Holy Week Services and Schedule-2009
The Services of Great and Holy Week -
The following is a brief explanation of the services of Holy and Great Week as celebrated in the Greek Orthodox Church. It covers services, beginning with the Saturday of Lazarus and ending with the Feast of Pascha. It is our prayer that these brief explanations help to make Holy Week come alive in our hearts as we prepare to receive our resurrected Lord on Pascha.
 Before Holy Week begins, we celebrate the Saturday of Lazarus. This commemorates the miracle of Lazarus's resurrection by Christ. This miracle was performed as a preview to His own resurrection which is commemorated on the following Sunday. The Sunday after the Saturday of Lazarus, we celebrate Palm Sunday when Christ entered Jerusalem. Immediately following the Divine Liturgy, the priest hands out crosses made out of palms. We put these crosses in our cars or anywhere else we feel we want to be protected. The traditional food for this day is fish.
Holy Week is a period of mourning as we commemorate the Passion of Jesus Christ. Entertainment is not allowed for the whole week. The Church has services every night during this week, and each Service reenacts the events leading to Easter Sunday. Fasting is strict during this week especially on Good Friday. 
On Sunday night, Holy Monday night and Holy Tuesday are the services of Christ the Bridegroom. The Church (faithful) is symbolically the bride and Christ is the groom. The church must prepare to unite with Christ, the bridegroom, for all eternity.
On Holy Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday mornings the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts (Proigiasmeni) is celebrated.
 On Holy Tuesday night, we commemorate the anointing of Christ with myrrh by a woman who wet his feet and dried them with her hair. Christ forgave her for her sins as an example to us on how to repent and be saved. The "Kassiani" hymn is sung as a hymn of repentance.
 On Holy Wednesday, in the afternoon or evening, the church offers the Sacrament of Holy Unction. During this service, the priest reads seven gospels, and seven blessings to bless the oil which will be used to heal the ailments of the body and soul. At the end of the service, the priest anoints each parishioner with the oil by making the sign of the cross on  their forehead, cheeks, chin and hands. Also on this evening we celebrate the Washing of the Feet.
On Holy Thursday morning, the Liturgy of St. Basil the  Great celebrated. Many receive Holy Communion that morning. Eggs are dyed Red on this day. The color red symbolizes the blood of Christ which He shed for us on the Cross. During the evening service, the priest reads 12 Gospels that tell all of Christ's suffering that led to his Crucifixion. After each Gospel reading, a candle is lit. After the fifth Gospel is read, the Holy Cross is taken out of the Altar and carried in a procession around the church and then placed in the center at the front of the church, where parishioners come forth and kiss the body or feet of Christ.
 Holy Friday morning is the Service for the reading of the Royal Hours. In the afternoon the service for the Descent from the Holy Cross (Apokathilosis) is held, where the priests takes the body of Christ from the Cross and places it in the Epitaphio (funeral bier). After the Apokathilosis, the faithful come forth and kiss the Epitaphio, as a blessing the young children walk/crawl under it three times. In Greece, the faithful go from Church to Church to kiss the different Epitaphioi. At night is the Matins of Lamentations (Epitaphios). The Epitaphios is lifted and taken outside the church in a procession. In Greece they take the Epitaphio in a procession through the whole village or town and all the churches meet and continue on together from there. When the Epitaphio returns to the Church, each parishioner enters the church by passing under the Epitaphio. Another Greek tradition for Good Friday is to drink vinegar just as Jesus was given vinegar when he said that he was thirsty.
 Holy Saturday morning is the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great, celebrating the Myrrh Baring Women going to the Tomb. At night the Service of the Resurrection (Anastasi) is held. It is customary for the godmother or godfather to buy an Easter candle for their godchild. Everyone dresses up in their new outfits and go to Church. A little before midnight, all the lights in the Church are turned off. As soon as midnight strikes the priest sings "Defte Labete Fos" which translates to "Come receive the light". At that point he comes out of the Altar with a lit candle and gives the light to the whole congregation (one member passes is to the next).  Then, all the Clergy and parishioners exit the church. Once outside, the priest reads the Gospel of the Resurrection according to Mark, which tells of the empty tomb. He then proclaims the Resurrection singing:
"Christos Anesti ek nekron thanato thanaton patisas ke tis en tis mnimasi, zoin xarisamenos"
(Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death and granting life to those in the tombs)
The entire congregation also sings Christos Anesti, while making the sign of the cross with their candles.
Everyone greets each other with "Christos Anesti" (Christ is risen) and respond "Alithos Anesti" (Truly he is risen". At this point, the majority of the congregation enters the church for the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom. The faithful take their lit candles home and before entering the house, they make the sign of the cross above the entryway with the smoke from the candle. Then they light the kantili and try to preserve that light for at least three days. Some keep it for as much as forty days. (Motive Lamp near their home Icon). That night, everyone eats the traditional Anastasi meal which consists of mayeritsa (soup made with lamb), tsoureki (sweet bread), koulourakia, red Easter eggs, etc. Another tradition is to crack eggs and see whose breaks the others eggs first. On the island of Kos, they also eat "lambropittes" which are basically cheese pies. They make the dough which they place in a round baking pan and fill it with a cheese and egg mixture. Then they brush the top with egg before baking.
On PASCHA (Easter Sunday) it is a tradition to roast a lamb. The roasted lamb symbolizes Jesus who sacrificed himself for our sake.
There is an afternoon Church Service on Easter Sunday. It is referred to as Great Vespers of Agape (of Love). During this Service, the Gospel is read many different languages to symbolize the great commissioning to evangelize the world.
For forty days following the Anastasi, the Greek Orthodox greets each other with "Christos Anesti" and responds "Alithos Anesti". |
Holy Week
Services
April 11- Saturday of Lazarus-
Cathedral- Matins 9:00 AM; Divine Liturgy 10:00 AM
April 12- Sunday of the Palms-
Blessing of the Palms- Cathedral- Orthros 9:00 AM; Divine Liturgy
10:00 AM; Matins of the Bridegroom 7:00 PM
April 13- Holy and Great
Monday- Cathedral- Matins of the Bridegroom 7:00 PM
April 14- Holy and Great Tuesday-
Cathedral- Matins of the Bridegroom 7:00 PM
April 15- Holy
and Great Wednesday- Chapel- Ninth Hour 9:30 AM; Presanctified
Liturgy 10:00 AM; Cathedral- Sacrament of Holy Unction 3:30
PM; Matins of the Mystical Supper 7:00 PM
April 16- Holy and Great Thursday-
Cathedral- Divine Liturgy of Saint Basil the Great 10:00 AM;
Matins and Procession of the Crucified 7:00
PM
April 17- Holy
and Great Friday- Cathedral- Royal Hours 9:00 AM; Great Vespers
of the Descent from the Cross 2:30 PM; Matins of the Burial
and Lamentations with the Procession of the Sacred Tomb 7:00
PM
April 18- Holy
and Great Saturday- Cathedral- Divine Liturgy of Saint Basil
the Great 10:00 AM; Matins of the Resurrection 11:15 PM; Divine
Liturgy of Pascha 12:30 AM
April 19- The
Holy and Great Pascha- Cathedral- Great Vespers of Love 12:00
Noon
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