Easter in Crete
by Hilary Chernack
Madness in the mountains
Easter is the most important event in the Greek Orthodox religious calendar. The last week of a 40-day period of fasting builds up to a truly frenzied crescendo. The first of the three-times-daily Church services wakes us with a mighty clashing of bells at 6:30 a.m. There follows much chanting and praying - which is repeated at 2:00pm and then again at the evening service.During our first year on the island, my partner and I were quite overawed by the noise and excitement. Throughout the lead-up to the Easter weekend, the country literally reverberates to the sound of fireworks -which echo alarmingly around the hills and mountains - and the aroma of freshly baked cakes and biscuits fills the air (the Cretan ladies bake enough to feed an army!).
On Good Friday afternoon, many of the young girls decorate the tomb of Jesus with wild, fresh flowers. (They once dragged me in to help. Every stem I entwined broke, and I pulled the head off a large lily - attracting withering looks from the locals.)
Sarcophagus
Good Friday is technically a day of mourning, but it has a festive atmosphere. By the evening service, residents begin milling around the Church as the tension and excitement mounts.In our village, instead of the usual verger, Manolis the taxi driver takes responsibility for ringing the bells - pulling the ropes with a gusto that causes temporary deafness to everyone within range.
Several of the older children dress in golden robes and lead the procession around the Church. Then four young men emerge - led by the priest, the cantor and the verger, and bearing the flower-decorated sarcophagus. Joining the cavalcade, they circle the Church three times.
The rest of the congregation then joins in - the more senior members bearing aloft candles and icons, as the cortege wends its way around the village.
Heathens
On one particularly memorable Good Friday, we invited a few friends up on to our roof to witness the spectacle. We had decided to eat at a local taverna afterwards. Upon hearing my plans, a Greek acquaintance was aghast. "But no restaurant will be open!" she cried, "Everyone is fasting, and can only eat olives and dry bread.""Well, if the owner wants to open up for a few heathens like us, then it's up to him," I said. She was horrified. At the taverna, however, the owner greeted us warmly and we ordered a large selection of mezhedes (hors d'oeuvres).
We were well into the local wine when the door opened and a small family of villagers ventured tentatively (and somewhat guiltily) inside. They were soon followed by another - equally abashed but hungry-looking - couple.
Soon, the taverna was packed, everyone thoroughly enjoying what is supposed to be the most solemn night of the year. (Aris, the owner, was thrilled: even on a feast day, he had never been so busy.)
Dynamite
The villagers demonstrate their kindness and hospitality throughout Easter with a seemingly unending procession of gifts: Easter cakes, sweet cheese tartlets, homemade biscuits and of course eggs - both decorated and, in our case, fresh. (Fresh eggs are not supposed to be eaten during Lent. But the hens don't realise this - so what else can our neighbours do but give all their eggs to us!)Easter Saturday is a flurry of activity: more cooking, cleaning and last minute shopping. During the morning service, the priests dress in white and scatter bay leaves and rose petals, while the Church bells peal continuously and cantors chant in praise of the Lord.
The day builds up to the evening services when, before midnight, the lights are turned off and the priest appears at the door, offering the Holy Light to ignite the candles of the assembled congregation.
Next everyone gathers around an effigy of Judas - positioned precariously on a pyre, in the Church courtyard - which, at midnight, is set aflame. The very ground then begins to shake, as sticks of dynamite (yes, dynamite!) are thrown from the tops of the mountains. All in all, a totally unforgettable experience.
Finally, the congregation exchanges warm greetings before enjoying a traditional meal to break the fast, commencing with Magiritsa (entrails soup) and followed by roast lamb, potatoes and salad, as the thunderous cacophony continues into the early hours of the morning.
In Aghios Nikoloas, the Judas-burning has become a fine art. The effigy perches on its pyre, on a raft in the middle of the lake (a lovely spot, surrounded on two sides by red cliffs). At close to midnight, a procession led by the priest - carrying the Holy Icon - makes its way towards the lake.
At midnight, a large fireball slides along a wire from the cliff, setting Judas alight. Then flares, fireworks, firecrackers, bangers - and, again, sticks of dynamite - are hurled from the cliffs above.
According to the Greek Orthodox religions, as Judas was burned, Christ had risen - cause for extremely noisy celebrations.
Fiesta
Easter Sunday is traditionally a day of great feasting - following the great fasting - and everyone gathers to cook whole lambs on a spit, over a pit of burning embers. Almost inevitably, in Kritsa, as the first bells sound for the afternoon service - BANG! - a procession of daring young men once again climb the mountains for a final dynamite show, this time lasting for around an hour or so and accompanied by other young men firing guns and launching flares.The weekend culminates with the small chapel higher up in the village hosting a fiesta - its courtyard crammed with villagers, feasting, drinking and dancing to traditional bouzouki and lyre music.
Monday, believe it or not, is a rest day. Rightly so - as everyone needs it.
