Die Bulgarische Orthodoxe Kirche im Dialog zwischen Orthodoxen und Altkatholiken in der zweiten Hälfte des 20. Jahrhunderts

Abstract

After the first pan-orthodox conference on the island of Rhodes (1961), relations between the Orthodox Church and the Old Catholic Church were increasingly activated and strengthened, with the Bulgarian Orthodox Church (BOC) playing an active role. It has an established tradition in this direction, which was advanced by the work of Professor Protopresbyter Stefan Tsankov between the two world wars. His work was continued by other theologians representing the BOK in negotiations with the Old Catholics regarding unification, which were conducted in various forums. Between the 1960s and the 1980s, these negotiations were extremely intense. Despite these activities and efforts, the negotiations with the Old Catholics did not lead to the desired unification. On the contrary, the differences persist and may even deepen further. However, the hope for a unification of Orthodox and Old Catholics still endures to this day. This is evidenced by the working group established for this purpose by the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Archdiocese of Utrecht, which is intended to give new impetus to the discussion on unification.