Dear foreign correspondents,
It is difficult to navigate the Bulgarian political scene without prior knowledge. From an outsider’s perspective, it might seem as if the political Left and the Left-wing President are challenging the conservative nationalist right-wing coalition government as well as the party which represents the ethnic Turks in the country… A good starting point for understanding the situation would be Rule Number 1: Nothing is as it seems in Bulgaria.

On March 10, Metropolitan bishop Gavrail of Lovech announced that the Easter services in Bulgaria this year would be held as usual. Why? Because unlike other types of congregations, church services and liturgies are sacraments. This statement seems to be sufficient reason for the Metropolitan bishop to claim that one cannot catch the coronavirus during mass.