Pope Francis met with the Prime Minister of Bulgaria, Kiril Petkov, and with the Prime Minister of North Macedonia, Dimitar Kovacevski at the Vatican.
Both leaders met with Pope Francis individually and later had a bilateral meeting with the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin.
The Prime Minister of North Macedonia presented the Pope with a copy of a part of the Eulogy of Clement of Ohrid and a filigree rosary with an Ohrid pearl. For his part, the Holy Father gave him the Document on Human Fraternity.
It should be noted that, as reported by ACI Stampa- Ohrid is the former seat of the Macedonian Orthodox Church, and is also the seat of the “Prespa Forum”, a diplomatic forum in which this year Archbishop Msgr. Gallagher, Vatican Minister for Foreign Affairs, is expected to participate.
The Bulgarian Prime Minister handed over a woolen Nativity Scene made by the “Nativity of Christ” Center, linked to the Byzantine-Slavic Catholic Apostolic Exarchate of Sofia, and a traditional Chiprovtsi rug.
The Pope also presented him with the pontificate medal, the volumes of papal documents, this year’s Message for Peace, the Document on Human Fraternity and the book on the Statio Orbis of March 27, 2020.
In addition, on the morning of this Monday, May 23, a Mass was celebrated in the Basilica of San Clemente in Rome, where the tomb of Saint Cyril is located, and tomorrow the delegation of North Macedonia will organize a Mass in the Basilica.