The Celebration of the day of All Bulgarian
Church in the Bulgarian Orthodox Church
Today it's the Sunday in which we the Bulgarian Orthodox Christians
celebrate
The Day of All the Bulgarian Saints
We have plenty of saints in our Bulgarian Christian history, many
known and even more unknown ones. That feast is actually one of the
greatest local church commemoration of the Christian saints who
gave their life for the building, growing and preventing of the
orthodox bulgarian church and the orthodox christian faith
througout Bulgaria's lands.
An almost
complete list of
the orthodox bulgarian saints can be seen here
However many are not mentioned since there are no historical
documents about the countless victims (martyrs) of Ottoman muslics
who were beheaded or violently killed because of his refusal to
accept the Islam.
Here I will just mention few of the saints that are mostly
venerated in the realm of the bulgarian orthodox christian
faith:
1.
st. Enravota
(Prince Boyan)
is considered the first Bulgarian Saint martyr who gave his life to
show hthe truthfulness of the Christian Orthodox faith.
His most notable speak is also a prophecy concerning the bulgarian
orthodox church which was made before his martyrdom for
Christ.
The prophecy saint Enravota has made about the Christianity
establishment in Bulgaria is as follows:
This faith, which I now die for, will spread and increase across
the whole Bulgarian land, although you may wish to oppress it with
my death. In any case, the Sign of Christ will establish itself and
churches of God will be built everywhere and pure priests will
serve the pure God and will deliver "sacrifice of praise and
confession" to the invigorating Trinity. Idols, and priests as
well, and their ungodly temples, will crumble and will turn into
nothing, as if they had not existed. Besides, you alone (to
Malamir), after many years, will cast away your ungodly soul
without receiving anything in reward for your cruelty.
2.
St. Jonh
of Rila (wonderworker) was a hermit in the Rila mountain who is
a patron saint of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. He is notable for
his great spiritual purity achievement in his anchoretic life. Many
miracles and healing has been received by people who has prayed and
asked the saint to intercede in their behalf to God. He is known as
the first bulgarian monk, and as an initiator of the first
bulgarian orthodox christian monastery.
His uncorruptable body is found for pilgrimage until this very day
in the monastery he became a founder of
Rila Monastery
.
2.
St.
Brothers Cyril and Methodius Who were the saint brothers who
venerated for enlightening the slavonic nations with writting
letters. They're actually the inventors of the old Bulgarian also
known as Old Church Slavonic. They and their followers were the
first to translate the holy bible into the newly created language -
the Old Bulgarian.
3.
st.
Knyaz (King) Boris-Mihail (Boris-Michael) . He is known for his
baptism of the Bulgarian Nation and the initiator of the creation
of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church as well as a brilliant
statesman.
After baptising most of the bulgarian intelligentia and rooting up
the Orthodox Christian faith in Bulgaria, he abdicted voluntery
from his throne, leaving his son (Vladimir) to rule Bulgaria and
started a voluntery monastic life in poverty.
When his governing son tried to reinforce back
the old pagan bulgarian
Tengriism belief (e.g. the belief in
Tangra (Tengri) he left
the monastery took back the power (defeating his son) and blinded
Vladimir.
Then he returned back to the monastery and spend his remaining life
as a monk.
4.
st.
Clement of Ohrid was one of the
Seven
Bulgarian Apostles
Born in 840, a Slav from southern Macedonia, he established a
monastery at Okhrida and a bishopric at Velica not far away. He is
regarded as the founder of this primatial see and the first Slav to
become a bishop.
His extensive apostolate took the form of education of the clergy
and of the laity, to whom he preached a series of sermons in
Slavonic, suitable for neophytes and explaining the principal
feasts of the liturgical year. Clement died at Okhrida on 27 July
916.
5. St. Nahum ucceeded St. Clement of Ohrid as bishop. Converted in
Moravia by Cyril and Methodius, he journeyed with them to Rome and
helped them with their translations into the vernacular: he is
venerated in Russia as well as Bulgaria. Other companions of
Clement called Sava and Angelar are also venerated with him. In
different times and different places they all contributed to the
fulfilment of the missionary plans of Cyril and Methodius.
6.
Saint Zlata of
Meglen has endured a martyrdom for Christ. She refused to
accept muslim faith and has firmly confessed her Orhtodox Christian
faith.
She was given many chances to accept muslim faith by some Turks and
therefore save her life but she refused and was cast into a prison
for 3 months flogging until her blood soacked the ground.
Finally, they suspended her upside down and lit a fire, to
suffocate her with the smoke; but God was with Zlata, and gave her
strength in suffering.
At last they hanged her from a tree and cut her into small pieces.
Thus, this brave virgin gave her soul up to God, and went to dwell
in Paradise on October 13, 1796. Pieces of her relics were taken by
Christians to their homes for a blessing.
7.
26 Martyrs of the Zographou Monastery on Mt. Athos at the hands of
the Crusaders they have endured martyrdom for Christ, from the
Roman Catholic Crusaders. Though the were warned that the enemies
of Christ are coming to the Zograph Monastery they refused to leave
the place and was burned alive by the unpious Crusaders.
There is many others to be mentioned but I neither have the
knowledge nor I'm worthy to speak about them.
Let by their Holy Prayers God have mercy on us the
sinners.