President Rosen Plevneliev awarded the Secretary of State of the Vatican Cardinal Pietro Parolin the Stara Planina order first class for his contribution to the development of the relations between the Republic of Bulgaria and the Holy See. At the solemn ceremony held at 2 Dondukov street the Head of State voiced his contentment with the visit of His Eminence and of a delegation of the Holy See in Bulgaria and said that these visits are a clear illustration of the friendly feelings and relations of mutual trust and cooperation between Bulgaria and the Vatican.
The President voiced his gratitude for the responsiveness and support of the Holy See for the efforts to obtain a new church for the Bulgarian divine service in Rome and for continuing the annual audience given by the Pope to Bulgarian top-level delegations. The Head of State accepted the invitation of Cardinal Pietro Parolin to lead the Bulgarian delegation to the Vatican at the worship before the sacred to the Bulgarians places in Rome on the occasion of 24 May – the Day of Bulgarian education and culture and of the Slavic alphabet.
President Plevneliev highlighted the important role of the Catholic community in Bulgaria at historic moments for our people and recalled that the relations between Bulgaria and the Holy See have a thousand-year-old history. “We will always remember that Angelo Roncalli – Pope John XXIII served as an apostolic delegate in Sofia and left a vivid memory of his charitable work among the Bulgarians at a very difficult moment for our history,” the Head of State added. The President also recalled the fond memory of the visit of the Holy Pope John Paul II in Bulgaria and invited Pope Francis to visit our country soon.
“The Republic of Bulgaria actively supports the efforts of the international community to keep up the dialogue among civilizations, religions and cultures. We share the concerns of Pope Francis and the Holy See about all those suffering from conflicts in the Middle East, Syria, Ukraine and all other areas of crisis in the world,” the Head of State further said. The President highlighted that our country is a symbol of peaceful coexistence between religions, of tolerance and understanding between the religious communities. “We share common holidays and a common future,” the Head of State said in his statement.
“Bulgaria highly appreciates the relations with the Holy See and sincerely hopes that the excellent dialogue will continue in the future and so will the ambition to build a more humane world which will protect the weak and vulnerable,” President Rosen Plevneliev further said and wished Cardinal Pietro Parolin energy and success in his highly noble mission.
“I accept this high award as a recognition of the contribution of the Holy See to the international community and to establishing good relations with all countries, including Bulgaria,” Secretary of State of the Vatican Cardinal Pietro Parolin said for his part, after being awarded the high state order by President Rosen Plevneliev. His Eminence highlighted the important moments in Bulgaria’s history, which led to the freedom and independence of the Bulgarian statehood.
“Bulgaria has always been at a crossroads, where different people met each other. The battles of the past are a reminder that these encounters were not always easy and we should never underestimate the challenges they bring. However, Bulgaria has a long tradition of harmony and dialogue among different groups and religions. In this respect I highly appreciate the President’s commitment to preserving this noble tradition,” Cardinal Parolin said. “I hope that your country will continue to maintain the generous spirit of hospitality and openness and so will benefit from the enrichment which the different always bring,” the Secretary of State of the Vatican said and pronounced a blessing on the whole Bulgarian people.