Bulgaria–Holy See relations
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 Bulgaria |
 Holy See |
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Bulgaria–Holy See relations were formally established in 1990, shortly after the fall of the
The Holy See maintains an
History
The two states have historically had distant relations due to the split between the
Shortly after World War II, the Communist Party of Bulgaria initially showed benevolence towards Catholic organizations in the country prior to the signing of the Paris Peace Treaty to demonstrate its democratic values to the Western Allies. But after the signing the new government began its crackdown on Catholic organizations, justifying it by claiming that the Catholic Church in Bulgaria backed reactionary anti-democratic opposition. At an Orthodox conference in Moscow, in July 1948, they accused the Roman Holy See of supporting Italian fascism and called for the abrogation of concordats with the Catholic Church. In a letter to the Vatican Secretary of State, Foreign Minister Vasil Kolarov declared that Bulgaria no longer recognized the Holy See and that its apostolic delegation had no legal status.[4]
Relations between the Holy See and Bulgaria were tense during the communist era, though
Papal Visits to Bulgaria
- Pope John Paul II
- 23 – 26 May 2002 – Sofia, Plovdiv and Rila Monastery
See also
References
- ^ Embassy of Bulgaria in Vatican, Holy See (Vatican City). Embassy Pages. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
- ^ a b c Pavlova, Ekatarina (July 2, 2016). 25 Years of Diplomatic Relations Between Bulgaria and the Holy See. Diplomatic Spectrum. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
- ^ Apostolic Nunciature of the Holy See (Vatican City) in Sofia, Bulgaria. Embassy Pages. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
- ^ a b Leuștean, Lucian (2014). Eastern Christianity and Politics in the Twenty-First Century.