Patriarch Daniil is the first head of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church to visit Zograf Monastery on Mount Athos in half a century, the Bulgarian Patriarchate said on Thursday. The previous visit by a Bulgarian patriarch to the Slavic-Bulgarian Monastery of St George the Great Martyr was made by the late Patriarch Maxim in the 1970s.
The visit, Daniil’s first to Mount Athos, runs from October 21 to 24, 2026, at the invitation of the monastery’s brotherhood.
He was welcomed by the monastery’s abbot, Archimandrite Gabriel, and the monastic brotherhood. A procession accompanied the patriarch into the main church, where a brief prayer service was held. He also venerated the monastery’s miraculous icons of St George and its holy relics.
Archimandrite Gabriel welcomed Patriarch Daniil and expressed, on his own behalf and that of the brotherhood, his great spiritual joy at receiving the head of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church.
The patriarch thanked the monks for inviting him to take part in the feast of the 26 Zograf Martyrs. He will lead the festive all-night vigil, which is scheduled to begin on Thursday.
Patriarch Daniil also visited the Bourazeri Cell, one of the best-known and largest monastic cells on Mount Athos. Dedicated to St Nicholas of Myra, the Wonderworker, it falls under the jurisdiction of Hilandar Monastery. The cell is known for its monks’ icon painting and fresco work, as well as its spiritual and educational activities.
Daniil Is First Bulgarian Patriarch to Visit Zograf in Half a Century THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-10-22 14:08:11
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