greek news

For Orthodox Christians, one of the most stirring images of the Easter season is a burning candle being carried from the site in Jerusalem where tradition says Jesus was crucified and buried.

The “holy fire” is passed among worshippers outside the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and is taken aboard special flights to Athens and other cities, connecting many of the 200 million Orthodox worldwide to their spiritual roots.

During Holy Week complete fasting is to take place. Palm Sunday, which is the first day of the Holy Week, is a day when only fish and fish courses are served.

On Saturday before Easter, the food that will be served on Easter Sunday is taken to the church and blessed by the priest.

The red eggs for just after the Resurrection and the traditional Resurrection soup, "mageritsa," will be the wife's first concern, and her preparations will begin early in the Holy Week.

That preparation means the cleaning and decoration of the house, the baking of the Easter biscuits and bread and the dyeing of the eggs.

During Holy Week the churches are full each evening as the people follow, once more the Passion of Our Lord. Then at midnight on the Saturday the bells ring out joyfully: the faithful, candles lit, can celebrate the Resurrection.

The meal afterwards consists of the "mageritsa," the red eggs are knocked and the traditional phrase "Christ is risen" will be heard all around the table.

On Easter Sunday, spit-roast lamb is the centerpiece of the table. In the early morning the spits will be turning in the courtyards and under the shady trees as the lamb "kokoretsi" is slowly cooked, and the aroma of the roasting lamb wafts from one end of Greece to the other.

If you get a chance to celebrate Easter in Greece, do not pass it up; it will mean song, dance and "Kefl" around the fire pit as the spit slowly revolves cooking the lamb. OPA.