GREEK ORTHODOX ARCHDIOCESE OF AMERICA 8-10 East 79th St. New York, NY 10075-0106 Tel: (212) 570-3530 Fax: (212) 774-0215 Web: http://www.goarch.org Email: communications@goarch.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 15, 2008
Contact: Nikki Stephanopoulos Tel.: 212.570.3530
ORTHODOX CHRISTIANS TO OBSERVE EASTER (PASCHA) APRIL 27 - HOLY WEEK BEGINS ON PALM SUNDAY APRIL 20
New York, NY ? Easter (Pascha) will be celebrated on April 27th this year by over 250 million Orthodox Christians worldwide. Holy Week will commence on Palm Sunday, April 20.
"In his First Epistle to the Corinthians, Saint Paul, having detected some wrong ideas about the resurrection among the Corinthians, wrote specifically to underscore the centrality of the resurrection of Christ to the Christian faith," says Archbishop Demetrios, spiritual leader of 1.5 million Greek Orthodox Christians in America and Chairman of the Standing Conference of the Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas, in his Easter Encyclical. "Saint Paul observed that some in the community of Corinth who were calling themselves Christians did not believe in the resurrection of the dead...."
"In many ways," Archbishop Demetrios continues, "our contemporary society resembles the society in which the Corinthians lived. It offers a wide array of religious teachings, theories, and alternative understandings to the question of life after death. Because God has given to people freedom of conscience, we do not cast judgment on the teachings of other religions nor upon those people who hold them. We do insist, however, that on this day of Holy Pascha we are invited to come to a closer understanding of the centrality of the resurrection of Jesus Christ to the Christian faith and its fundamental meaning for our lives as Orthodox Christians."
Archbishop Demetrios will officiate at Holy Week services in Greek Orthodox parishes in the metropolitan area including Good Friday Lamentations and Resurrection services Saturday at the Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity (319 East 74th St. New York City). Good Friday services will begin at 8:00 p.m. and Resurrection Services Saturday evening at 11:00 p.m.
Centuries-old religious services which recall the Passion, Crucifixion and Resurrection of Christ are conducted each morning and evening throughout Holy Week in Orthodox Christian Churches including: Greek, Russian, Romanian, Antiochian, Bulgarian, Carpatho-Russian, Albanian, Serbian and Ukrainian, which serve some 6 million faithful in the Americas.
On PALM SUNDAY during the Divine Liturgy, palms are blessed and distributed to the faithful commemorating Christ's entrance into Jerusalem.
On HOLY WEDNESDAY, the faithful are anointed with the Sacrament of Holy Unction, blessed oil, which cleanses, renews and strengthens both spiritually and physically.
On HOLY THURSDAY evening, the Service of Holy Passion takes place, during which the Twelve Lessons of the Gospel are read. After the Fifth Gospel a solemn litany begins. A large crucifix is carried in a procession led by the clergy as the mournful hymn of Crucifixion is sung.
On GOOD FRIDAY AFTERNOON, the Vespers of the Descent from the Cross are offered. The Body of Christ is taken down from the Cross, wrapped in white linen and is prepared for burial.
On GOOD FRIDAY evening, the Lamentations are sung during the Epitaphios Service, which symbolizes the burial of Christ.
On HOLY SATURDAY evening, the Pascha Resurrection Service begins with Matins at 11 p.m. At midnight, the Church is completely darkened and the faithful wait in joyous expectation for the Bishop or priest to come forth carrying a white candle, chanting, "Come, Receive the Light, the Light of the Resurrection." The light is passed to the congregation until the Church is ablaze with the glow of candlelight. A procession of altar boys, choir, chanters and clergy joined by the people move outdoors where the Gospel proclaiming the Resurrection of Christ is read. The triumphant hymn, Christos Anesti (Christ is Risen) is joyously sung by the faithful. At the conclusion of the Resurrection Liturgy, red Easter eggs, which symbolize the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, are distributed to the congregation.
On EASTER SUNDAY, the Vespers of AGAPE (Love) are celebrated with the Holy Gospel of the Resurrection read in several languages emphasizing the universality of Christ's teaching of love and peace.
The Orthodox date for Easter is based on a decree of the Council of Nicaea, Asia Minor, held in 325 A.D. According to this decree, Easter must be celebrated on the Sunday following the first full moon of the vernal equinox but always after the Hebrew Passover to maintain the Biblical sequence of events of the Crucifixion and the Resurrection. The Orthodox Christian churches have adhered strictly to this formula.