Pascha: Easter in the Orthodox Churches

When: A Sunday in spring, often a week or more after Western Easter (the date changes each year)

Pascha is what Orthodox Christians call Easter. It is the greatest feast of their year. At midnight the church is dark, then a single flame is shared candle to candle until the whole church is full of light.

Where it came from

Pascha comes from the Greek word for Passover. The Orthodox churches count the date of Easter by the old Julian calendar. Their rule is the same as at Nicaea, a Sunday after the spring full moon, and also after the Jewish Passover. But because of the calendar difference, their date can be a week or more later than in the West.

The Orthodox keep a long preparation: Great Lent, seven weeks, then Holy Week with its services. The midnight service is the heart of the year. The church is dark. The priest lights a candle and sings, “Come, receive the light from the light that never fades.” Then the whole church sings, “Christ is risen from the dead!”

How it is kept around the world

• The midnight service. People bring candles, wait in the dark, and then receive the light. After “Christ is risen!” they greet each other with a kiss, saying “Christ is risen!” and “Truly he is risen!”
• Red eggs. Families dye eggs red, the colour of life and joy. Tradition says Mary Magdalene brought an egg to the emperor and it turned red as she said Christ is risen. They tap the eggs together.
• Russia and Ukraine. Families bring a tall sweet bread called kulich, and a creamy dessert called paskha, to the church to be blessed. Everyone says “Khristos voskrese!” and answers “Voistinu voskrese!”
• Greece. After the midnight service, families break the fast with a soup called magiritsa, and on Sunday they roast a whole lamb on a spit.
• Egypt and Ethiopia. Coptic Orthodox Christians in Egypt keep the same date; the Monday after is Sham El-Nessim, a national spring holiday for everyone. In Ethiopia the feast is Fasika.
• Jerusalem. On Holy Saturday, thousands gather in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre for the “Holy Fire” ceremony. Orthodox pilgrims believe a flame appears by miracle from the tomb. Other Christians see it as a ceremony and a symbol of light. In both cases, the candles are lit and carried out to many countries.

Christians differ

Orthodox Christians and Western Christians share the same faith in the resurrection. The difference is in the calendar and in how the date of Easter is worked out. Some Orthodox churches, such as in Greece, Romania and Bulgaria, use the newer calendar for fixed feasts like Christmas, but all still use the Julian rule for Easter. Christians from different traditions sometimes join each other's celebrations as guests.

On the Holy Fire, Christians differ. Orthodox pilgrims believe it is a miracle. Many Catholics and Protestants do not hold that belief.

Do it together

Ages 0 to 2

• Sit in a dim room and light one battery candle. Pass it from hand to hand and say “light”.
• Look at a bright red egg together and say “red” and “new”.

Ages 3 to 5

• Dye eggs red with natural colour (such as onion skins) and tap them together.
• Make a candle from paper and pass it around, one friend at a time.

Ages 6 to 8

• Learn how to say “Christ is risen” in Greek (Christos anesti) and Russian (Khristos voskrese) and use it.
• Bake or buy a sweet bread, and share it with a neighbour.

Ages 9 to 12

• Look up the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Why do they differ and what happens to Easter?
• Compare the way Orthodox and Western churches keep Holy Saturday night.

Ages 13 to 17

• Read about the Great Vigil, the longest service of the year. What does it say about light and darkness?
• Visit an Orthodox church as a respectful guest and write about what you noticed.

A short prayer

Christ is risen from the dead. Thank you, God, for light that no darkness can put out. Amen.

Mark as done

Where this comes from

• Council of Nicaea (325), on the date of Easter, in Norman P. Tanner, ed., Decrees of the Ecumenical Councils, vol. 1 (Sheed & Ward, 1990)
• Alexander Schmemann, Great Lent and Holy Week and Easter (St Vladimir's Seminary Press)
• F. L. Cross and E. A. Livingstone, eds., The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, 3rd ed. (Oxford University Press, 2005), entries “Easter”, “Holy Fire” and “Paschal Controversies”
• Egyptian cultural sources on Sham El-Nessim, the Monday after Coptic Easter

Written with AI assistance and checked against the sources listed. Please read it before sharing it with a child.