Burgas residents gathered in the square in front of the cathedral “St. St. Cyril and Methodius” to celebrate Easter. The festive service was led by the Metropolitan of Sliven, Arseniy, who, in co-celebration with the Burgas clergy, celebrated the festive midnight service, followed by the Holy Divine Liturgy for Easter.
In order for all those present to be able to participate in the prayerful experience, the service was broadcast live on two video screens in front of the temple.
A minute before midnight, the diocesan archpriest brought out the Holy Fire, and at 00:00, the bells of the cathedral announced the arrival of the holiday. Dozens of drones rose into the sky, which wrote "Christ is Risen" with lights.
“Easter is the greatest and most solemn holiday, because it announces to us the victory of Christ over death. Today faith, hope and love triumph. Today is the glorification of good and the destruction of evil. The light of Christ is never-setting. It illuminates the mind, sanctifies the soul and bestows heavenly peace. People, unfortunately, love darkness more than light. The most terrible thing is to spread darkness, lies, slander, intrigues and gossip for personal gain. If we cannot be light in the world, let us at least not be darkness in our lives,” said the Metropolitan of Sliven, Arseniy, in his Easter message.
In his sermon, he urged us to forget the difficulties and hardships in life, to look up to the Lord Jesus Christ and praise him, but also to ask him to go through our earthly journey with dignity and hope for the inheritance of eternal life.
After the proclamation of the Resurrection of Christ, the clergy and the faithful went on a festive procession, walking around the temple with hymns and lit candles.
Easter services were held in all Orthodox churches in Burgas. To ensure the peaceful flow of the festive night, teams of the police and fire department were deployed in the central part of the city, and traffic on the streets in the immediate vicinity of the large temples was restricted.