Sofia, November 18, 2022
Church of Sts. Peter and Paul in Kovachevtsi, where the offending video was shot. Photo: mitropolia-sofia.org
The Metropolis of Sofia of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church is outraged by a music video containing scenes of the desecration of an Orthodox church.
On behalf of His Holiness Patriarch Neofit of Bulgaria, His Grace Bishop Polycarp of Belogradchik, Vicar Bishop of the Sofia Metropolis, sent a letter of protest to Payner, the independent Bulgarian record label responsible for the video. The letter was published on the site of the Sofia Metropolis yesterday.
The video was filmed on the territory of the Church of Sts. Peter and Paul in the village of Kovachevtsi, about 20 miles south of Sofia, without the knowledge or blessing of the Bulgarian Church, Bp. Polycarp notes.
In particular, the Church objects to scenes of the female singer dancing erotically on the bell tower of the church, inappropriately dressed for a church. Such scenes “represent obscene actions desecrating the temple and the symbol of the Christian faith—the Holy Cross,” Bp. Polycarp writes.
These scenes are also
an expression of disrespect both to the Christian faith and the Eastern Orthodox faith, as well as to society. It demeans the special role of the Orthodox faith, upheld and maintained through the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. Through it, both the rights of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church were violated, as an institution whose rights as the owner of the church that became the object of desecration are guaranteed by the law, as well as its special norms protecting against such desecration of churches and their symbols.
In other scenes, the actors are positioned in imitation of the Last Supper, and others show practices of divination at the church that are incompatible with the Orthodox faith.
As a business whose work quickly and easily reaches the youth, it should be more aware of its important role in developing the spirit of the virtues of faith, hope, and love in the youth, Bp. Polycarp writes.
“In view of all of the above, we urge you to immediately stop distributing the said work and withdraw the rights to display and distribute it through other platforms outside the media channels you control,” Bp. Polycarp concludes.
Similarly, the Estonian Orthodox Church protested against a concert in Tallinn in September by the blasphemous Polish black metal band Batushka, whose music is described as “anti-Orthodox preaching.”
Earlier, in May of this year, the Albanian Orthodox Church raised its voice of protest against a rap video that was shot in front of an historical iconostasis.
Earlier this week, a court in St. Petersburg, Russia, fined a blogger for lewd pictures he took in front of the famous Church of the Savior on the Spilled Blood.
Follow OrthoChristian on Twitter, Vkontakte, Telegram, WhatsApp, MeWe, and Gab!
