Bulgaria

The populace continues to age even as its overall numbers have been steadily declining since 1986. Many young people leave Bulgaria (the poorest EU country) to find work and opportunity in other nations. Pray for the Church to demonstrate God’s love in this country where racial tensions are strong, and hope is rare. 

The Orthodox Church needs renewal and new life. A bitter schism weakened and undermined the Church, stemming from the collusion of Orthodox leaders with the former Communist regime. Disunity persists, even at the local level. Orthodoxy is still largely equated to a Bulgarian identity, but this is changing as other religious groups take root and grow. Pray for a genuine move of the Holy Spirit that brings reconciliation of rifts and a full realization of Orthodoxy’s spiritual richness.

Sofia, the capital and Bulgaria’s only large city, has many churches, but more are needed. Pray for the nation’s centre of influence to be saturated with the gospel. Meanwhile, 2,500 villages are without any evangelical church. Pray that the peoples of the rural areas would not be neglected; their spiritual need is great.