An historic journey” “

The Pope chose Bulgaria as the destination of his 96th apostolic journey. It’s a country with only some 80,000 Catholics. So, after Romania and Greece, the Pope once again visited an Orthodox country in the Balkans, a region of Europe that marks an important stage in the Holy Father’s pilgrimage towards Russia and its patriarch Alexis II. But it should not be forgotten, either, that it’s also John Paul II’s desire to visit Belgrade and the Serb patriarch Pavel. For Bulgaria, from this point of view, John Paul II’s journey represented an historic event: he is the first Pope ever to have visited the country. And as the president of the Bulgarian Episcopal Conference, and Apostolic Exarch of Sofia, Christo Proykov, more than once emphasized, the visit occurred at just the right time: it would not have been possible before, and would not have had the same consequences after. In the years of Communism – which determined the life of Bulgaria till 1989 – the Pope’s visit would have been ideologically inconceivable. After the collapse of the Berlin wall, the Bulgarian episcopate invited the Holy Father. But for this to take place, further time had to pass – and the full re-establishment of democratic government. It was also necessary that the division of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church should first enter a period of calm and that the Synod of patriarch Maxime should meet with the support – for the time being verbal – from prime minister Simeon Saxcobourgotski. The Pope’s visit to Bulgaria could thus take place in a moment of relative tranquillity in the country’s domestic affairs. At the international level too, the time was propitious. Bulgaria is a temporary member of the UN Security Council. She hopes to be able to enter the European Union and NATO. And in some sense John Paul II’s visit helped to raise Bulgaria’s authority in the eyes of the world. All this is a fact. But there’s more: Bulgaria had to wait twenty years before a Western authority declared that the country is innocent of the attempt on the Pope’s life. And John Paul II himself said he had never believed that the Bulgarians has organized the assassination. Another historic event, applauded by the whole people. For the Catholic minority, the Pope’s presence animated and strengthened their faith. The 350 children who received their first communion under the eyes of the Holy Father, will remember this moment for the whole of their life. And the statue of John XXIII blessed by John Paul II will testify, in front of Sofia cathedral, to the journey made by the two popes who passed through our country. The beatification of the three Bulgarian martyrs – the priests Kamen Vitchev, Pavel Djidjov and Robert Matei Shishkov – also assures us today of the aid and intercession of our brothers in the faith, shot for their faith in 1952. From the point of view of ecumenical dialogue, the problems especially exist at the hierarchical level. A millennium has gone by since the schism between the two Churches and if it’s true that the wall between West and East was built by human hands, it’s also true that these same hands can demolish it. Years will no doubt have to pass before we are able to appreciate all the fruits borne by the visit of John Paul II to Bulgaria. Just a few hours after its end, however, some results can already be glimpsed. First, the fact that the Bulgarian media paid special attention to the Catholic Church. and that seldom happens. Second, it may be said that, thanks to the Pope’s visit, the majority of Bulgarians understood that Catholics are Christians and that the differences between Catholics and Orthodox are less than what it is that unites them. Third, the Bulgarian authorities gave proof of a great respect for the Pope, and Catholics now hope that this respect may enduringly characterize future relations.