Anastasi

Anastasi (Ανασταση) means Resurrection. And this is the biggest celebration in the Orthodox church. Bigger than the birth of the Christ (christmas) is the resurrection.

After the BIG WEEK of fasting and praying. After Ash Wednesday, White Thursday and Good Friday there is Big Saturday, celebrating the resurrection of everybody. Including Fireworks exploding from the church.

The light is given from the centre of a totally dark church to everyone holding a candle, in and outside. And people wish eachother: “Καλη ανασταση” meaning: a “Good Resurrection”.

So I found an example from Mexico, with a lot of angels many colors. I removed the angels and made Christ in white, like jumping out of the darkness. And I removed the skulls and bones you often see in this icon.

For the cherubims I used only white on dark blue and was surprising myself with all different expressions I got on the little faces. It was a joyful ride to make this icon.

Easter in Greece is synonymous not only to the numerous religious celebrations and festivities, but also to many other rituals and customs, traditional dishes and recipes, sweet treats, colourful flowers and aromas, crafts, music, dance and more.

As the greatest feast of Orthodoxy, Easter is celebrated in a unique way in every corner of Greece, with century-old local traditions being revived every year all across the country.

Even though this time again Easter will be different from what we were used to in the past, because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, there are still some Easter “habits” and traditions that families can safely enjoy at home and keep the Easter spirit alive.

READ MORE ABOUT EASTERN CELEBRATION IN GREECE

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