Bulgarian Orthodox Church

Bulgaria's Prime Minister Boyko Borisov has been handed out the Order of St King Boris the Baptizer, the highest order awarded by the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, the government press service has said.

The award is usually given to politicians and orthodox church leaders who are considered to have significant contribution to the development of the church.

The Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church has proposed a better promotion of the country's sacred sites to tourists and their inclusion in pilgrimage routes.

These issues were raised during the meeting of representatives of the Holy Synod, including Bulgaria's Patriarch Neofit, and Tourism Minister Nikolina Angelkova, daily Dnevnik reports.

Bulgaria holds a day of national mourning for late Bulgarian President Zhelyu Zhelev.

Zhelev, a dissident who served as Bulgaria's first democratically elected president (1990-1997) after the fall of communism, passed away on Friday at the age of 79.

Bulgarian national flags at all state institutions will be flown at half-mast.

Patriarch Neofit, the head of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, is serving the traditional Christmas Day service at the St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in Sofia.

Neofit is casting a prayer for good health and long lives and with a blessing to all Bulgarian Orthodox Christians around the world.

The Bulgarian Orthodox Church honors on Thursday Michaelmas, the feast of St Michael the Archangel, or the feast of Michael and All Angels.

In the Christian Orthodox calendar Michaelmas falls on November 8.

The Bulgarian Police celebrate the day of Archangel Michael or Michaelmas as their professional holiday.

The Bulgarian Orthodox Church demanded the cancellation of the Sofia Pride 2014 gay parade, due to take place this Saturday. 

In a statement the Church urged the state and city institutions, as well as the organizers of the event, to cancel “this march of proud sin” and the accompanying events and exhibitions, because of their “unnatural and dissolute nature”. 

Bulgaria's Prosecutor's Office probes the hacking of Bulgarian Orthodox Church and the resulting “death sentences” from nationalist organizations, reports Dnevnik.bg.

The official website of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church was hacked by the Turkish organization Milli Gucler on Thursday.

The home page displays the Turkish flag and the following text: “The official website of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church is hit in response to the vandal attack on the Djumaya mosque in Plovdiv. 

Bulgaria's Patriarch Neofit will leave on a one-week official visit to Russia, said the Holy Synod of Bulgarian Orthodox Church. 

He will be accompanied by four bishops – of Lovech, Vidin, Varna and Ruse. 

Bulgaria and Macedonia will hold for the first time a joint event to mark the annual celebrations of the Slavic Script and Culture.

On May 11, Archbishop Stefan, head of the Macedonian Orthodox Church, and the chair of Macedonia's Academy of Science Vlado Kambovski are due to arrive in Sofia, CROSS agency has reported.