Ὁμιλία τῆς Α.Θ.Παναγιότητος τοῦ Οἰκουμενικοῦ Πατριάρχου κ.κ. Βαρθολομαίου κατά τήν Ἐξόδιον Ἀκολουθίαν τοῦ μακαριστοῦ Πατριάρχου Σόφιας καί πάσης Βουλγαρίας Νεοφύτου (Σόφια, 16 Μαρτίου 2024)

Μακαριώτατε καὶ Ἱερώτατοι ἐκπρόσωποι τῶν κατὰ τόπους ἁγίων τοῦ Θεοῦ Ἐκκλησιῶν,
Σεβασμιώτατε Μητροπολῖτα Βάρνης καὶ Μεγάλης Πρεσλάβας κ. Ἰωάννη, Ἀντιπροέδρε τῆς Ἱερᾶς Συνόδου τῆς ἐν Βουλγαρίᾳ Ἐκκλησίας καὶ λοιποὶ τιμιώτατοι Ἀδελφοὶ Ἱεράρχαι,
Ἐξοχώτατε Πρόεδρε τῆς Δημοκρατίας κ. Ροῦμεν Ράντεφ,
Ἐξοχώτατε Πρωθυπουργὲ κ. Νικολάϊ Ντένκοφ καὶ λοιποὶ Ἐκλαμπρότατοι Ἄρχοντες τῆς Χώρας,
Τιμιώτατοι Ἐκπρόσωποι λοιπῶν Χριστιανικῶν Δογμάτων καὶ τῶν Θρησκειῶν,
Ἐξοχώτατοι Ἐκπρόσωποι τῶν ἐνταῦθα Διπλωματικῶν Ἀποστολῶν,
Εὐλαβέστατοι Κληρικοὶ παντὸς βαθμοῦ καὶ Ὁσιώτατοι Μοναχοὶ καὶ Μοναχαί,
Προσφιλέστατα τέκνα τῆς ἐν Σόφιᾳ καὶ πάσῃ τῇ Θεοσώστῳ Χώρᾳ τῆς Βουλγαρίᾳς ἁγίας Ὀρθοδόξου Ἐκκλησίας!

«Κατέπαυσεν  Ἰακὼβ ἐπιτάσσων τοῖς υἱοῖς αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐξάρας τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τὴν κλίνην ἐξέλιπεν καὶ προσετέθη πρὸς τὸν λαὸν αὐτοῦ» (Γεν. 49, 33). 

Τὸ αὐτὸ συνέβη ἤδη καὶ μὲ τὸν νέον Ἰακὼβ τοῦ εὐσεβοῦς Βουλγαρικοῦ λαοῦ, τὸν σεπτὸν Πατριάρχην τῆς Χάριτος κυρὸν Νεό-φυτον, τὸν σεβάσμιον καὶ πεφιλημένον ἡμῖν Ἀδελφὸν ἐν Κυρίῳ καὶ Συλλειτουργὸν, μετὰ ἀπὸ τετράμηνόν που ἐν τῇ νοσοκομειακῇ κλίνῃ ἐν ἀσθενείᾳ σώματος κατάκλισιν! Ὁ ἀπὸ Φεβρουαρίου τοῦ 2013 σωτηρίου ἔτους τρίτος Πατριάρχης πάσης Βουλγαρίας μετὰ τὴν ὕψωσιν τῆς Ἁγιωτάτης Ἐκκλησίας τῆς Χώρας εἰς Πατριαρχικὴν περιωπὴν καὶ ἀξίαν, μετὰ Κύριλλον καὶ Μάξιμον τοὺς ἀοιδίμους Πρωθιεράρχας, ὁ ἀπὸ Ἐπίσκοπος Λεύκης τὸ πρῶτον καὶ Δοροστόλου καὶ Τσερνόβου κατόπιν, καὶ Ροῦσε τῆς Παραδουναβίας Μητροπολίτης τέως, συμπληρώσας εὐόρκως ἥμισυ περίπου αἰῶνος τιμίας ἐκκλησιαστικῆς διακονίας, ἐπὶ εἴκοσι καὶ ὀκτὼ ἔτη θεοφιλῶς  ἀρχιερατεύσας καὶ ἐπὶ ἐνδεκαετίαν σεμνῶς πατριαρχεύσας, ἐξεμέτρησεν εἰρηνικῶς τὸ ἐπὶ γῆς ζῆν, εὐλογῶν μέχρι τέλους καὶ νουθετῶν καὶ ἐπιστηρίζων ὡς φιλόστοργος πατὴρ τὰ τέκνα του,

