Today, in the Bulgarian church "St. Stephen" on the shore of the Golden Horn in Istanbul, a liturgical ordination of the episcopal throne of His Holiness will take place during the matins of the feast of St. Stephen and the Holy Liturgy, presided over by Bulgarian Patriarch Daniel in conjunction with Metropolitan Emmanuel of Chalcedon, Metropolitan Maxim of Silivria, Metropolitan Anthony of Western and Central Europe and Metropolitan John of Varna and Veliko Preslav, Protodeacon Deyan Korunoski and Deacon Julian Perikliev. Bulgarian Patriarch Daniil is on an official visit to Istanbul at the invitation of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, which began on December 25 and will end on December 28 this year. Vice President Iliana Yotova will also be a guest at the temple celebration.
Today's visit to the Iron Church will be the first visit of Bulgarian Patriarch and Metropolitan of Sofia Daniil after his election as head of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church.
„The Bulgarian community in Istanbul awaits with joy and excitement His Holiness Bulgarian Patriarch Daniil in the temple „St. Stephen“, which he will visit today. For the first time, His Holiness will participate in a service in the Iron Church. It is the most precious temple of the Bulgarians of Constantinople, which we protect like the apple of our eye. That is why today's visit of the Bulgarian Patriarch Daniil, with which we also celebrate the patronal feast of our church, has a very important meaning – it is a feast for our small but united Bulgarian community“, said the chairman of the Bulgarian church board, Archon Dimitri Yotef, to BTA on the occasion of today's event.
In his words, the holy liturgy in the church “St. Stephen“ will be very solemn and will be honored by Orthodox Christians.
“As a church board, we have prepared very carefully for this remarkable event. We want to introduce His Holiness to the community of Bulgarians in Istanbul, to the way of life, culture, Christian traditions that we preserve and pass on to generations, the care we take for the Bulgarian churches in Istanbul and in Edirne. We are very happy and expect the blessing of the Bulgarian Patriarch, because we, as a Bulgarian community, are the heirs of the faith and traditions of Bulgarianness, which we preserve in the Iron Church, in the Exarchate and pass on to the generations. And we say with deep respect “Welcome“ to His Holiness the Bulgarian Patriarch Daniil in the unique Bulgarian temple “St. Stephen“, said Dimitri Yotef.
After the holy liturgy in “St. Stephen“ Bulgarian Patriarch Daniil will participate in a meeting organized by the Bulgarian-speaking community in the Bulgarian Exarchate in the Şişli district of Istanbul.
The Church “St. Stephen“ in Istanbul, also known as the Iron Church, is one of the holy sites of the Bulgarian cultural and historical heritage in Turkey. The foundation stone was laid in 1891. It is the only Orthodox church of its kind in the world, built entirely of iron at the end of the 19th century. After a complete restoration, carried out with funding from the Turkish and Bulgarian states, in January 2018 the Iron Church reopened its doors. The church is one of the symbols and main tourist and architectural landmarks of the metropolis, which is visited by millions of tourists. It has been declared the most beautiful church in Turkey.