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How do Orthodox Christians celebrate Christ's resurrection on Easter Sunday?

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1 answer
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After checking the Orthodox Christianity and Easter tags (over 400 of them), I could find nothing specific on how Orthodox Christianity celebrates Easter Sunday, apart from the Paschal greeting https://christianity.stackexchange.com/questions/62953/what-is-the-earliest-surviving-reference-to-the-paschal-greeting , and one custom of the breaking of pottery on a few of the Greek Ionian islands. In Corfu it happens on Holy Saturday where ceramic pots are thrown off balconies into the streets. In Zakynthos it takes place at the Great Friday evening of ‘The Epitafios Lamentation’ service. This custom is meant to symbolize the Harrowing of Hades or, more specifically, the smashing of the Gates of Hades. I also note a photo in my Enclyclopedia of World Religions of many ostrich eggs being suspended from the ceilings of Armenian churches to serve as symbols of hope and resurrection. *But I do NOT wish to know more about such events.* None of that addresses the actual day called ‘Easter Sunday’ (apart from the Paschal greeting, which I suppose only takes up about 10 seconds of the start of the Easter service.) I wish to know **what customs and acts of worship and celebration the various Orthodox groups engage in on that one day**. I know there are lots of events in Holy Week leading up to the climax of resurrection Sunday, but I do not wish to know about the days prior to then. Stack Exchange is full of information about that. Nor do I wish to know anything about the date for Easter and controversies / theologies about that. Again, the site is full of such information. I only want **information from Orthodox Christians on what happens on that one day – the Sunday (of Holy Week) – and that could come from any of the groups within Orthodoxy** as they all seem to have unique rituals and customs (Nestorian, Monophysite, West Syrian, Armenian, Coptic and Ethiopian). I know the Paschal greeting starts that Easter Sunday service, but what happens thereafter?
Asked by Anne (42779 rep)
May 8, 2021, 02:40 PM
Last activity: May 8, 2021, 07:06 PM