καὶ προσετέθη εἰς τοὺς ἀοιδίμους προκατόχους του καὶ τὸν ἐν οὐρανίαις μοναῖς ἐν χειρὶ Θεοῦ ἀξιονόμαστον λαόν του! Πένθους ὥρα, κατὰ τὸ ἀνθρώπινον! Ἐκκλησιαστικὸν καὶ Ἐθνικὸν πένθος διὰ τὴν Βουλγαρίαν! Ὀδυνηρὸς ὁ σωμα-τικὸς χωρισμὸς, σκληρὰ ἡ ὀρφανία, μεγάλη ἡ συγκίνησις! «Ἐπὶ νεκρῷ κλαῦσον καὶ κατάγαγε δάκρυα… καὶ ποίησον τὸ πένθος κατὰ τὴν ἀξίαν αὐτοῦ», προτρέπει ἡ Σοφία Σειρὰχ (22, 11 & 16-17). Πενθεῖτε οἱ ἀπορφανισθέντες Βούλγαροι Ὀρθόδοξοι ἀδελφοί, ἡ σεπτὴ Ἱεραρχία, ὁ εὐαγὴς Κλῆρος, οἱ εὐσεβεῖς Ἄρχοντες, οἱ ὁσιότροποι Μοναχοὶ καὶ αἱ σεμνόταται Μοναχαί, ἡ Θεολογικὴ Σχολὴ τοῦ Πανεπιστημίου τῆς Σόφιας, τῆς ὁποῖος πρῶτος Κοσμήτωρ διετέλεσε μετὰ τὴν ἀνασύστασίν της, καὶ οἱ ἀκαδημαϊκοὶ θεράποντες τῆς Θεολογίας, οἱ μύσται τῆς ἱερᾶς ἐκκλησιαστικῆς μουσικῆς, τῆς ὁποίας ὁ ἀοίδιμος ἦτο σπουδαῖος γνώστης καὶ διδάσκαλος καὶ ἡδύμολπος ἐκτελεστής, οἱ ἰατροὶ καὶ νοσηλευταὶ τῆς Στρατιωτικῆς Ἰατρικῆς Ἀκαδημίας τῆς Σόφιας, οἱ ὁποῖοι τὸν διηκόνησαν μετ᾽ ἐπιστήμης καὶ εὐλαβείας κατὰ τὴν ἀσθένειάν του καὶ ἐγένοντο μάρτυρες τῆς ταλαιπωρίας, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς καρτερίας του, ὁ πιστὸς καὶ χριστώνυμος λαός, οἱ πάντες! Ἀλλά, ὄχι μόνοι σας! Τὸ πένθος καὶ τὴν λύπην σας συμμεριζόμεθα ἅπαντες οἱ Ὀρθόδοξοι, ὅσοι «τὴν εὐσέβειαν μίαν καὶ τὴν αὐτὴν ὡς μητέρα κοινὴν ἔχομεν» (Ἅγ. Φιλόθεος Πατρ. Κωνσταντινουπόλεως, ὁ Κόκκινος), καὶ μάλιστα ἡ καθ᾽ ἡμᾶς Ἁγία τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐν Κωνσταντινουπόλει Μεγάλη Ἐκκλησία, ἡ κοινὴ ἡμῶν καὶ ὑμῶν πνευματικὴ Μήτηρ καὶ Τροφός! Καὶ τοῦτο ἀκριβῶς ὑπογραμμίζει ἡ ἐν μέσῳ ὑμῶν παρουσία καὶ συμπροσευχὴ ἐν τῇ ὥρᾳ ταύτῃ τοῦ ὁμιλοῦντος καὶ τῆς Συνοδείας ἡμῶν. Ἦλθεν ὁ Οἰκουμενικὸς Πατριάρχης καὶ πάλιν εἰς τὴν Σόφιαν, ὅπως καὶ κατὰ Νοέμβριον τοῦ 2012, ὅτε ἐκηδεύσαμεν τὸν ἐν εὐλογίαις μακαριστὸν Πατριάρχην Μάξιμον, διὰ νὰ πενθήσῃ καὶ αὖθις μαζί σας, νὰ προσευχηθῇ μαζί σας καὶ διὰ νὰ τιμήσῃ πρεπόντως τὸν ἀποιχόμενον ἀξιόθεον πνευματικὸν Πατέρα σας, «κατὰ τὴν ἀξίαν αὐτοῦ»! Ἦλθε διὰ νὰ ἀποθέσῃ ἐπὶ τοῦ σεπτοῦ σκηνώματος τοῦ ἁγίου Ἀδελφοῦ τὰ ἄνθη τῆς ἀγάπης καὶ τῆς τιμῆς τοῦ Οἰκουμενικοῦ Πατριαρχείου καὶ νὰ τοῦ ἀποδώσῃ τὸν τελευταῖον ἀσπασμόν, ἐν εἰρήνῃ καὶ ὁμονοίᾳ καὶ νὰ στηρίξῃ φιλαδέλφως πάντας ὑμᾶς! 

