Bulgarian Orthodox Church

Patriarchate of Bulgaria
Българска патриаршия
TypeEastern Orthodox
OrientationEastern Christianity
ScriptureSeptuagint, New Testament
TheologyEastern Orthodox theology
PrimateVacant
Bishops15
Priests1,500
Parishes2,600
Monasteries120
LanguageBulgarian and Old Church Slavonic (Old Bulgarian)
HeadquartersAlexander Nevsky Cathedral, Sofia, Bulgaria
TerritoryBulgaria
PossessionsUnited States, Canada, Australia, European Union, Argentina, Russia, Greece, Turkey
FounderSaint Andrew,
Boris I of Bulgaria
Independence870–1018
1185–1393
1018–1767
1870–present
Recognition870 (Autonomy)
927 (Patriarchate)[1][better source needed]
1235 (Patriarchate)
1945 (Autocephaly)
1953 (Patriarchate)
SeparationsOld Calendar Bulgarian Orthodox Church (early 20th century)
Bulgarian Orthodox Church – Alternative synod (1996)
Members7–8 million
Official websiteBulgarian Orthodox Church

The Bulgarian Orthodox Church (Bulgarian: Българска православна църква, romanizedBûlgarska pravoslavna cûrkva), legally the Patriarchate of Bulgaria (Bulgarian: Българска патриаршия, romanized: Bûlgarska patriarshiya), is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox jurisdiction based in Bulgaria. It is the first medieval recognised patriarchate outside the Pentarchy and the oldest Slavic Orthodox church, with some 6 million members in Bulgaria and between 1.5 and 2 million members in a number of other European countries, Asia, the Americas, Australia, and New Zealand. It was recognized as autocephalous in 1945 by the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.[2]

  1. ^ Kiminas, Demetrius (2009-03-01). The Ecumenical Patriarchate. Wildside Press LLC. p. 15. ISBN 978-1-4344-5876-6.)
  2. ^ Ecumenical Patriarchate, ECUMENICAL PATRIARCHATE-Patriarchate of Bulgaria (in Greek), accessed 30 April 2020