The Orthodox Ethos

Patriarch Daniel on Fr Seraphim Rose: In these days of the feast of the Dormition of the holy Mother of God, we come here to this holy place to venerate and give honor to another dormition, of the ever-memorable hieromonk Seraphim Rose. The holy Mother of God bore for all of us her Son and God our Savior, and is blessed by all generations. Fr. Seraphim also contributed to my life and to all of ours here, and to those of many more people, and we come here to give due love and to receive his blessing. When I was making my first steps into the Church in the middle of the '90’s of the previous century in the years after Communism, Fr. Seraphim was very popular among the new Bulgarian converts who were entering the Church for the first time. It was very unusual and surprising to hear from this place, where Western culture flourishes, someone who has a sober view, and who warns us of the dangers of this consumer society, and raising our children in such a way that they become small princes and kings, in whose hearts the passions are rooted from early childhood. And all this not from a psychological point of view, but the Orthodox point of view—that the modern world makes the Chrisitan life more difficult and is so dangerous for the salvation of our souls. He was the very presence of Christ. Later when we learned how he had formed the Brotherhood of St. Herman of Alaska with Fr. Herman, and they started issuing the magazine The Orthodox Word with the mission and blessing of St. John Maximovitch, and grew in the faith before his eyes, and we learned how they had come here and started this monastery, bringing the water up the hill, and so on, he and Fr. Herman and all the brothers who came to live here became examples for us. Now we can see that he succeeded in dispelling the lie of the spirits of this world and showing that Western society is poisoned with dangerous ideas which from the beginning of the Christian life make it impossible ... In his works he succeeded in bringing so clearly to everybody a defense of the truth of our faith and in overcoming that spirit which has caught the majority of people who live here. No one had done this before, especially in regards to evolution—bringing forth the teaching of the Fathers in such detail and making it so clear that people who would read it would not be influenced by this false spirit. After this we felt that it is not enough to paint his icons and to enlighten our minds with his works, but we also needed to receive his blessing, and to ask him to help those who defend the Orthodox faith, and to bring the teaching and words of Fr. Seraphim to all our friends and to all people. I am grateful and thankful that I can come here for the first time to take part in the celebration of these days of the Dormition of the holy Mother of God. I have desired for a long time to come here, to his grave, to see, to touch, and to venerate, and to receive his blessing. May God by His mercies, and I believe by the prayers of Fr. Seraphim, bless all of us, and strengthen us in our struggle to go our way in this temporal world as Fr. Seraphim went, and to receive, as I believe he received, the crown of life. orthochristian.com/96689.html

NOTE: — Met. Nathaniel of blessed memory signed “the confession of faith against ecumenism” which we wrote in Greece in 2008.

"With the awareness of my unworthiness for this highly responsible service, but also with faith and obedience to the will of God, expressed through the will of this holy assembly of canonically and legally elected representatives of our entire Church, the hierarchy, the clergy and the Orthodox people, and also as a testimony to the beloved and deeply respected representatives sister Orthodox Churches, I accept the cross of patriarchal service entrusted to me... I believe that the Lord, who looks at the heart and knows that I did not strive for this position, choosing me to this ministry, will also be my helper, because the Lord not only lays the burden, but also saves. After all, He himself told us that without Him we cannot do anything and that He is with us all the days until the end of the world. Enlightenment in the Orthodox faith and piety will be the main concern of my metropolitan ministry in the glorious Sofia diocese, the capital of which bears this name, is under the protection of the Wisdom of God and the episcopal see of which has been glorified since apostolic times, including through the ministry of the holy martyr Clement of Rome and many others famous and unknown saints throughout the centuries. Following the example of my recent predecessors, the well-remembered Patriarchs Neophytos, Maxim and Kirill, I will strive for unity in Christ and fraternal service with the bishops of the Holy Synod in the spirit of mutual respect and support in our common cause. Caring for our spiritual flock will be the guiding principle in our ministry as Primate of our Orthodox Church and head of the Holy in Particularly striking and instructive in this regard is the example of meekness, prudence, long-suffering, integrity, mercy and proper service of the Bulgarian Patriarchs Maxim, who laid hands on me at my episcopal ordination, and Neophytos, who guided me at my episcopal ordination. For more than half a century of their ministry, with their love, strong faith in God, and strict adherence to church order, they maintained unity in the Holy Synod, and the church ship of our native Church passed unharmed through many and various trials. With God’s help, I will try to follow their example of integrity in protecting the interests of the Church, tact and diplomacy, including in the relations of the Church with state and public institutions, in my upcoming ministry. The enormous efforts in evangelization and defense of the purity of faith on the part of the Preslav and Turnov Patriarchs, especially St. Patriarch Euthymius, a perfect shepherd who laid down his soul for the sheep. And also the leaders of our Church after the restoration of its independence in the format of the Bulgarian Exarchate, who, with their courage, pastoral care to the point of self-sacrifice for their spiritual flock, contributed to the strengthening and timely restoration of the Patriarchal dignity of our Church. Among them is the first Bulgarian exarch and Vidin Metropolitan Antim, who fearlessly denounced the cruelties of the enslavers during the suppression of the April Uprising and contributed to the liberation of our people from the Ottoman yoke. This valor, as well as dedication, determination in defending the interests of the Church and readiness for self-sacrifice will always be an example for us to follow. A holy example of pastoral responsibility, unfeigned faith and love for God, the Church and all people is our still memorable confessor - Metropolitan Nathanael of Nevrokop. By general recognition of the people of God, he was the living conscience of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. His zeal for preserving the purity of faith, for overcoming division, for enlightenment in faith and piety, first of all, of the younger generation, a fatherly attitude in the leadership of the clergy, love for monasticism, his concern for the poor, for the beauty of worship and temple improvement, tirelessness in defense and the establishment of the authority of the church institution have always been and will be for me a model to strive for in my ministry."