Ἀλλά, πρὸς Θεοῦ!, ἀδελφοὶ καὶ τέκνα, τὸ πένθος ἡμῶν δὲν πρέπει νὰ εἶναι ἀνήκεστον καὶ πανόδυρτον, ὅπως τῶν λοιπῶν, τῶν μὴ ἐχόντων ἐλπίδα! Ἄνθρωπον τοῦ Θεοῦ προπέμπομεν, ἐν συνεπείᾳ πίστεως ἀφιερώσαντα ὅλον τὸν βίον του εἰς τὸν Νικητὴν τοῦ Θανάτου Κύριον ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦν Χριστὸν καὶ εἰς τὴν διακονίαν τῆς Ἐκκλησίας Του! Ἐπίσκοπον ἀγάπης κηδεύομεν, τῶν Ἀποστόλων διάδοχον, μάρτυρα καὶ κήρυκα τῆς Ἀναστάσεως, ὡς ἐκεῖνοι! Ὕπνος καὶ κοίμησις ἐν Χριστῷ, τῷ αἰωνίως ζῶντι Θεῷ, εἶναι ἡ ἔξοδός του καὶ φωτεινὴ μετάβασις ἐκ τῶν λυπηρῶν ἐπὶ τὰ θυμηδέστερα καὶ ἐκ τῶν προσκαίρων πρὸς τὰ αἰώνια, ἐκ τῶν κόπων καὶ ἀγώνων ἐπὶ τὰ ἆθλα καὶ τοὺς στεφάνους τοὺς ἀμαραντίνους! Θαρσεῖτε καὶ δοξάσατε ἐπὶ πᾶσι τὸν Θεόν, τὸν Κύριον τῆς Ζωῆς!

