With new patriarch, Bulgarian Orthodox Church turns toward Moscow
Top Stories Tamfitronics ISTANBUL (RNS) — A tense election in the Bulgarian Orthodox Church on Sunday (June 30) ended with the enthronement of Metropolitan Daniil of Vidin as the new metropolitan of Sofia and patriarch of all Bulgaria, giving the Russian Orthodox Church in Moscow an apparent ally as the church and its sponsor, Vladimir Putin, look to strengthen its influence in the Balkans.A 52-year-old former monk, Daniil was elected by just three votes over his main competitor, Metropolitan Grigori of Vratsa, by the 140 lay and clerical delegates on the church’s electoral council. At 52, just two years older than the minimum age church law allows for the Patriarch, Daniil will likely hold the post for many years.Since the outbreak of full-scale war between Russia and Ukraine in 2022, churches across Eastern Europe have...