The Bulgarian Easter
Bulgaria became a Christian country in 864 AD. under the reign of Kniaz Boris I. However, in the middle of the 19th century, Bulgaria was under Ottoman oppression and under the influence of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchy which dictated the religious expression of the Bulgarian church.
On April 3, 1860, during Easter Sunday service in Constantinople, the Bulgarian bishop Illusion of Makariopol expressed the will of the whole Bulgarian people by solemnly proclaiming the separation of the Bulgarian church from the patriarchal in Constantinople. The day commemorating the Resurrection of Jesus Christ coincided with the resuscitation of the Bulgarian people. However, the struggle continued for another ten years when Russia forced Turkey to legally recognize the independence of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. In 1870 a firman of the sultan decreed the establishment of an autonomous Bulgarian church institution – the Bulgarian exarchate.
Bulgarian Churches in America
For almost ten years, Cup & Cross Ministries has worked extensively in providing research and strategy materials for the growing number of Bulgarian Protestant churches across the United States. We are proud to announce that our team has been chosen to conduct this year’s annual conference for the Bulgarian American Churches which will taka place in Minneapolis.
How to Start a Bulgarian Church A-Z
Dissertation: Statement of Problem
Dissertation: Contextual Assessment
Bulgarian Evangelical Alliance
After more than thirteen years of democracy in Bulgaria and after fifty years of Communist persecution, the Bulgarian Evangelical Alliance is again officially recognized. The first documents for the existing of the organization are dated from the end of the 19th century. A 1909 document states that in September of the same year the Bulgarian Evangelical Alliance held a national conference. The Alliance was formed by the Baptist, Methodist and Congregational churches in Bulgaria including the Theological Seminary in Samokov, the Bulgarian Bible Society and the Society of Bible Distributors as associate member. According to some testimonies, the Alliance was a member of the European Evangelical Alliance; however, no official documentation to prove this was preserved. During the Communist Regime in Bulgaria, the Evangelical Alliance was outlawed. In December of 1989, the Bulgarian Evangelical churches formed an initiative committee to prepare the new bylaws of the Alliance and to encourage the Evangelical churches to work together. The 1989 founding member-churches of the Alliance were Baptist Union, Assemblies of God, Congregations, Methodist and Bulgarian Church of God. The Bulgarian Evangelical Alliance is an official member of the European and World Evangelical Alliances.
Bulgarian Pentecostals Called to Fast
The national leadership of the Bulgarian Pentecostal churches announced national days for fasting and prayer. The announcement includes chain fasting and a night of prayer in the local churches, as well as a national prayer and fasting event for pastors which will take place in November, 2003. It purposes empowering of a new spiritual vision for ministry. The prayer requests include:
1. Spiritual renewal of believers and churches.
2. Infilling with the Spirit for ministry through the spiritual gifts.
3. Positive church influence among the Bulgarian community.
4. Spiritual and financial prosperity for the churches.
5. All elected in leadership in the church and the nation.
6. Successful mission work according to the Great Commission (Mt. 28:19-20).
7. Anointing in the evangelism and preaching, confirmed by spiritual fruits, new converts and supernatural signs and wonders.
Bulgarian Evangelical Churches in America
According to the Bulgarian National Statistical Institute more than one million people have left Bulgaria in the past 13 years to find jobs and better life in another country. The largest Bulgarian immigrant group lives in Germany (23%), while another 20% are in North America. As a result, in the 1990s, several large Bulgarian communities have emerged in the United States: Chicago with close to 60, 000 Bulgarians is followed by New York and the Washington, D.C. – Maryland area. On the West Coast, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Las Vegas have been choices for immigration for several years. Besides these cities Bulgarian communities have grown in less expected places like deep-south Atlanta, northern Seattle, coastal Miami and deep in the heart of Texas (Dallas, Houston), etc. Respectfully, Bulgarian protestant churches have appeared in these centers of concentration of Bulgarian immigrants. They have begun their existence as a home prayer group, cross-cultural outreach of a large local church, or even as independent ethnic works under the umbrella of an established denomination. At this present time the Bulgarian protestant churches in America are represented by 14 churches and groups in nine states. They have become the forming historical factor for the Network of Bulgarian Churches in America.
Since 1994, Cup & Cross Ministries International has actively observed the formation of Bulgarian Evangelical Churches in America. In 2003, we are completing a survey to evaluate and study the processes within these churches. This particular portion of the survey explores the American cultural context in which Bulgarian congregations may emerge. The survey is anonymous and confidential. It contains 15 questions and it takes less than a minute to complete online. Please take the time to fill out survey by going to the following link:
http://www.cupandcross.com/survey
Thank you for helping us advance the Kingdom.