Ἐγνωρίσαμεν τὸν μακάριον ἄνδρα προσωπικῶς ἀπὸ πολλῶν ἐτῶν καὶ ἐξετιμήσαμεν τὴν σεμνότητα, τὴν πραότητα καὶ μειλιχιό-τητα, τὴν εὐγένειαν καὶ γλυκύτητα τοῦ χαρακτῆρος καὶ τῆς μορφῆς του, τὴν πιστότητά του εἰς τὴν ἁγίαν Ὀρθόδοξον Πίστιν καὶ πατρῴαν ἡμῶν Παράδοσιν, τὴν ἀγάπην του διὰ τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν, τὸν σεβασμὸν του πρὸς τὰ ἱερὰ καὶ ὅσια τῆς θεοτεύκτου Ὁλκάδος, τὴν ἀγάπην του διὰ τὴν γενέθλιον γῆν τῆς Βουλγαρίας, τὴν εὐλάβειάν του πρὸς τὴν Μητέρα Ἐκκλησίαν τῆς Κωνσταντινουπόλεως! Ἔχαιρε παρ᾽ ἡμῖν πολλῆς ἀγάπης! Ἐρχόμενος ὡς Μητροπολίτης Ροῦσε εἰς τὸ Φανάριον μᾶς ἔδωκε τὴν χαρὰν τῆς λειτουργικῆς συμμετοχῆς του εἰς τὸν Ἑσπερινὸν τῆς Ἀγάπης ἐν τῷ πανσέπτῳ Πατριαρχικῷ Ναῷ. Συνειργάσθη ἀγαστῶς, ὡς Μητροπολίτης ἀκόμη, κατὰ τὴν ἐν Σαμπεζὺ τῆς Γενεύης Δ´ Προσυνοδικὴν Πανορθόδοξον Διάσκεψιν κατ᾽ Ἰούνιον τοῦ 2009. Ὡς Πατριάρχης πλέον Βουλγαρίας μετέσχε τῆς Ἱερᾶς Συνάξεως τῶν Προκαθημένων τῶν Ἁγιωτάτων Αὐτοκεφάλων Ἐκκλησιῶν τὸ πρῶτον ἐν Κωνσταντινουπόλει τὸν Μάρτιον τοῦ 2014 καὶ τοῦ ἐπιστέψαντος τὰς ἐργασίας αὐτῆς λαμπροῦ Πρωθιεραρχικοῦ Συλλειτούργου εἰς τὸν πάνσεπτον Πατριαρχικὸν Ναὸν τοῦ Ἁγίου Γεωργίου κατὰ τὴν Κυριακὴν τῆς Ὀρθοδοξίας, 9ην Μαρτίου. Ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς μετὰ διετίαν συγκληθείσης ὁμοίας ἱερᾶς Συνάξεως τῶν Προκαθημένων εἰς τὸ ἡμέτερον Πατριαρχικὸν Κέντρον τοῦ Σαμπεζύ, συνυπέγραψε δὲ καὶ ἐκθύμως τὰς σχετικὰς κοινὰς ἀποφάσεις. Δὲν μᾶς ἔδωκεν ὅμως, δυστυχῶς, τὴν εὐλογίαν τῆς παρουσίας καὶ ἐνεργοῦ συμμετοχῆς αὐτοῦ καὶ τῆς προσφιλεστάτης Ἐκκλησίας τῆς Βουλγαρίας, παρὰ τὰ κοινῶς τότε ἀποφασισθέντα, εἰς τὴν ἐν Κρήτῃ, μετὰ πεντάμηνον, συνελθοῦσαν Ἁγίαν καὶ Μεγάλην Σύνοδον τῆς Ὀρθοδόξου Ἐκκλη-σίας. Τὸν Ἰανουάριον τοῦ 2018 ἐχάρημεν μεγάλως, ὑποδεξάμενοι αὐτὸν καὶ τὴν τιμίαν Συνοδείαν του εἰς τὴν Βασιλεύουσαν διὰ νὰ τελέσωμεν τὰ θυρανοίξια τοῦ ἐκ βάθρων ἀναστηλωθέντος, ἀνακαινι-σθέντος καὶ ἐξωραϊσθέντος ἱεροῦ Ναοῦ τοῦ Ἁγίου Πρωτομάρτυρος καὶ Ἀρχιδιακόνου Στεφάνου ἐν Φαναρίῳ, παρουσίᾳ τοῦ Ἐξοχωτάτου Προέδρου τῆς Τουρκικῆς Δημοκρατίας κ. Ἐρντογὰν καὶ τῶν τότε Πρωθυπουργῶν τῆς Τουρκίας καὶ τῆς Βουλγαρίας. Ἡ ἐπακολουθήσασα ὑποδοχή του εἰς τὸ Σεπτὸν Κέντρον καὶ ἡ ἀδελφική μας συνάντησις καὶ συνεργασία ἀφῆκεν εἰς ὅλους αὖραν ἁγιοπνευματικῆς χαρᾶς, εἰρήνης καὶ ἀγαλλιάσεως. 

