"Cancel Madonna!" That's What Bulgaria's Clergy Say

Any other day of the year perhaps Madonna performing in Sofia wouldn’t’ be a problem, but an oversight has been made in terms of Madonna’s name and the religious holiday the concert falls on. No doubt it will go ahead mainly for the reason of logistics although there may be forms of protest from many who stand by the principles that are being made here. I personally feel that Madonna is overrated, not a particularly nice person and certainly not someone who could ever live up to her ironic psuedo name.

Living up to her stage name, Madonna is doing her best to heal the schism of Christendom – shortly after Catholics in Poland protested against the singer's concert in Warsaw on August 15, Orthodox priests in the Bulgarian city of Plovdiv have followed suit, asking for Madonna's gig in Sofia on August 29 to be cancelled.

The reasoning is the same – a clash with a major religious holiday. In Poland's case, it was the celebration of Virgin Mary's assumption, while Bulgaria's Eastern Orthodox will hold the feast day of St John the Baptist.

Orthodox precepts prescribe a strict fasting, with only bread and water allowed, and total abstention from any kind of lay celebrations, according to Father Emil Paralingov, as quoted by Bulgarian daily Standart.

"I cannot even call the singer with the name she chose, because we call the Virgin Mary the Madonna," Paralingov was quoted as saying.

Paralingov asked for the concert to be cancelled and said that his call was supported by other priests in Plovdiv, the daily said.

Source: www.sofiaecho.com