Patriarch of Bulgaria Daniel about the so-called "unification council", as a result of which the "OCU" was created From the Bishop’s interview, which he gave to journalist Yavor Dachkov in 2018: “I will answer you with the words of one of the bishops of the canonical Church, with which he responded to the invitation of Patriarch Bartholomew to take part in this “council”: “I am firmly convinced and confess that I remain faithful to the one Orthodox Church, and my presence at this council contradicts the first psalm of David, which reads: “Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, and does not stand in the way of sinners, and does not sit in the seat of the wicked, but his will is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night!” What could be the result of this “council”, convened contrary to canonical order and attended by persons outside the Church? In my opinion, this “council” will not heal the split among the believers of Ukraine, but will deepen it.”

“We have elected a worthy Patriarch,” Bulgarian Vice President Iliana Yotova "We have elected a worthy Bulgarian Patriarch. I know His Holiness through joint initiatives. Patriarch Daniel is a man who speaks extremely wisely, and it would be very good to listen to his words. A very smart man, I had the opportunity to see this personally. I would like to wish him to be our true spiritual father."

⚡️ Metropolitan Daniel of Vidin became Patriarch of Bulgaria!! He received 69 votes from the Council delegates. Metropolitan Gregory of Vrachansky - 66. The Bulgarian Orthodox Church Metropolitan of Vidin, Daniil, was on June 30 elected as the church’s new Patriarch and Metropolitan of Sofia. Daniil, 52, is to be enthroned as the church’s fourth Patriarch, succeeding Patriarch Neofit, whose death at the age of 78 was announced on March 13 2024. In a second-round vote by 138 members of the Patriarchal Electoral Church Council, an electoral college representing clergy and laity, Daniil received 69 votes and Metropolitan Grigorii of Vratsa 66 votes. There were three invalid ballots. The third shortlisted candidate, Metropolitan Gavriil of Lovech, got 19 votes at the first round and thus was eliminated from the election. In the first round, Grigorii got 64 votes and Daniil 51 votes. There were four invalid ballots. Daniil has been Metropolitan of Vidin since February 2018. He was born Atanas Triandafilov Nikolov on March 2 1972 in Smolyan, where he attended school before going on to enrol for a degree in English at Sofia University in 1996. In 1997, he switched to the theological faculty at Sofia University. He became a monk in 1999. Daniil graduated from Sofia University’s theology faculty in 2002. In 2004, he was sent to Rozhen Monastery and in 2006 was appointed as an Archimandrite. Daniil was consecrated as a bishop in 2008 and was appointed vicar of the Metropolitan of Nevrokop, the diocese headquartered in the southern Bulgarian town of Gotse Delchev. Two years later, in June, he was appointed vicar of the Metropolitan of the United States, Canada and Australia. One of the church’s Russophile camp, Daniil was at the centre of controversy in November 2022 when he authored a diocesan letter pointing the finger at Ukraine and the Maidan uprising in 2014 for alleged guilt in the Russian-Ukrainian war. Daniil, interviewed by Bulgarian National Radio earlier in June 2024, lashed out at Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew – long at odds with Russian Patriarch Kirill – and described the autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine as uncanonical. Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew earlier arrived in Sofia for the enthronement of the new Patriarch, the first time that an Ecumenical Patriarch was to attend the enthronement of a Bulgarian Patriarch. Representatives of Eastern Orthodox Christian churches were also in Sofia for the ceremony. Church protocol is that other Orthodox churches send representatives, but their Patriarchs do not attend, so as not to distract from the local church’s new incumbent. — Link to enthronement: https://www.youtube.com/live/4LPTwQOO49A?si=4ty4OXPhXp_E_9Bc — The first words of Patriarch Daniel after his election According to the 24 Hours website, the first words of the new Primate of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church after his election were: “Let us keep the Orthodox faith: it leads us to God!”

Premiering Monday: On the Steadfastness of the Orthodox Church by St. Raphael of Brooklyn https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orY-CvaKaLA

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St. Hilarion Troitsky ☦️ The Holy Scripture and the Church Chant name: Пасха Христос Воскресе из мертвых Тропарь