Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

Prayer procession on Bright Tuesday in village of Momchilovtsi

Momchilovtsi village
Photo: Bozhidar Cholakov, BNR-Kurdzhali

On the third day after Easter, when the Orthodox Church celebrates Bright Tuesday, a prayer procession takes place in Momchilovtsi village in the Rhodopes, known by the locals as St. Letenia.  

It is unique in this part of the country and was introduced by hieromonk Gregorius from Mount Athos, who came to Momchilovtsi in 1837-38 where he founded the first monastery school. He led the local people on a procession around the monasteries and to a hill not far from the village, where they lit candles and placed them on a big rock.

In 1911 the local people raised some money, and on that same spot the Resurrection of Christ chapel was erected, also known as St. Letenia, and the procession was incorporated into the rituals performed on the third day of Easter. 



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Great Lent begins

After Cheesefare (Forgiveness) Sunday, the Great Lent has begun on March 3. Orthodox Christians will abstain from eating animal food including meat, eggs, milk and dairy products. The Great Lent symbolizes the 40 days which Jesus spent in the..

published on 3/3/25 9:52 AM
Museum of  History in Batak

Batak is the symbol of history written in blood that must not be forgotten

Batak is a name every Bulgarian remembers with deference and pain because the fate of the small town in the Rhodopes is scarred by one of the bloodiest events in national memory – the Batak massacre. During the first days after the outbreak of..

published on 3/3/25 9:10 AM
Felix Kanitz (1829-1904)

Felix Kanitz – the cartographer of Bulgaria’s National Revival

There is a map which helped usher in the birth of modern Bulgaria during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878. The Austro-Hungarian researcher Felix Kanitz (1829 – 1904) was the first West European to have travelled to more than 3,200 towns and villages..

published on 3/3/25 7:25 AM