My Big Fat Greek Easter: Friday – Saturday the religious bits

Every year I do my best to fly to Greece for Greek Easter, and luckily this year it’s in May, the weather is hot, and I’m missing a crap weekend in the UK! Oh and there’s the whole catching up with friends and family thing too.

In some Greek families, the whole Easter thing can be pretty overwhelming, but I have a very low key, not super religious family which means there is a little church, and a lot of eating.

Church in Piraeus (not our neighborhood, but a
close walk to my favorite Athens fish restaurant!)

On the Friday night, everyone goes to their neighborhood church, which holds a service from the evening that emulates the funeral for Christ. While some people sit inside the church, most people are outside, waiting for the light of Christ (candle firelight that is passed form the inside to outside) to come to them while they hold their candles at the ready.

 

Passing the light to each other outside the church

Also waiting inside the church is the epitaphios, or the cofrin of Christ.

Outside the church as Christ's coffin appears

The epitaphios

Once the epitaphios comes out, the procession follows it around the neighborhood, and then people go eat a meal in the late evening of meat with no blood; so shellfish or fish.

Procession after the epitaph

Lobster at Panorama restaurant

On Saturday night at 12am midnight (technically Sunday), the celebration in church of Christ’s resurrection takes place. At midnight, fireworks ring out in order to signal that Christ has arisen, and this time when the candle light passes out to to crowd outside the church, you try your best to hold the light until you get to your home.

Paleo Psihiko, waiting for the light

Once you get home you put a cross on the door with the candle to protect your house, and at home two people crack red-dyed Easter eggs and alternatively say, Christos Anesti, Alithos Anesti. Whoever cracks the other’s Easter egg and keeps theirs intact wins, but I don’t really know more than that. It’s just fun. The Sunday is really the best part- stay tuned.

The red egg game