Celebrating Orthodox Palm Sunday in Greece

The triumphal introduction into Jerusalem arsenic depicted connected a fresco successful an Eastern Orthodox church. Credit: Petar Milošević/Wikimedia Commons/CC BY-SA 4.0

Palm Sunday marks the past Sunday earlier Easter and signals the opening of Holy Week, an important play of supplication and reflection for Orthodox Christians earlier the Resurrection of Jesus.

The feast celebrates Christ’s triumphal introduction into Jerusalem, an lawsuit mentioned successful each 4 of the Gospels.

According to biblical sources, Jesus’s introduction into the past beatified metropolis took spot conscionable a fewer days earlier helium was betrayed astatine the Last Supper, and is deemed to person marked the opening of Christ’s Passion, oregon the events starring up to his suffering and eventual decease connected the cross.

Jesus rode into Jerusalem conscionable days aft Lazarus was risen from the dead

Although the circumstances starring up to Christ’s accomplishment successful Jerusalem disagree somewhat successful each of the Gospels, each picture Jesus’ introduction into the metropolis arsenic a joyous event, arsenic citizens gathered astir him and proclaimed him to beryllium the Lord.

In each Gospel, Jesus rides into the metropolis connected a donkey, which, compared to the horse, is an carnal of peace, not war. This signals that Jesus is king—but a beatified king of bid alternatively than an earthly king of war.

The radical of Jerusalem laid down their robes, arsenic good arsenic thenar fronds, connected the road, welcoming Christ into the metropolis arsenic a royal.

In the Gospel of John, Jesus had conscionable raised Lazarus from the dormant lone a fewer days prior, and connection of the miraculous lawsuit had already dispersed passim Jerusalem, wherever crowds eagerly awaited the accomplishment of Christ successful awe.

In the consequent Gospels, Christ enters the metropolis from the Mount of Olives, and determination is nary notation of Lazarus during the event.

As the Greek Orthodox commemorate the Feast of Lazarus, oregon Lazarus Saturday, conscionable 1 time before, it is wide that John’s telling of Christ’s introduction into Jerusalem is the accepted mentation for Palm Sunday by the Church.

In galore parts of Greece and Cyprus, radical commonly cook saccharine breadstuff oregon cookies shaped similar Lazarus wrapped successful his funerary bandages, called lazarakia, for Lazarus Sunday.

Palm Sunday Liturgy successful Greece

Palm Sunday. Credit: flickr / Joe Catron CC BY NC 2.0 DEED

Palm Sunday is mostly considered a joyous, celebratory feast, arsenic the faithful await Jesus’ ain accomplishment by mode of the Resurrection connected Easter Sunday.

Much similar the radical of Jerusalem, Christians celebrate the coming accomplishment of Christ by praising him arsenic Savior.

Similar to different branches of Christianity, Orthodox celebrations of Palm Sunday see the organisation of thenar branches that person been blessed and formed into the signifier of a cross.

Traditionally, the branches are arranged into the signifier of a transverse connected Lazarus Saturday, the time before, successful mentation for the event.

Believers usually support the blessed thenar branches successful their homes until the pursuing year.

In the Western Church, thenar branches distributed the erstwhile twelvemonth are returned to the religion the pursuing twelvemonth conscionable earlier Lent truthful that they whitethorn beryllium incinerated.

The ashes produced are past utilized connected Ash Wednesday to people the forehead of believers.