An unusual religious and cultural conflict has erupted in Edirne, Turkey, after the Bulgarian Orthodox community decided to suspend religious services in its churches, following a clash over the use of the Greek language during the celebrations of Saint George.
According to the Bulgarian news agency BTA, tensions began at the Bulgarian Orthodox Church of St. George the Victorious, where hundreds of Bulgarian believers had traveled for the traditional feast of St. George. The conflict erupted after a Greek metropolitan, sent by the Ecumenical Patriarchate, demanded that the liturgy be held in Greek.
This caused an immediate reaction from Bulgarian believers, who objected, arguing that a Bulgarian church should hold mass in Bulgarian and not in Greek, which most of them do not understand.
The head of the Foundation of Orthodox Churches of the Bulgarian Exarchate in Istanbul, Dimitri Yotef, stated that the community had traveled to Edirne specifically for the traditional service in Bulgarian, but had been informed that the ceremony would be conducted only by Greek clergy.
"This is a Bulgarian church and we believe that services should be held in Bulgarian," he said.
Following the incident, the Bulgarian community decided to temporarily suspend services in both Bulgarian churches in Edirne, although they will remain open for private visits and prayers.
Bulgarian officials also intervened in the debate. The Consul General of Bulgaria in Edirne, Radoslava Kafedzhiyska, stated that the problem is related to the community's right to practice religion in its own language.
"In Turkey, services in every church or place of worship are held in the language of the respective community," she said.
After long debates and pressure from believers, part of the prayers was finally read in Bulgarian.
The incident has revived old tensions between the Bulgarian Orthodox community and the Ecumenical Patriarchate over the administration of Bulgarian churches in Edirne and the use of Greek in liturgy. According to community representatives, in the Bulgarian churches of Istanbul, masses are normally held in Bulgarian and Greek is used only during the visits of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I.
