Bulgaria Mourns

Bulgaria mourns after a fatal crash near the town Yambol killed 17 people and injured dozens more on Thursday.

May 28th is celebrated in the Eastern Orthodox tradition as the Feast of the Ascension of Jesus Christ. On this day, it is tradition to take a pilgrimage to your local monastery.  A bus, after taking people to the Yambol monastery at the Bakadjik Mountain, lost control due to break failure and ran over some 30 people on its way downhill. Eleven women, four men and one boy were propounded dead at the scene of the crash. One more died in the hospital and a dozen others are in critical condition. Yambol is also the city which we make our base location while we minister in Bulgaria.

All political parties have canceled their election campaigns for the upcoming European Parliament elections on June 5, 2009, as the Bulgarian government has called for a weekend of national mourning. Five of the deceased were buried today and more funerals are scheduled for Sunday. The town streets are empty as just the church bells repetitively announce the passing of the funeral processions.

Please pray for the families of the deceased and for the country of Bulgaria. The timing of this unfortunate event could not be more devastating, as many Bulgarian churches are planning to participate in the Global Day of Prayer this Sunday May 31, 2009. Cup & Cross Ministries International will also broadcast the Global Day of Prayer from Bulgaria LIVE via our website www.bibliata.com.