NEW YORK: 3 August 2026
Metropolitan Nicholas of Eastern America and New York, Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, sends greetings to His Holiness Patriarch Daniel of Bulgaria, the archpastors, clergy and flock of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church on the arrival of the myrrh-streaming Hawaiian "Iveron" Icon of the Mother of God
Your Holiness, Most Holy Master!
Your Eminences and Graces! Reverend fathers, beloved brothers and sisters in Christ—faithful children of the
Bulgarian Orthodox Church!
On behalf of the Synod of Bishops of the Russian Church Abroad and on my own behalf, I have the sacred joy and great honor to address you with a greeting of profound Christian love during these holy days, as a great and wondrous holy treasure of the entire Orthodox world—the Myrrh-Streaming Iveron-Hawaiian Icon of the Mother of God—is brought into the blessed confines of the Bulgarian land. This grace-filled pilgrimage of the wonderworking image of the Queen of Heaven, taking place in the first half of August of this year, is imbued with great spiritual triumph and profound significance. This holy image manifested the miracle of the abundant streaming of myrrh in the memorable year of 2007. It was precisely then, by the ineffable mercy of God and under the protection of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary, that a great, historic, and long-awaited event took place: the restoration of the fullness of fraternal communion and spiritual unity within the Russian Orthodox Church. The discovery of this holy icon at such a momentous time served as a visible sign of Divine favor, testifying that the Most Holy Theotokos blesses the peace and unity of mind among her faithful children. Even now—and especially in these challenging times—she continues to call upon us to preserve the unity ordained by God!
Through her Hawaiian icon, the Mother of God now unites us all in a mysterious and unbreakable bond. She gathers us into the one flock of Christ, transcending all earthly distances, national borders, and historical upheavals. We are firmly and eternally bound together by our shared, reverent veneration of the Most Holy Virgin, as well as by the countless signs and miraculous healings she ceaselessly bestows in response to the prayers of the faithful.
The eye of faith discerns a special, unfathomable Divine Providence in the fact that this holy icon was revealed in the United States of America—the very land where, for a number of years, You, Your Holiness, zealously and sacrificially fulfilled Your archpastoral ministry as a vicar bishop. In the vineyard of the New World, You wisely shepherded the Bulgarian flock, earning the sincere love and deep respect of the faithful people.
Our Local Churches have long been united by the grace-filled, unbreakable bonds of Christian love, sealed by the blood of martyrs and the labors of great ascetics. With deep awe and reverence, we look to our common fathers and spiritual luminaries, who have become an inexhaustible treasure of universal Orthodoxy. Among them, the name of Saint Seraphim (Sobolev)—the Wonderworker of Boguchar—shines like a brilliant, unsetting star; his holy relics rest in the crypt of the Russian Church of St. Nicholas in Sofia. It is noteworthy that he was canonized by the Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church on February 3, 2016—the name day of the ever-memorable Bulgarian Patriarchs Maxim and Neophyte. Perceiving the enduring spiritual kinship of our Orthodox peoples, Saint Seraphim left us a profound testimony: "The ties between Russia and Bulgaria are... above all spiritual—deep bonds of brotherhood and of the one, holy Orthodox faith." And these prophetic words of his, like an unbreakable bridge, continue to unite our hearts in Christ.
It is my prayerful hope that this solemn pilgrimage of the Iveron-Hawaiian Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos will strengthen the salvific Orthodox faith in the hearts of the pious Bulgarian people, and bring unfailing spiritual comfort, peace, and heavenly aid to all who turn to her with faith. May this great event further cement the fraternal ties between the Bulgarian Orthodox Church and the Russian Church Abroad, to the glory of God and the good of the people.
May the Lord’s blessing, the mercy of the Most High, and the mighty protection of the Queen of Heaven abide with us all!
Asking for your holy prayers, and remaining with unfailing love in the Lord,
+ NICHOLAS
Metropolitan of Eastern America and New York
First-Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia
July 18/31, 2026 
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