Sofia marked May 24, the Day of the Bulgarian Alphabet, Education and Culture, and Slavic Literature, with a festive procession, prayer service, and public celebrations.
Patriarch Daniel of Bulgaria presided over the Divine Liturgy at the metropolitan church of Saint Nedelya in the Bulgarian capital and later joined the traditional procession through the city center.
Among those attending were Vice President Iliana Yotova, Speaker of the National Assembly Michaela Dotsova, Mayor of Sofia Vasil Terziev, government ministers, members of parliament, representatives of Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski,” and hundreds of citizens.
The procession passed by the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences and Sofia University before reaching the National Library “Saints Cyril and Methodius.” Participating in the procession were the Guards Brass Band, representatives of educational and cultural institutions, teachers, students, and seminarians from the Sofia Theological Seminary.
The official ceremony in front of the National Library began with a prayer service led by Patriarch Daniel, concelebrated by Bishop Gerasim of Melnik, Chief Secretary of the Holy Synod, clergy from Sofia, and protodeacons Ivan Petkov and Deyan Korunoski.
Addresses were also delivered by Vice President Iliana Yotova, Mayor Vasil Terziev, and writer Angel Igov.
In his address, Patriarch Daniel highlighted the importance of the Bulgarian language and the spiritual legacy of Saints Cyril and Methodius.
“Today we are not commemorating merely historical events of the past, but celebrating our own spiritual enlightenment. Today we celebrate the unique opportunity to create in our native language, to write and read using an alphabet created by holy men, and to participate in dialogue with other peoples and cultures with dignity, without a sense of inferiority, but with grateful awareness of our participation in the thousand-year-old Christian spiritual and literary tradition,” he said.
He noted that the work of Saints Cyril and Methodius and their disciples continues to serve as a spiritual guide for Bulgarian society.
Vice President Iliana Yotova stressed the importance of preserving the Bulgarian language, describing it as a source of national unity and identity.
The celebrations also included performances by students and a concert in front of the Saint Alexander Nevsky Memorial Cathedral.
Text and photos: Angel Karadakov
