Parliament Chair: Bulgaria's Christianization in 9th Century Is Cause for Reflection

Nikolay Zabov, Nikol Nikolova, Antonii Dimov

From left: Deputy PM Atanas Zafirov, VP Iliana Iotova, Parliament Chair Nataliya Kiselova facing a member of the Bulgarian Orthdox Church, Pliska, May 2, 2025 (National Assembly Photo)

Pliska, Northeastern Bulgaria,

02.05.2025 21:38

(BTA)

Parliament Chair Nataliya Kiselova told reporters here on Friday that the anniversary of Bulgaria's Christianization is major cause for reflection, as King Boris I, Bulgaria's ruler in the 9th century, made a decision that would affect his heirs but, more importantly, that would change the course of history.

Kiselova attended a solemn service on the occasion of the 1,160th anniversary of the conversion of the Bulgarian people and the 1,170th anniversary of the creation of the Bulgarian alphabet. The service organized by the Varna and Veliki Preslav Metropolitanates was held at the Great Basilica in Pliska.

The Parliament Chair said that the Bulgarian Orthodox Church who organized the service should be supported, as it turns the focus not just to Orthodoxy, but to Bulgaria's choice to take a path that would eventually unite the three major ethnic groups that made up the first Bulgarian state (existing between 681 and 1018).

The service in Pliska was held by Patriarch Daniil. Among the attendees was Vice President Iliana Iotova.

From left: Deputy PM Atanas Zafirov, VP Iliana Iotova, Parliament Chair Nataliya Kiselova facing a member of the Bulgarian Orthdox Church, Pliska, May 2, 2025 (National Assembly Photo)

/NF/