Print This Post


On December 2014, during his visit to Bulgaria, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate department for external church relations, made a pilgrimage to the Rila Monastery.

The archpastor was accompanied by the rector of the Sofia Representation of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, Archimandrite Philip (Vasiltsev), DECR secretary for inter-Orthodox relations Archpriest Igor Yakimchuk, general secretary of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church Holy Synod Archimandrite Gerasim (Georgijev), and Hierodeacon Nikolay (Ono).

The guests were welcomed by the abbot of the monastery, Bishop Evlogij of Adrianopol. They were taken to the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos. There, at the grave of St. John of Rila, the pilgrims sang praise to the saint. Another venerated shrine of the monastery is the Icon of Our Lady ‘Odegetria’. There is also the burial place of the Bulgarian King Boris III, who had a deep love for the monastery.

After that, the abbot showed the pilgrims the monastery’s museum with its 35 thousand exhibits including icons, books, valuable historic documents, applied art works and church vessels.

Bishop Evlogiy presented Metropolitan Hilarion with an icon of the founder of the Rila Monastery. Metropolitan Hilarion gave to the monastery his book The Mystery of the Faith translated into Bulgarian, and disks with his oratorio St. Matthew Passions.

On the same day, the DECR chairman had a telephone talk with the head of the Bulgarian Royal Dynasty, Simeon II of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. Metropolitan Hilarion conveyed to King Simeon greetings and best wishes from Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia.

DECR Communication Service