label them as schismatics.

This is unacceptable, this is in violation of the Law, the law clearly that there is only one exponent of Eastern Orthodoxy, not multiple," Patriarch Daniil emphasized.

"And it also says there, Article 10, which affirms that the Bulgarian Orthodox Church is inseparably connected with the other Orthodox churches. This is the condition for a church to be considered Orthodox. Any deviation from this creates confusion and misleads people.

The law clearly says it, the Patriarch said.

He warned that this mix-up of legal identities could lead to chaos and reiterated that the law clearly outlines the singular representation of Orthodoxy in the country.

The Patriarch expressed wondering how the Supreme Court of Cassation reached this decision despite the Holy Synod’s clear stance on the issue. He highlighted that the Synod's opinion had clearly stated the incompatibility of such registration with canonical and legal norms.

"When there is a mix-up of legal identities, how can chaos not ensue? I am astonished because the Supreme Court of Cassation had the Holy Synod's position on this particular case, and it was clearly stated. I am simply bewildered as to how this decision was made."