Khristos anesti

Alithos anesti

Our Greek Orthodox, Armenian and other Eastern rite Christians celebrated “Resurrection Day” on Sunday. I would like to wish them a very blessed and holy “Resurrection Day.”

One of my Eastern rite friends observed that he had not seen anything on TV or in the news about this most sacred day for Eastern Christians.

The different date is the Orthodox adherence to the Council of Nicea which determined that Easter could not coincide or fall before the Jewish Passover but they say there could be some negotiations to come up with a compromise on a unified date for Easter sometime.

Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and all Russia, who heads the Russian Orthodox Church, led the four-hour Easter divine service in Moscow's Christ the Savior Cathedral, where about 5,000 people, including President Dmitry Medvedev, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and Moscow mayor Yury Luzhkov attended the service.

On Saturday, thousands of worshippers crowded into the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, Christianity's holiest shrine, for the Holy Fire Ritual. Jerusalem's Old City was jammed with pilgrims from the eastern Orthodox faiths, which include Greeks, Copts, Russians and Assyrians. Some 10,000 worshippers crammed into the Church of the Holy Sepulchre on Saturday night for the Holy Fire ceremony. Another 30,000 remained outside. According to the ancient ritual, the Greek Orthodox patriarch lights an oil lamp in the darkened church. The light from the holy fire is then shared by candles with the crowd. It is also taken to the Church of the Nativity in the West Bank town of Bethlehem, the traditional birthplace of Jesus Christ, and aboard special flights to Athens and other cities. It was passed as far away as Russia, where the Patriarch Kirill was the first to light his candle from it at the cathedral in Moscow.

Greek Orthodox, Armenians and other Eastern rite Christians mark Easter a week after Protestants and Catholics as the Orthodox Church follows a different calendar.

Christ is Risen! Indeed, He is Risen!
Хрїстóсъ воскрéсе! Воистину воскресе!
Χριστός νέστη! ληθς νέστη!
al-Masī qām! aqqan qām!
Hristos a înviat! Adevărat a înviat!