Orthodox Christians celebrate Easter throughout the world

Orthodox Christians throughout the world will celebrate Easter on May 1 this year. The Holy Week Services begin with Palm Sunday on April 24, and conclude with the Vigil service of the Resurrection, on the Eve of Easter, April 30. On Sunday, May 1st (PASCHA) the faithful attends the AGAPE Vespers, during which the message of the Resurrection of Christ is announced in many languages.

On Saturday of Lazarus, Archbishop Demetrios presided over Archieratical Divine Liturgy at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Archangels, Port Washington, NY. The service is dedicated to children with special needs.

The method of calculating the date of Easter differs for the Orthodox Christian Church from that of the Churches of the western tradition for a variety of historical reasons.  All Orthodox Christians and visitors of any religious or cultural background are invited to attend the Services of Holy Week, which follow the ornate and richly symbolic liturgical Tradition of the Christian East.

Throughout the entire week leading up to Easter, the faithful attend daily worship services which recall the passion and crucifixion of Christ.  The packed schedule of services allows participants to follow the story from Christ’s entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday to His resurrection during the midnight vigil Easter morning.  Services will be held in all other Orthodox Christian Churches in America, which serve some 7 million faithful.

On Palm Sunday (April 24) during the Divine Liturgy (the Eucharist service of the Orthodox Church), crosses made from palms are blessed and distributed to the faithful, commemorating Christ’s entrance into Jerusalem.  In the services of Palm Sunday, Holy Monday and Holy Tuesday evenings (April 24 – 26, 6:30 PM) Hymns and readings present Jesus as the Bridegroom of the Church who bears a crown of thorns and other marks of suffering, yet he is also presented as the Incarnate God who prepares a Paschal Bridal Chamber for His Bride, the Church.  Major themes of these services include Christ’s Passion, His unconditional love, and the anticipation of His resurrection.

The Holy Week

On Holy Wednesday (April 27 at 3:30 pm and 6:30 p.m.), the Church offers a healing service for the faithful who are anointed with the Sacrament of Holy Unction, blessed oil, which cleanses, renews and strengthens both spiritually and physically.

On Holy Thursday Evening (April 28 at 6:30 p.m.), the service of Holy Passion takes place, during which twelve Gospel passages are read, representing the story of Christ’s trial and crucifixion from the perspectives of the Evangelists Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.  After the Fifth Gospel, a large crucifix is carried in a procession led by the clergy as the mournful hymn of Crucifixion is sung.  At the conclusion of the procession the Crucifix is placed before the congregation, where it remains until the following afternoon.

On Good Friday Afternoon (April 29 at 3:00 p.m.), the vespers of the Descent from the Cross is offered.  The icon of the Body of Christ is taken down from the Crucifix in the front of the Church, wrapped in white linen and is prepared for burial.  Therein we reenact the event so movingly presented in the famous ‘Pieta’ of Michelangelo.  On Good Friday Evening (at 7:00 p.m.), the Lamentations are sung during the “Epitaphios” Service, which symbolizes the burial of Christ. In most of the churches there is a Possession of the Epitaphios around the church.

On Holy Saturday Evening (April 30 at 11:00 p.m.), the Easter Resurrection Service begins with Matins at 11:00 p.m. At midnight, the Church is completely darkened and the faithful, each with an unlit candle in hand, wait in joyous expectation for the priest to come forth carrying a single lighted candle, chanting, “Come! Receive the Light, the Unwaning Light of Christ, Who Is Risen from the Dead.”  The ‘light’ (represented by the flame from the priest’s candle) is passed to the congregation (to their candles) while a procession of altar boys, choir, chanters and clergy joined by the people move outdoors where the Gospel proclaiming the Resurrection is read and immediately followed by the words “Christ is Risen!” which are joyously sung by the faithful.  At the conclusion of the Resurrection Liturgy, red eggs symbolizing the Resurrection of Jesus Christ are distributed to the congregation.

On Pascha  Sunday (May 1 at 11:00 a.m.), the Vespers of AGAPE (Unconditional Love) is celebrated with the Holy Gospel of the Resurrection read in several languages, emphasizing the universality of Christ’s teaching of love and peace which evangelized the entire world.

The Orthodox date for Easter is based on the “old” Julian calendar and a decree of the Council of Nicea in 325 AD.  According to this decree, Easter must be celebrated on the Sunday following the first full moon of the Vernal Equinox, but always after the Jewish Passover to maintain the Biblical sequence of events of the Crucifixion and the Resurrection.  The Orthodox Christian Churches have adhered strictly to this formula.

To learn more about the calculation of the date of Easter visit http://www.goarch.org/ourfaith/faithandlife/pasch.pdf

The Schedule of Archbishop Demetrios 

Holy Monday – Service of the Bridegroom (Nymphios)
April 25, 2016  6:30 p.m.
Greek Orthodox Church of St. Markella, Wantagh, NY – Tel.: (516) 783-5760
 
Holy Tuesday – Service of the Bridegroom (Nymphios) Hymn of Kassiani
April 26, 2016  6:45 p.m.
Greek Orthodox Church of Kimissis, Brooklyn, NY – Tel.: (718) 788-0152
 
Holy Wednesday – Service of the Bridegroom (Nymphios)
April 27, 2016  7:00 p.m.
St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Cathedral, Astoria, NY –Tel.: (718) 728-1718
 
Holy Thursday – Vespers with Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great
April 28, 2016 – Divine Liturgy 9:00 a.m.
Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, NYC
 
Holy Thursday Evening – Holy Passion
April 28, 2016  6:45 p.m.
St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, Flushing, NY – Tel.: (718) 357-4200
 
Good Friday – Apokathelosis Vespers
April 29, 2016  12:00 p.m.
St. Michael’s Home, Yonkers, NY – Tel.: (914) 476-3374
 
Good Friday Evening – Epitaphios Service
April 29, 2016  7:00 p.m.
Greek Orthodox Archdiocesan Cathedral of Holy Trinity, NYC – (212) 288-2315
 
Holy Saturday Evening – ANASTASIS
Resurrection and Paschal Divine Liturgy
April 30, 2016  11:00 p.m.
Greek Orthodox Archdiocesan Cathedral of Holy Trinity, NYC – (212) 288-2315
 
Sunday of PASCHA – AGAPE Vespers
May 1, 2016  11:00 a.m.
Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Paul, Hempstead, NY – Tel.: (516) 483-5700
 
Renewal Thursday – Eve of Zoodohos Peghe
May 5, 2016 – 7:30 p.m. Archieratical Great Vespers for the feast of Zoodohos Peghe
Greek Orthodox Church of Zoodohos Peghe, Bronx, NY – Tel.: (718) 823-2030

Sunday of Thomas
May 8, 2016 – 8:30 a.m. Orthros   –     10:00 a.m. Archieratical Divine Liturgy
Greek Orthodox Church of the Resurrection, Brookville, NY – Tel.: (516) 671-5200

Source: greeknewsonline.com

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