Every year, on Holy Saturday, a leader of the Eastern Orthodox Church goes into the Holy Sepulchre (Jesus' burial place) in the dark, kneels before the slab that Jesus' body was laid on, says prayers to the Holy Spirit that have been passed down for centuries, and waits. Often instantaneously, the slab catches fire and forms a pillar for the leader to light his candles. The fire is said to have a blue hue and miraculously does not burn (people can hold it up to their skin without harm). It is also said that many of the thousands of pilgrims waiting outside have their candles spontaneously lit by the Holy Spirit. The fire obtained from Jesus' tomb is then passed on and even flown to other countries and used to light the Churches' Easter candles. Of course there is much speculation, but this is one of the longest and most regular miracles in the Christian world.
Interesting, ay? Check it out.
P.S. I really want to go on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. ::sigh::
Monday, April 13, 2009
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3 comments:
Did you also know that the Eastern Orthodox Church celebrates Lent, Holy Week, and Easter at different dates than the Western Christians due to two different calendar systems?
For this year, Easter for the Eastern Church is on April 19.
Now you know.
Hope all is well!
haha..ya i knew that. i'm good. :)
so im guessing you went to one of Fr. Harrigan's Masses on Easter... hahahha
Happy Easter....
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