Τὸ φιλειρηνικὸν χριστιανικὸν ἦθος τοῦ προπεμπομένου μακα-ρίου  Πατριάρχου ὑπεγραμμίσθη ζωηρῶς καὶ διὰ τοῦ ἐπὶ τῆ τελευταίᾳ ἑορτῇ τῶν Θεοφανείων ἐκ κλίνης ἀσθενείας Μηνύματός του διὰ τὸν ἁγιασμὸν τῶν Σημαιῶν τοῦ Στρατοῦ τῆς Χώρας σας. Δι᾽ αὐτοῦ, εὐλογῶν τὸν προστάτην τῆς Βουλγαρίας ἀμυντικὸν Στρατόν, κατεδίκασε τὴν ἐπιθετικότητα κατὰ ἄλλων λαῶν καὶ τὸν συνεχιζόμενον πόλεμον εἰς βάρος τῆς Οὐκρανίας, γινόμενος οὕτως ἄξιος τοῦ μακαρισμοῦ τοῦ Χριστοῦ: «Μακάριοι οἱ εἰρηνοποιοί, ὅτι αύτοὶ υἱοἰ Θεοῦ κληθήσονται». (Ματθ. 5, 9). Ἀλλ᾽ ἐκεῖνο τὸ ὁποῖον ἔστεψε τὴν πολιὰν κεφαλήν του ὡς ἄλλος στέφανος ἁγιασμοῦ ἦτο ἡ πολλὴ καὶ μεγάλη ὑπομονή του ἐν δοξολογίᾳ Θεοῦ κατὰ τὰς σκληρὰς ὥρας τῆς πολυμήνου ἀσθενείας του. Ἤκουε τοῦ Ἱεροῦ Χρυσοστόμου φθεγγομένου: «Εἰ σῶμα εἶ Χριστοῦ, φέρε τὸν σταυρόν» (Ὁμιλία εἰς Πρὸς Ἐφεσίους Γ΄). Καὶ τὸν ἔφερε γενναίως μέχρι τέλους! Κατὰ τὸν αὐτὸν Χρυσορρήμονα, ἡ ὑπομονὴ εἶναι «ἡ βασιλὶς τῶν ἀρετῶν, θεμέλιος τῶν κατορθωμάτων, λιμὴν ὁ ἀκύμαντος» (Πρὸς Ὀλυμπιάδα, Ἐπιστ. ΙΓ᾽). Ἀπὸ αὐτὸν τὸν ἀκύμαντον λιμένα τῆς ὑπομονῆς ἀποπλέει ἤδη μὲ καθαρὸν τὸν ποδήρη χιτῶνα τῆς Ἱερωσύνης, εὐλογεῖ τὸ προσφιλὲς ποίμνιόν του καὶ τὴν ἠγαπημένην ἐπίγειον πατρίδα του, κατασπάζεται τοὺς ἁγίους Ἀδελφούς του Ἀρχιερεῖς, προχωρεῖ γαληνῶς ἐπ᾽ ἐλπίδι ἀναστάσεως καὶ ζωῆς αἰωνίου καὶ ἐλλιμενίζεται ἀπὸ τοῦδε ἀσφαλῶς εἰς τὸν εὔορμον καὶ εἰρηνικὸν οὐράνιον λιμένα τῆς Βασιλείας τοῦ Θεοῦ! Τὸν πλοῦν του συνοδεύουν ὁ Ἅγιος Κλήμης τῆς Ἀχρίδος, ὁ Ἅγιος Ἰωάννης τῆς Ρίλας, ὁ Ἅγιος Ἰωάννης ὁ Κουκουζέλης, τοῦ ὁποίου τὰ μουσουρ-γικὰ ἴχνη ἐπιτυχῶς ἐκ νεότητος ἠκολούθει, καὶ ὅλοι οἱ Ἅγιοι οἱ ὁποῖοι ἡγίασαν τὴν γῆν τῆς Βουλγαρίας, παλαιότεροι καὶ νεώτεροι, μαζὶ μὲ τὸν προστάτην του Ἅγιον Νεόφυτον. Τὸν προστατεύει ἡ μητρικὴ στοργὴ τῆς Ὑπεραγίας Θεοτόκου καὶ τὸν ἀναμένει Ἐκεῖνος, ὁ ὁποῖος εἶπεν: «Ἐπὶ τίνα ἐπιβλέψω, ἀλλ᾽ ἤ ἐπὶ τὸν ταπεινὸν καὶ ἡσύχιον καὶ τρέμοντα τοὺς λόγους μου;» (Ἠσ. 66, 2).

«Μακάριος ὡς ἀληθῶς», Κύριε, «ὅν ἐξελέξω καὶ προσελάβου» Ἀδελφὸν καὶ Συλλειτουργὸν ἡμῶν Πατριάρχην Νεόφυτον! Δεόμεθά Σου ἐκτενῶς: «Αὐτὸς ἐπὶ γῆς τὴν ζωὴν αὐτοῦ ἐδόξασας, αὐτὸς καὶ τὴν ἔξοδον τοῦ βίου αὐτοῦ ἐν τῇ εἰσόδῳ τῶν Ἁγίων, τῶν ἀπ᾽ αἰῶνος εὐαρεστησάντων Σοι ἀξίωσον! Ἀπόδος αὐτῷ τοῦ ποιμενικοῦ κόπου μισθὸν εὐσεβῆ! Εἰσάγαγε αὐτὸν λαμπαδηφόρον εἰς τὸν οὐράνιόν Σου νυμφῶνα! Παράσχου αὐτῷ ἀγγελικὴν παρρησίαν, ἵνα ἀνεπαισχύντως παραστῇ τῷ ἀπροσίτῳ Σου Θρόνῳ»! Ναί, Κύριε Ἰησοῦ Χριστέ, καὶ «γενοῦ παραμυθία τῶν προβάτων Σου»! Ἀμήν!

