Christ the Savior Church, Vidin
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"Christ the Savior" is a Catholic church building in the port city of Vidin, Bulgaria on the Danube river. It is part of the Nikopol Diocese of the Roman Catholic Church and is a parish church.
History of the Parish[edit]
Catholic roots in Vidin date back to the 14th century, when the Kingdom of Hungary took control of Vidin for a short time, and in the following years an attempt was made to impose Catholicism on a mass scale in the region. A diocese and a Franciscan monastery were established on the territory of the Tsardom (empire) of Vidin.[1]
The old parish in Vidin was founded in 1895. Father Stanislav Petrov was the first priest appointed to the parish. In 1896, the Passionist Petar Jurovic opened a Catholic private German-French school in Vidin. The number of parishioners is unstable, with a clear tendency to decrease in the first half of the 20th century. In 1922, there were 200 Catholics in Vidin. After 20 years in 1943, there were 50.[2] At that time, the parish priest (?) was the Hungarian father Hruza.[1] and there was a small Catholic church in the city.[3] After September 9, 1944, the foreign clergy were expelled from Bulgaria and due to the lack of a priest (?), the parish ceased to exist.
In 2011, 271 people from Vidin self-identified as Catholics.
On May 7, 2016, in the city, the bishop of the Nikopol Diocese, Petko Hristov, proclaimed the decree for the resumption of the parish. The service was presided over by Bishop Hristov, together with the parish priest of Vidin, Father Plamen Gechev, and Fathers Yaroslav Bartkievich, Venci Nikolov and Paolo Cortesi.[4] At the same time, several families from Italy settled in the parish.[1]
Parish priests[edit]
- Father Stanislav Petrov (1895-)
- Father Plamen Genov (2011-)
History of the church building[edit]
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The construction of the church building began in 2007 as a private initiative. The church building is being built solely with the funds of Mr. Borislav Lorinkov. The church building has an area of 1100 square meters and is located in the industrial part of the city. Meanwhile, a chapel in the city, dedicated to Saint Emet - a martyr from Vidin from the 3rd century, is used for the services.
Dedicated holiday - May 7.
References[edit]
- ^ a b c "Католическа енория - Видин". Archived from the original on 2018-01-07. Retrieved 2024-03-12.
- ^ Елдъров С, Католиците в България (1878 – 1989). Историческо изследване. София, 2002 г.
{{cite journal}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ "Отец Пламен Гечев: Прошката е това, което прави християнството голямо". dariknews.bg (in Bulgarian). 2016-04-01. Retrieved 2024-03-12.
- ^ "Статуята на "Дева Мария Царица на Европа" в България". www.archivioradiovaticana.va. Retrieved 2024-03-12.
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43°57′15″N 22°51′09″E / 43.95415°N 22.85255°E
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