Neofit’s death, at the age of 78 from multiple organ failure, was announced by the Bulgarian Orthodox Church’s governing body the Holy Synod on the night of March 13.
On March 16 at 9.30am, a funeral service will be held in Alexander Nevsky cathedral, after which Neofit’s body will be taken to St Nedelya church, where he will be buried in the courtyard, in accordance with his wishes and the decision of the Holy Synod, Metropolitan Kiprian announced.
Metropolian Yoan of Varna is the acting head of the Holy Synod, pending the election of a new Patriarch, which by church law must be held within four months of the Patriarch’s death.
The Holy Synod, the governing body of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, is meant to have 15 members, but with the deaths of Neofit – apart from Patriarch, also Metropolitan of Sofia – and Ioanikiy, Metropolitan of Sliven, it has 13.
Of the 13, a total of nine are eligible to elected Patriarch. According to the statutes of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, a candidate must have reached the age of 50 and have been a Metropolitan for at least five years.
The nine eligible are Yosi, Metropolitan of the United States,
Grigorii of Veliko Turnovo, Ignatii of Pleven, Gavriil of Lovech,
Nikolai of Plovdiv, Yoan of Varna, Naum of Rousse, Grigorii of Vratsa
and Daniil of Vidin.
Serafim of Nevrokop, Kiprian of Stara Zagora
and Atnonii of Western Europe have not yet turned 50 years old. Yakov
of Dorostol has not been in office for five years.