 ADDRESS by  His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew at the Funeral Service for the late Patriarch Neofit of Sofia and All Bulgaria(Sofia, March 16, 2024)

* * *

Your Beatitude and Most Reverend representatives of the local holy Churches of God,

Your Eminence Metropolitan John of Varna and Veliki Preslav, Vice-Chairman of the Holy Synod of the Church of Bulgaria, and other Brother Hierarchs,

Your Excellency Rumen Radev, President of Bulgaria,

Your Excellency Nikolai Denkov, Prime Minister of Bulgaria, and other most distinguished Authorities of Bulgaria,

Most honorable representatives of other Church Confessions and Religions,

Your Excellencies, representatives of the Diplomatic Corps in this land,

Most devout Clergy of all ranks and Most holy Monastic Fathers and Mothers,

Dearest children of the Holy Orthodox Church in Sofia and the entire divinely-protected land of Bulgaria,

“When Jacob finished charging his sons, he drew up his feet into the bed, and breathed his last, and was gathered to his people.” (Gn. 49.33)

This is precisely what happened in the case of the new Jacob of the pious Bulgarian people, the venerable Patriarch of Grace, Neofit of blessed memory, our respected and beloved Brother and Concelebrant in the Lord, after spending some four months on a hospital bed due to physical illness. He was the third Patriarch of All Bulgaria to serve from February in the Lord’s year 2013, following the elevation of the Most Holy Church of this Land to Patriarchal status and dignity, after the late First-Hierarchs Kyril and Maxim. As Bishop of Levki first and of Dorostol and Cherven subsequently, while more recently as Metropolitan of Ruse-by-the-Danube, the late Patriarch Neofit faithfully completed almost half a century of honorable church ministry, twenty-eight of which he devotedly served as Hierarch and eleven of which he humbly served as Patriarch, peacefully living out the years of his life, to the very end blessing, counselling and supporting like a nurturing father does with his children, finally being added to the list of his late predecessors and of his renowned fellow-countrymen in the heavenly mansions in God’s hand.

This is a time for mourning, as human beings do! It is a time for ecclesiastical and national mourning for Bulgaria! Physical separation is painful; being orphaned is difficult; emotions are high! As the Wisdom of Sirach exhorts us: “Weep for the dead and let your tears flow . . . May your mourning correspond to the value of the deceased (22.11, 16–17) Mourn, dear brother Bulgarian Orthodox Christians who are left as orphans, venerable Hierarchy, noble Clergy, pious Leaders, ascetic Monks and good Nuns, Theological School of the University of Sofia (whose first Dean he was after its restoration), academic teachers of Theology and practitioners of sacred church music (which the late Patriarch knew so well, taught so zealously, and exercised meekly), doctors and nurses of the Military Medical Academy in Sofia (who ministered him so attentively and affectionately throughout his illness, becoming witnesses of his suffering, but also his patience), faithful and Christ-loving people, everyone!

But it is not just you! All Orthodox share in your mourning and sorrow. All “those of us who have the same piety and the same mother” (Ecumenical Patriarch St. Philotheos Kokkinos), and especially our Holy Great Church of Christ in Constantinople, our and your common spiritual Mother and Sustainer! This is precisely what emphasizes our presence among you and our prayer alongside you at this hour—both in our person and in the form of our Entourage. The Ecumenical Patriarch has once again come to Sofia—just as in November 2012, when we buried the venerable Patriarch Maxim of blessed memory—this time to mourn with you once more, to pray with you and befittingly honor your departing and God-loving spiritual Father, “in a manner that corresponds to the value of the deceased”! We have come to lay upon the venerable body of our holy Brother the flowers of love and honor on behalf of the Ecumenical Patriarchate as well as to offer our final embrace of farewell, in peace and concord, but also fraternally to support all of you.

Let us, however, beware, brothers and children, lest our mourning be inappropriate, like the bewailing of others, who do not have hope! We are sending off a man of God, someone who dedicated his entire life in consistent faith to our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the Conqueror of Death, and to the service of His Church. We are burying a bishop of love, a successor to the Apostles, a witness and herald of the Resurrection, just as the disciples were. His departure is like sleep and rest in Christ the ever-living God. It is a luminous transition from sorrow to joy, from the ephemeral to the eternal, from toil and struggle to reward and amaranthine crowns. Take courage and give glory for all to God, the Lord of Life!

