The St. John of Rila Church in the village of Staro Selo (Troyan Municipality) is celebrating its temple feast today.  A divine liturgy for the Dormition of St. John of Rila will be served. There will also be an evening prayer service.

"The history of the church in Staro Selo is quite remarkable and remained in obscurity for a long time", says Father Marin Bozhkov, who is in charge of the temple. Besides being the only church in the Municipality of Troyan dedicated to St. John of Rila, the heavenly protector of Bulgarians, it is also one of the few churches built after September 9, 1944. For decades, the communist regime used the church as a warehouse and barn, the priest adds. The church was consecrated in 1993, nearly 50 years after its construction. Since then, it has been gathering worshippers on every feast day.