The meeting at the Temple
The Presentation of Jesus at the Temple, known in Bulgarian as Sretenie Gospodne, is celebrated every year on 2 February, 40 days after Christmas. The feast recalls Mary and Joseph bringing the infant Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem. Under the Law of Moses, a firstborn son had to be presented at the Temple.
There, they were met by the righteous elder Simeon and the prophetess Anna. The Old Bulgarian word sretenie means “meeting”: the feast represents the meeting of the Old and New Testaments. Simeon took the child in his arms and spoke the prayer beginning “Lord, now let your servant depart”, which is still heard at Vespers, the evening church service.
Winter customs and folk beliefs
Falling in the depths of winter, the feast is associated in the Bulgarian folk calendar with predictions about the weather. According to traditional belief, the weather around Sretenie indicates whether spring will arrive early.
In some parts of Bulgaria, Petlyovden is also observed around 1–2 February. This is a folk celebration for the health of boys in the family, taking place around the same time as the church feast.
Public holiday status
The Presentation of Jesus at the Temple is not a public holiday: it is a normal working day in Bulgaria. Its place in the church calendar does not make 2 February an official day off.