Bulgarian priest turns icon painting into shared language in the heart of Zurich

Historic Zurich immediately immerses visitors in the spirit of a bygone yet timeless age. Wandering through the narrow streets below the University of Zurich and the ETH campus, one comes across, in a quiet courtyard, the icon painting school of Archpriest Yordan Pashev, the Bulgarian Orthodox priest serving the city of Zurich and the German-speaking part of Switzerland.

Father Yordan's icon painting course has grown into a true spiritual community. People of different nationalities and professions gather there to walk together on their journey toward God. For them, the Bulgarian priest is both a spiritual guide and a teacher of the sacred art of iconography. He gently guides their hands as novice icon painters while leading them through their first tentative steps in the life of faith. As a skilled iconographer, he helps them create their icons, and then, as a priest, he consecrates them, giving them their sacred spiritual dimension.

Saint George - the heavenly patron of Orthodox Bulgarians in Zurich

Although the students come from different countries, they all speak the same language, the sacred language of the icon. This mosaic of faces also introduces us to members of neighboring Orthodox nations.

One of them is Tsvetin Lakić, a young man from the parish of St. Gallen belonging to the Serbian Orthodox Church. Professionally, he works in banking, while also playing the violin. What his name only hints at is the richness and vibrancy of his inner world, adorned with a colorful palette of Christian virtues. At the heart of his life are the Orthodox faith and a profound understanding that life, and everything we do, is ultimately a service to God. Tsvetin is one of those people who bring light and meaning to those around them, not through grand words, but through the quiet way they live out their values every day.

He travels more than 60 kilometres to attend Father Yordan's course, and it is here that he experienced the grace of the Divine Liturgy celebrated in Bulgarian for the first time. We spoke with him in church about that experience.

"How do I experience all this? In a truly special way. In Switzerland, it is not easy to participate regularly in the liturgical life of the Church because Orthodox parishes are not available everywhere. Today I travelled more than 60 kilometres to attend the Divine Liturgy. It is not always easy to be in church regularly, but that cannot be an excuse. Those who truly desire it will always find a way."

The ways by which God draws the human soul to Himself are wondrous. Sometimes the path to faith begins not with words or trials, but with melodies and images.

"It was through art that I gradually found my way to icon painting and, naturally, to the Orthodox faith, which has been part of my life since early childhood. That is how my interest in iconography continued to grow," Tsvetin says.

For him, painting icons is far more than a hobby or a craft. It is a way of serving God selflessly, a talent not buried in the ground but cultivated for His glory. It is prayer without words and a way of gazing more deeply into Heaven and into one's own soul.

"I cannot really explain how I decided to devote myself to icon painting. But I have always had a special relationship with icons. They truly are windows into Heaven. Through them we encounter our Lord and the Most Holy Mother of God spiritually. Of course, we Orthodox Christians do not pray to the wood or the paint, but to the Lord Himself, to the Mother of God and to the saints. This art has always drawn me deeply. I wanted to learn it solely to serve God, without any material or personal motives, but only in the service of the Lord."

Thanks to modern technology, he found both a teacher and a spiritual mentor in a devoted Bulgarian priest who introduced him not only to the techniques of icon painting but also to the depths of the spiritual life.

"I found Father Yordan online. I was looking for icon painting courses because, like all sinners, we try to serve God in the best way we can. That is how I discovered Father Yordan, contacted him, and became part of the course. Father Yordan is a wonderful spiritual father, a worthy priest and an exceptional person."

His search eventually brought him to the Bulgarian Orthodox community and to the festive Divine Liturgy celebrated by Metropolitan Anthony of Western and Central Europe. There, beneath the church's vaulted ceiling, he shared his impressions:

"This is my first time attending a Bulgarian Orthodox Divine Liturgy. I came because today our icons will most likely be consecrated. But above all, the Bulgarian Liturgy is essentially the same as the Serbian one. The only difference is the language. Here too one clearly feels God's grace and spiritual peace. I leave today's Bulgarian Liturgy with very positive impressions."

The grace of God and the peace he experienced will accompany him in his daily life, illuminated by God's presence and marked by a constant striving toward Him.

Learn more about the life of the Bulgarian community in Zurich in the following reports of Aleksandra Karamihaleva:

An Orthodox family in Switzerland - between finance, pharmaceuticals and eternity

Cosmopolitan spirit and Orthodox faith: The story of Jivka Agov from Zurich

Keeping Bulgarian roots alive at the heart of Zurich

Edited by Elena Karkalanova
English: R. Petkova