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The Moscow Patriarchate will send new emissaries to the Russian church in Sofia

The Russian Church of Saint Nicholas in central Sofia
Photo: BTA

The Moscow Patriarchate will soon appoint a new head of the Russian Church in Sofia to replace Archimandrite Vasian, who was expelled from the country. This is the answer to the letter that the Bulgarian Patriarch and Sofia Metropolitan Neophyte sent to the Russian Patriarch Kirill. 

In the response, Patriarch Kirill classified the actions of the Bulgarian authorities in deporting employees of the Russian court in Sofia accused of espionage as a "hostile and unjust act". In the letter, the Moscow Patriarch expresses sympathy for the residents of Sofia who cannot visit the Russian Church and pray at the tomb of Saint Seraphim, who is buried there. 
Also, a request is made in the letter to provide assistance to the new head of the Russian church upon his arrival in Sofia.
In conclusion, Patriarch Kirill expresses confidence that "the political forces, behind which stands the enemy of the human race, will not succeed in destroying the age-old bonds of love and brotherhood in Christ, which lie at the basis of the cooperation between the Russian and Bulgarian churches".



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