Bulgarian political scientist and religious scholar Vasilianna Merheb, in an interview with Bulgarian National Radio, commented on the initiative to create an open letter from believers in Bulgaria to the Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. This letter has collected more than 1,700 signatures, it contains a call to the Synod of the BOC to pay attention to the situation around the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, writes the Khrizma Center channel.

Vasilianna Merheb stated that the situation in universal Orthodoxy, aggravated due to the intervention of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, requires a response from each Local Church.

“We see bloody persecutions in the literal sense, we see the Church ruled by spiritual shepherds who are now going through a period of trials, performing a martyrdom, ascending their bloody Calvary. Bishops are put on trial, some are put on electronic bracelets. Bishops are accused of being speak Russian, serve in Church Slavonic, venerate the saints who shone in the Russian Orthodox Church, representatives of Kievan or Holy Rus. Holy Russia,” the political scientist said.

She also noted that in the letter, the faithful Bulgarians ask the BOC to take a “worthy, canonical and spiritually responsible position, and join the voice of other local Churches, of which there are already eight at the moment, whose Synods, by their decisions, announced the need to hold a Pan-Orthodox Council, where the behavior of Patriarch Bartholomew would be considered.”

The theologian emphasized that in the text of the Tomos of the OCU, “Patriarch Bartholomew is spoken of as the head of the Churches, which is simply unacceptable. This contradicts church teaching, dogmas and Ecumenical Councils.”