On April 24, 1877, the Holy Synod in Constantinople elected Metropolitan Joseph of Lovca as Exarch of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church.
Exarch Joseph I remains in history as one of the greatest spiritual and national leaders. His mission lasted for 38 years, during which he managed to preserve the unity of the Bulgarian people and strengthen the church and educational work in Macedonia and Adrianople after the Berlin Congress.
He was born on May 5, 1840 in the vibrant sub-Balkan town of Kalofer, with the secular name Lazar Yovchev. He was among the most educated Bulgarians of his time. His life was marked by early trials and exceptional intellectual growth.
Lazar, barely 5 years old, was left a complete orphan after his parents died of typhus.
He was raised by his eldest sister Rada and her husband Petar Nedelchev, who provided him with a warm family environment despite the absence of his parents.
His path to enlightenment began in the mutual and then in the classroom school of Botyo Petkov (Hristo Botev's father), where he was also a teacher's assistant for a short time.
He studied at the Greek school in Kuruchesme (the Great National School).
He graduated as the top of his class from the French College in Bebek (1862-1864), where he mastered French at a high level.
With a scholarship from Kalofer merchants and the Bulgarian Municipality of Constantinople, he went to for the Parisian Sorbonne.
In 1866 he graduated from the Faculty of Literature and Philosophy of the Sorbonne, and four years later from the Faculty of Law of the same university.
This solid legal and humanitarian education later helped him become the “diploma in cassock“, who skillfully maneuvered between the Sublime Porte and the Great Powers in defense of Bulgarian interests.
Joseph I remained in Constantinople (Istanbul) after 1878 to defend the religious and educational rights of the Bulgarians who remained under Ottoman rule in Macedonia and Adrianople. Thanks to his tact and diplomacy, berats were obtained for Bulgarian bishops in these lands.
He was the inspiration for a wide network of Bulgarian schools and community centers. Under his leadership, Bulgarian education in Macedonia and Thrace developed, which kept the national spirit alive.
He left almost his entire fortune for national needs, including scholarships for pupils and students.
After the defeat in the Inter-Allied War (1913), the Exarch was forced to leave Constantinople and settle in Sofia. He took the national catastrophe hard, believing that a large part of his life's work had been ruined.
Exarch Joseph I died on June 20, 1915 in Sofia after a serious illness at the age of 75.
Funeral: He was buried in the southern gallery of the cathedral church “St. Nedelya“ in Sofia.