Thu, Feb 09 2012

Bulgarian church leader blames defiant Madonna fans for tragedy

Wed, Sep 09 2009 10:10 CET

byGabriel Hershman

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Bulgarian church leader blames defiant Madonna fans for tragedy

The recent boating tragedy in Macedonia, in which 15 people lost their lives, was given an unusual twist when a senior chruch leader blamed the behaviour of Bulgarians attending the Madonna concert.

Nikolay, the metropolitan of Plovdiv, linked the September 5 disaster on Lake Ohrid to the behaviour of fans at the concert.

"The catastrophe in Macedonia was a sign from heaven," said the metropolitan in a special memorial mass for the victims.

The Orthodox Church had called for people not to enjoy themselves on the day marking the execution of John," he added. "We should not allow the young to have fun on a day that should be dedicated to spiritual reflection," he said.

Meanwhile, in a separate development, Prime Minister Boiko Borissov has reportedly blamed the organisers of the Madonna concert for allegedly "ruining" the pitch of the Vassil Levski stadium in Sofia.

His announcement comes after rumours circulated that Madonna could even face legal action by sports stadium chiefs for her fans' actions.

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Comments

Anonymous Manna Thu, Sep 10 2009 04:23 CET
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Having a festival or special day for the beheading of John the baptist isn't even scriptual. No where does it say in the bible to do so. The bible does say, Unforseen occurances befall us all. Shut up and actually READ your bible.

Anonymous Jon Mills Wed, Sep 09 2009 13:02 CET
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What a disgraceful comment from the metropolitan. To suggest that this tragedy is somehow linked to a concert in Sofia is beyond understanding. How can a man of the christian faith make such a spitefull and vengefull comment when grieving families are looking for support and help from their faith. He may well believe this to be the truth as he sees it - but it is a belief he should keep to himself at this difficult time.


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