The Pastoral Trials of 1949 in the Foreign Press

Western journalism, even in the days before the pastors’ trial, widely covered the event in the reactionary press, making an unsuccessful attempt to present it as a campaign against churches and religion in a socialist country. The trial was attended by representatives of the American and British legations in Sofia, the agencies “United Press”, “Reuters”, “Telepress”, “International News Service”, the newspaper “New York Times”, etc. In the photo: a group of foreign journalists and Pastor Chambers (in the middle of the first row) during the trial. 

The Milwaukee Journal – January 12, 1949 – Preachers Arrested in Bulgaria

Ottawa Citizen – February 8, 1949 Protestant Leaders Indicted in Bulgaria

Lodi News-Sentinel – February 11, 1949 – Bulgaria Arrests 15 Protestant Pastors

The Free Lance-Star – February 11, 1949 – 15 Pastors in Bulgaria Officially Tried for Treason

Ottawa Citizen – February 12, 1949 Geneva, World Council of Churches: Bulgarian charges dismissed

The Evening Independent – ​​February 12, 1949 – Council of Churches denies espionage allegations

Gettysburg Times – February 17, 1949 – Bulgaria Tries 15 Protestant Pastors on February 25

The Evening Independent – ​​February 17, 1949 – Bulgaria forms new national Orthodox church

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette – February 22, 1949 – 15 Protestant Pastors Charged with Espionage

Schenectady Gazette – February 24, 1949 – Bulgaria Rejects American Protests Against Pastoral Arrests

The Milwaukee Journal – February 24, 1949 – Bulgarian Bible Believers Under Fire in Red-Dominated Country

The Deseret News – February 25, 1949 – Church leader asks for prayer for Reds victims

The Deseret News – February 25, 1949 – Associated Press: Two Bulgarian Pastors Plead Guilty

The Evening Independent – ​​February 26, 1949 Third Church Leader Pleads Guilty

The Deseret News – February 26, 1949 – Chief defendant pleads guilty – third plea in just two days

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette – February 26, 1949 – 5 Pastors Plead Guilty in Bulgaria

The Milwaukee Journal – February 28, 1949 – More officials plead guilty to espionage – five Bulgarian pastors tell of relationships with Americans

The Pittsburgh Press – February 28, 1949 – Russia Questions Religion and Patriotism

The Milwaukee Journal – March 1, 1949 – All Plead Guilty in the Pastoral Trials in Bulgaria

The Pittsburgh Press – March 1, 1949 – 15 pastors plead guilty in Bulgaria – all but one plead guilty

St. Petersburg Times – March 2, 1949 – Prosecutors testify in Bulgarian spy trials after defendants’ confessions

Prescott Evening Courier – March 2, 1949 – Bulgaria Suddenly Stops 42 Testimonies

St. Petersburg Times – March 4, 1949 – The Church in Bulgaria is Repressed

The Telegraph – March 5, 1949 – Trial in Bulgaria ends with pleas for mercy

The Pittsburgh Press – March 6, 1949 – 15 Protestant pastors in Bulgaria stand in the dock to plead for their lives

The Glasgow Herald – March 12, 1949 – Bulgarian trials in doubt – confessions in question 

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette – April 7, 1949 – Pastoral trials have repercussions at the UN

The Milwaukee Journal – April 30, 1949 – Bulgarian Church Severs Ties with Methodism

The Pittsburgh Press – May 1, 1949 – UN Condemns Charges Against Churches

Sarasota Journal – January 22, 1969 – Pastor Dr. Ladin Popov – Bulgarian Billy Graham to preach on Wednesday

The Evening Independent – ​​February 24, 1973 – H. Popov to preach after 13 years behind the Iron Curtain

Schenectady Gazette – January 22, 1985 – Rev. Kulichev’s Bulgarian Church Does Not Accept a State Pastor