As Christians around the world celebrate Easter, the holiest of days, this Sunday, there are several thoughts that come to mind. This is a unique Easter in that the Easter Orthodox Church, the oldest denomination of Christianity celebrates Easter along with other Christians. Usually the Easter’s don’t line up because they follow different calendars. The Orthodox Church was the original Church set up by the Apostles after Christ’s resurrection. In 1054 in the Great Schism the church divided. Growing up I have many memories from services during Holy Week, from the 12 Gospel readings describing the Passion of Christ, to the taking down of Jesus from the icon of the cross (the Epitaphios) on Good Friday, walking around the outside of the Church, to midnight service on Saturday night which the joyous singing and chanting of “Christ is Risen from the dead!” The Orthodox celebrate the feast of Christ’s Resurrection with braided Easter bread and red eggs (symbolizing the blood of Christ shed) and usually lamb for dinner.
Almost two years ago, we were in Greece and traveled to the small island of Patmos, the island where John was exiled and wrote the book of Revelations, after receiving visions from Jesus while he stayed in a cave. Patmos is a very small island with not many citizens, about 3,283. There is no advanced medical care, our guide told us that many women expecting opt to have a baby on the mainland as the delivery gets close, they travel in anticipation of the arrival. It is a beautiful island with white washed homes and buildings and many blue doors and roof tops. Travels come to Patmos to see that cave, as well as the famous Monastery of John the Apostle. It is here where the large Easter Divine Liturgy takes place. The Celebration of Easter starts the week before Easter on Palm Sunday with services each day of Holy Week. On Holy Thursday on a stage that is erected in Chora, the main town square, they reenact the night of the Last Supper when Jesus washed the Apostles feet. From there the man portraying Jesus goes to a place that represents the Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus went to pray before he was arrested after one of the Apostles, Judas, alerted the authorities as to where Jesus could be found. The services continue into the weekend with a midnight Saturday night service and celebrations and an Easter afternoon service at 3:00 pm followed by feasts of lamb and vegetables served at the numerous tavernas on the island. Patmos is one of the most popular places for Christian to travel to in Greece for Easter, but you would see similar celebration throughout Greece on the mainland and on the islands.
Photos from the Greek Island of Patmos, Palm Sunday and Easter Celebrations, the blue doors, icons from the Monastery and Brad with Suzy our guide as we were entering the chapel where the cave is where John stayed and then wrote Revelations as he was inspired by visions from Jesus.
One of the many things that is fascinating to me after seeing Greece is the abundance of churches, even the smallest of chapels all over. On even the smallest of islands, you will find chapels and little churches even in the most outlying areas of the little towns. My thought is that when the Greeks heard about the good news of Jesus and his message of forgiveness, it made so much sense to them after all the mythology and tales of the Greek Gods. Because it made so much sense, people converted to Christianity and totally bought in. The chapels and churches are beautifully painted with icons of Jesus, his mother, Mary and the saints, even the smallest of chapels are lovely. Most of the population of Greece is Greek Orthodox and you’ll find most people wearing a cross necklace. It would be a lovely experience to be on the island of Patmos celebrating Easter with fellow Christians all celebrating the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ and hearing “Christos Anesti!” Christ is Risen in Greek.
Some of my favorite images from Israel are from Jerusalem, the Mount of Olives, the Garden of Gethsemene, exposing my shoulders on that hot day, should have known better, the rock they believe with Jesus blood spilled from the crucifixion a mural from the Church of the Sepulchur of the events on Good Friday
On that trip, we saw so much world history and history of Christianity. They often refer to this part of the world as the Cradle of Civilization and now I can see why. We saw Ephesus, on the mainland of western Turkey, not far from Patmos. On the way into Ephesus we saw the house where Jesus’s mother, Mary lived out the rest of her life after the resurrection. It is a small stone house and is now quite the tourist attraction. On the same trip, we traveled to Israel and although I was a bit concerned about safety traveling to this part of the world, upon arrival and going through all the checkpoints to enter into the country, seeing young soldiers everywhere in fatigues, I became much more at ease. Our time of travel was just prior to the October 7 attacks by Hamas.
