Send to Kindle
Bishop Kiril's fancy and controversial Lincoln MKZ. Photo by DarikNews.
Interim Bulgarian Orthodox Church Patriarch Kiril appeared in front of believers in Varna gathered for the major St Jordan's Day in his controversial Lincoln MKZ hybrid car.
The Varna Metropolitan Bishop sprinkled the congregation with holy water, reaching from within his luxury vehicles, report several Bulgarian media outlets.
Sunday Bulgarians are celebrating the church holiday of Epiphany, also dubbed St Jordan's day by Orthodox Christians.
On Epiphany, Christians mark the day the Holy Spirit appeared over the child Jesus, giving a sign that he is the Son of God.
Orthodox Christian tradition stresses that this happened when Jesus was baptized by St John the Baptist in the Jordan river.
In Bulgaria, a traditional ritual is observed, in which a priest throws a golden cross in a local river, lake or the sea, and young men jump in the icy water to retrieve it.
Varna Metropolitan Bishop Kiril attracted much controversy in the end of 2011, when he appeared to service with a brand new Lincoln MKZ, apparently commissioned even before being officially released in European markets.
In November 2012, Kiril was elected interim Bulgarian Patriarch after the death of longtime Patriarch Maxim from old age.
Today, approximately a third of Orthodox Christians worldwide are marking Christmas Eve, as they observe the holiday on January 7, according to the Julian calendar
Today, Bulgaria celebrates Epiphany, one of the most significant Christian holidays, marked with solemn church services across the country
The "Blue Zone" paid parking system in Varna resumed operation this morning after being temporarily unavailable
A family from Varna is blaming the medical team from the Emergency Medical Care Center for the death of their one-year-old child
The paid "blue zone" parking service in Varna will cease operations on December 16
Wizz Air has announced four new routes from Varna for the summer 2025 season
Flu cases are on the rise in Bulgaria, with certain regions expected to soon reach epidemic levels
The mayors of the Karnobat and Ruen municipalities in the Burgas region have declared January 13 a non-school day due to severe weather conditions
The weather in Bulgaria on January 13 will bring snow to the southern regions, with significant accumulations expected in mountainous areas such as the Rila-Rhodope massif
Hospitals in major Bulgarian cities like Sofia, Pleven, Plovdiv, and Blagoevgrad have been found to be draining funds from the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF)
Several Bulgarian municipalities have adjusted their local taxes and fees for 2025
Insurers have expressed concerns about a potential rise in the cost of "Civil Liability" insurance for car owners in Bulgaria
Bulgaria's Perperikon: A European Counterpart to Peru's Machu Picchu
Bulgarians Among EU's Least Frequent Vacationers, Struggling with Affordability