We came to know the departed man personally over many years, and we appreciated his modesty, meekness, gentleness, kindness and sweetness of character and demeanor, his faithfulness to the sacred Orthodox Faith and our ancestral Tradition, his love for the Church, his respect to the sacred and venerable customs of the God-made Vessel, the Church, his affection for his native Bulgaria, his devotion to the Mother Church of Constantinople. He enjoyed profound love on our part. When he visited the Phanar as Metropolitan of Ruse, he gave us the joy of liturgical participation in the Agape Vespers at the venerable Patriarchal Church. Again as Metropolitan, he also collaborated favorably in the Fourth Pre-conciliar Pan-Orthodox Consultation of June 2009 at Chambésy, Geneva. Later, as Patriarch of Bulgaria he took part in the Sacred Synaxis of the Primates of the Most Holy Autocephalous Churches—first in Constantinople in March 2014 and in the magnificent Primatial Concelebration in the venerable Patriarchal Church of St. George on the Sunday of Orthodoxy on March 9 that crowned the deliberations of that Synaxis. He further took part in a similar sacred Synaxis of the Primates two years later at our Patriarchal Centre in Chambésy, where he even happily cosigned the relevant common decisions. Sadly, however, he did not grant us the blessing of his presence and active participation (as well as that of our dearly beloved Church of Bulgaria), despite what had been jointly agreed, five months later at the Holy and Great Council of the Orthodox Church that convened in Crete. In January 2018, we were immensely delighted to welcome him and his honorable Entourage to the Queen of Cities in order for us to perform in the region of the Phanar the official opening service of the holy Church of St. Stephen the Protomartyr and Archdeacon that was renovated and embellished completely, in the presence of His Excellency President Erdoğan of the Republic of Turkey as well as the then Prime Ministers of Turkey and Bulgaria. The ensuing reception that we organized for Patriarch Neofit at the Venerable Centre of Orthodoxy, along with our fraternal encounter and collaboration, left everyone with sentiments of spiritual joy, peace, and jubilation.

Moreover, the irenic Christian ethos of the late Patriarch was vividly underlined in his Message on the last Feast of Theophany that he issued from his hospital bed for the blessing of the Military Flags of your country. In this message, as he blessed the defensive Army that protects Bulgaria, he condemned aggression against other peoples and the ongoing war against Ukraine, thereby becoming worthy of Christ’s Beatitude: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God” (Mt. 5.9). Nevertheless, what crowned his elderly head like another crown of blessing was his vast and deep patience as he glorified God in the harsh hours of his months-long illness. He could hear St. John Chrysostom saying: “If you are the body of Christ, then bear His cross” (Homily on the Letter to the Ephesians III). And he bravely bore it till the end! The same Saint with the Golden Mouth defines patience as “the queen of virtues, the foundation of achievements, and a tranquil harbor” (Letter XIII to Olympias). From this tranquil harbor of patience, he now sails away with a pure priestly vestment, he blesses his precious flock and his cherished earthly homeland, he warmly embraces his Brother Hierarchs, he calmly proceeds in the hope of resurrection and eternal life, and he safely berths from now one at the well-moored and peaceful, heavenly harbor of the Kingdom of God. His voyage is escorted by St. Clement of Ohrid, St. John of Rila, St. John Koukouzelis (whose musical steps he successfully followed from childhood), and all the Saints—both old and new—who sanctified the land of Bulgaria, along with his patron St. Neofitos. He is protected by the maternal tenderness of the Most Holy Theotokos and he is awaited by Him who said: “This is the man to whom I will look, to him that is humble and contrite in spirit, who trembles at my word” (Is. 66.2)

“Truly blessed,” Lord, “is the one you have chosen and adopted,” our Brother and Concelebrant Patriarch Neofit. We fervently beseech You: “You glorified his life on earth. Now also deem worthy his departure from this life to the entry of the Saints, who were pleasing to You from the ages. Grant him devout reward for his pastoral labor. Receive him resplendent into Your heavenly wedding chamber. Endow him with angelic boldness so that without shame he may stand at Your inaccessible Throne.” Yea, Lord Jesus Christ, and “be a consolation for Your flock.” Amen!  

 

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φωτό: Νίκος Παπαχρήστου