Our guide, Suzy, took us to the Mount of Olives, which overlooks Jerusalem and you can see the walled city from this point. From there we went to the church where the Garden of Gethsemane is. In the Church there is a large boulder that commemorates or possibly it is the real one, where Jesus is said to have prayed after the last supper. As we waited to go into the Church, called the Church of All Nations, also referred to as the Basilica of the Agony, Amer pointed out the now bricked up, former entrance into the walled city of Jerusalem where Jesus may have been taken through after he was arrested. These cites and areas in the Holy Land are honored and held in high regard. As we were ready to go into the church, I was yelled at to cover my shoulders-I had a sleeveless dress on, it was over ninety degrees and had taken the wrap off my shoulders, I had been remiss and quickly covered up. As a tourist, customs and traditions should be respected, as we are guests in a far off land.
From the Garden of Gethsemane we then went into the walled city of Jerusalem, much larger than expected, saw the Wailing Wall and the much anticipated Church of the Holy Sepulcher. A large Basilica where they say that the disrobing of Jesus happened, the crucifixion and at a further point inside, the tomb he was laid in, is located. Whether this all is accurate, I don’t know, but that there is a place where these pivotal events happened on Good Friday and are honored is to be commended. Christian from all over the world come to this place and although I cannot speak for anyone else, to see the relics and how they honor these events is something. I found myself wanting to linger and just be there. Even though there were many people in the Basilica there was a hushed quiet. It felt special.
Within these walls of Jerusalem there is the Church, the Temple, and a large mosque and Christians, Jews and Muslims live and work together. There are little coffee shops, restaurants and shops selling souvenirs and other goods. It’s a ancient looking little city bustling with commerce.
Top Mary’s home in Ephesus, the local beer, images from some of the beautiful churches and little chapel in Greece.
As Easter rolls around a second year, since our travels to Greece, Turkey and Israel, it holds even more meaning having seen these places that had been the subject of many Sunday school lessons, sermons and places read about in the Bible, I think of the scholars who have uncover these sites and the people who tell of the miracles of the mysteries of Christianity. I recently read an article about the most recent Pope Francis who, before he became Pope, as an Arch Bishop in Buenos Aires, was asked by a priest what to do with a wafer from communion that he found amongst the candles in his church. Jorge Mario Bergoglio, as he was referred to before he became Pope, told the priest, Father Alejandro Pezet to put the wafer, which is transformed into the Body of Christ during the sacrament of Holy Communion, in a glass of water. When Father Alejandro retuned to the tabernacle a few days later, the host had been transformed into a bloody substance. The Archbishop had it photographed. Eventually he had the substance scientifically examined. The scientist had not been told where the substance had been found or what it was. The scientist, Dr. Frederic Zugiba, a forensic pathologist, concluded that it was cells that were from the muscles of a living human heart, at the time the sample was taken. The doctor went on to write that there were numerous white blood cells in the tissue and that it appeared that the heart had been under a great amount of stress and that it possibly that the owner of the heart had been beaten severely…
Pope Francis formerly the Archbishop of Buenos Aires and an image of the host after it had been placed in water for a few days.
There are other miracles we read about, and the accounts of non believers who have experiences that convert them into believers of Christ, like the man who was a legal writer for the Chicago Tribune, Lee Strobel, who took it upon himself to prove that Christianity wasn’t real as a weekend challenge using his skills as an attorney to prove it false. What started as a weekend project turned into numerous of months of study, travel, becoming fascinated by one scholar’s findings to another archeologists digs to other readings on artifacts and eventually, Lee Strobel became a believer and speaker on The Case for Christ. His book and story are fascinating.
Lee Strobel and his book, The Case for Christ.
All of these stories, findings, travels are interesting to read, hear and see. And yes, I’d love to be on the Greek Island of Patmos on Easter some year. However, I didn’t need proof that it all happened, I didn’t need to see it to believe. I believe because I have faith. It brings to mind the passage from the Bible, where Jesus says, after his resurrection to Thomas, who had doubted that it was Jesus who had returned from the dead. He said to Thomas, “Because you have seen me you you have believed.” I love what Jesus says next:
“Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
Happy Easter to All…The Greatest of Days ❤️
