Along the Way of Early Christianity

Christianity has deep and ancient traditions in the lands of the Balkan Peninsula. The first Christian communities in the region were founded in the middle of the 1st century, when Apostle Paul travelled around these lands. Archbishops, consecrated by Apostle Paul, led episcopacies in the interiors of Thrace.

A solid network of churches, monasteries, and church communities was formed before the appearance of Slavs and Bulgars in the region, and some of them even sent representatives at the First Ecumenical Council in 325, as well as at the famous Council of Sardica in 343.

By the 5th century, Christianity had already spread almost everywhere on the Balkan Peninsula. When the Bulgars of khan Asparouh reached the lands of Misia and Thrace in the 80s of the 7th century, they found there a rich diversity of religions. The majority of the population, especially in the coastal regions, was Christian, while the Slavs in the compact settlements from the interior had their own polytheistic religion. The religion of the Bulgars was monotheistic and their supreme deity was called Tangra.