Hundreds of places claimed to be the last refuge of the saint
In 1905, a tomb and a tablet with an inscription were found in the Bachkovo Monastery
Hundreds of believers gathered yesterday in the “Holy Great Martyr Marina” church in the courtyard of the Sofia Metropolis to worship before the relics of Patriarch Euthymius. They were welcomed by the Bulgarian Patriarch and Sofia Metropolitan Neofit.
They were brought from the Bachkovo Monastery, where they were discovered as early as 1905.
In fact, since then – for more than a century, there have been sharp historical disputes about whether the relics of Patriarch Euthymius are real.
100 years ago, the strongest supporters of the thesis that the relics belong to the patriarch were the historian Prof. Vasil Zlatarski and Prof. Ivan Bogdanov, while the opposite opinion was defended by Bogdan Filov – a scientist who was also the prime minister (see the interview with Bishop Zion).
In fact, the leadership of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church recently made a final decision on the authenticity of the patriarch’s relics. And he called to stop the disputes whether these are really the relics of the saint or not.
If the beginning of Bulgarian church history is connected with great holy names – from the first Bulgarian martyr – Boyan Enravota, through St. Tsar Tervel to St. Tsar Boris, the brothers Cyril and Methodius and their disciples, then in an extremely difficult period for the Bulgarians, such as is the fall of the Second Bulgarian Kingdom, the name of St. Euthymius, the last Bulgarian patriarch before our fall under Ottoman rule, stands out.
During that time, Tsar Ivan Shishman was in Nikopol and left the capital Veliko Tarnovo in the hands of the patriarch. And after the city was captured in 1393,
a large part of the Bulgarian boyars were beheaded
Such was to be the fate of the patriarch.
But the executioner’s hand freezes, which shocks the Turks. On the one hand, his holiness commands the respect of the Turks. But on the other hand, they were clearly aware that if he remained in the city, he could cause upheavals – if he was among the Bulgarians in Tarnovo, they would have and cherish hope of being freed. That is, the shepherd had to be separated from the flock, Assoc. Venceslav Karavalchev, historian and theologian from SU “St. Kliment Ohridski”.
Therefore, the patriarch was sent into exile. From then on, the only trace that was subsequently discovered was from one of Euthymius’ students – Grigoriy Tsamblak. Before that, he left for Lithuania, and when he returned, the patriarch was no longer among the living. However, Tsamblak notes on one testimony that he was exiled somewhere in Macedonia (the geographical area – n.b.). According to Associate Professor Karavalchev, this gives rise to many speculations, dozens, if not more
hundreds of places began to claim to be the last refuge of St. Euthymius
The timelessness in which the Bulgarian people found themselves during the Ottoman slavery led to the complete obliteration of the memory of him, the theologian told “24 Chasa”.
And yet the historical traces remain – the prominent representative of the Tarnovo school – the writer Konstantin Kostenechki testifies to the Bachkovo monastery as the place of the patriarch’s exile. He found the disciples of the patriarch in the Bachkovo monastery.
Associate Professor Karavalchev, however, draws attention to a book which, according to him, should have put an end to the dispute about the relationship between Euthymius and the monastery. The Lovchan collection discovered in 1915, dating from the end of the 15th or the beginning of the 16th century, included parts of the pilgrim’s travelogue to the Holy Land, a chronicle by Georgi Amartol, with additions by Konstantin Kostenechki.
There is a note in it, in which it is explicitly and clearly stated that St. Euthymius was exiled to Stanimaka, in the monastery of St. Bogoroditsa, where he lived to the end of his life, explains Prof. Karavalchev.
In recent times, modern Slavists, including one of the great Russian historians Prof. Vladimir Kachanovsky, also point to the Bachkovo Monastery as the last place in the life path of the Tarnovsky Patriarch.
The great bishop Sioniy, abbot of the Troyan and Bachkovo monasteries: Nothing can stop miracles – the authenticity of this all-Bulgarian shrine has been confirmed
The relics will be officially glorified on October 22 and a feast is instituted
When, in the historical order, two professors say the same statement, always the third says something different
– Your Eminence, when were the mortal remains of Patriarch Euthymius discovered and where?
– The relics of Saint Patriarch Euthymius, the last Bulgarian patriarch of the Second Bulgarian Kingdom before the fall of Bulgaria under Ottoman rule, were found in Bachkovo Monastery in 1905 during excavations in front of the central church “Holy Archangels”. The excavations were carried out by the abbot of the monastery Archimandrite Paisiy Pastirev and the council of the monastery brotherhood, as well as by faithful Christians who were invited to this service by the abbot of the monastery.
The grave of Patriarch Euthymius was discovered at the beginning of the 20th century by the abbot of the Bachkovo Monastery, Archimandrite Paisiy.
The excavations were carried out on the occasion of the tradition of the monastery brothers that the last Bulgarian patriarch Saint Evtimii Turnovski was buried in this place. This tradition prevailed during all the years of slavery, and a special unextinguishing lamp was built in this place, which was maintained by the brothers in memory of the holy Patriarch Euthymius.
During the excavations, a tomb was discovered in which the bones, which we should now call the holy relics of Patriarch Euthymius, were found, dressed in an omophorus and a bishop’s epitrachil – vestments worn by a bishop and a patriarch.
In the tomb was also found a lead plate with an inscription that was published and promulgated back then, which reads: “Holy relics of Euthymius, Archbishop of Turnovski and Patriarch of Bulgaria”, and the year of his death – 1404.
After the discovery of these artifacts, the discovery of the relics was announced: there was an extraordinary testimony that these were his relics – an aroma wafted from the tomb throughout the courtyard of the monastery. Immediately after that, thousands of people gathered in the holy abode for pilgrimage and the matter was referred to the Holy Synod, which made a commission that affirmed that these were the relics of the holy Patriarch Euthymius of Turnovsky.
In the following years, from then until now, the holy relics were kept in the Bachkovo Monastery, and their last place was probably the “Holy Archangels” temple.
According to the decision of the Holy Synod, the relics will be officially glorified on October 22 this year, and a holiday “Glorification of the Holy Relics of the Holy Patriarch Euthymius” is established, which is already included in our church calendar.
– Then why, with these indisputable artifacts, do scientists dispute the authenticity of these relics?
– The greatest scientist of the time, Prof. Zlatarski, claims that these are the relics of St. Patriarch Euthymius, examining all the artifacts related to them. After that, Prof. Ivan Bogdanov and all the professors of that time confirmed the authenticity of the relics. The only one who stands on the opposite side is Bogdan Filov, who does not yet know the history of Bulgaria, whether he is a politician, a historian, or an archaeologist.
– Why does he take such a position?
– Because when, in the historical order, two professors say the same statement, the third one always says something different. I think that in Bulgaria this is a stupid opposing practice and not only in historical circles, but everywhere.
National worship before the relics of St. Euthymius
There is simply no reason to doubt and no scientific justification that these are the relics of St. Patriarch Euthymius.
Recently, more evidence was found from the writings of Konstantin Kostenechki, who eloquently describes and talks about all these cases. Prof. Zlatarski did not have these writings because they were discovered much later – in our time almost, and yet he stands firmly behind this thesis and considering all the evidence. For him whose relics are is an indisputable fact.
But this is done from the point of view of science. From the point of view of spirituality and faith, for us things are completely clear, concrete and precise – there is no doubt that these are the real powers of our heavenly patron.
The enemy of human salvation always finds a way to create various oppositions, but nothing can stop the faith and the miracles that have confirmed the truth of this all-Bulgarian shrine.
2023-10-21 05:00:00
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