GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — While many have already celebrated Easter and Passover, those in the Orthodox community have not. Their lesser-known holiday, Orthodox Easter, is Sunday, May 5th. You may know it by its more common name, Greek Easter.
As many religions do, preparation for Easter starts with a fast. For Orthodox Easter, it's a 40-day fast. The fast is all in preparation to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. During the fast, they abstain from alcohol, eggs, dairy, fish, meat, and olive oil.
“For us, the resurrection is everything, far more important than the crucifixion,” explained Father Joshua Pappas, presiding Priest at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church.
While the celebrations are similar to Christian Easter, you will find the difference in the calendars.
“First Sunday that falls after the first full moon after the vernal equinox, which marks the beginning of spring. Everybody has the same formula, but we use different calendars,” said Father Pappas.
Known as the Julian Calendar, proposed in 46 B.C., it follows the guidelines from the first ecumenical council. That first council included the church using representatives from all 5 patriarchies, (Rome, Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem). Those 5 patriarchies then, decided that the Julian Calendar was the best formula.
“These astronomical predictions over hundreds of years, end up creating this difference in the calendar," explained Father Pappas.
While traditions vary from culture to culture, there is one thing in common. "The culture, the religion, the stories that go behind with the families and it's just, it goes on from generation to generation," said Esther Koukios, owner of The Seasoned Greek.
While traditions often share similarities, there is one that is embedded into Greek Culture. “Relation to food, a must, is the tsoureki, which you usually see with a red easter egg significance of the blood of Christ," said Koukios.
Those red Easter eggs aren't just for show. In most Greek households, family members battle with their red-colored egg.
Using each end of the egg, one strikes the other until one egg eventually cracks. The egg-owner that prevails, has good luck, for the rest of the year.
The Julian calendar varies from year to year. The next time Christian Easter and Greek Easter fall on the same year is in 2025. To learn more about Greek Easter and even get involved with the festivities,click here.
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