The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, His All Holiness Bartholomew I, on Sunday officiated at the Divine Liturgy at the St. John of Rilas cathedral in the Sisli district, used serves the expatriate Bulgarian community in the Bosporus metropolis.
The Divine Liturgy was celebrated on the eve of the Feast Day of St. John of Rilas, who founded the renowned monastery of that name in Bulgaria in the 10 century.
The service was also attended by the visiting Metropolitan of France, His Eminence Emanuel, and numerous faithful of the Bulgarian community.
His All Holiness emphasized the standing and unwavering interest of the Mother Church for its spiritual offspring Churches.
