Christ Is Risen! Qom Moran Men Qabro! Christos Anesti!

Truly, He is risen! Shariroith qom! Alithos anesti!

If you haven’t read part 1 of my Easter/Pascha 2025 recollection, which took you up to Holy or Good Friday between St. Mary’s Syriac Orthodox Church and St. George Orthodox Church (part of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese), you can find it here:

I forgot to mention that Nick and I read Psalms and other prayers for about one hour from 9:30 to 10:30 pm on Friday. Many of us sign up to read through the night on Friday night after the Matins until the Vesperal Liturgy of St. Basil at 10 a.m. the next morning. It is a blessed time as we either read and pray by ourselves (or this year, joined by two other men who wanted to stay and pray).

Prayers read throughout Friday night into Saturday

Holy Saturday was never much of anything in my evangelical past. It was that dead space between the horrors of Good Friday and the glorious Resurrection Sunday. Christ was just … dead, right? It was a good day to finalize your grocery shopping and prepare food for Easter Sunday, but that was about it. Not so in the Orthodox world—why are you not surprised?

Holy Saturday is celebrated in Greek Orthodox churches by throwing laurel (or bay) leaves and rose petals across the whole church, including the parishioners. It is a joyful moment, and the church looks amazingly beautiful afterward!

Holy Saturday is also called Saturday of Lights in the Syriac Orthodox Church. On this day, we remember that Holy Fire came from Jesus's tomb, showing He is truly alive! In the Orthodox churches, we commemorate Christ's descent into Hades, shining upon the dead awaiting His salvation. That same light emerges from His holy tomb in Jerusalem's Church of the Holy Sepulcher (or Church of the Resurrection) every year. Here are a few images from this year’s Holy Fire in Jerusalem!

Here is a video that describes the phenomenon:

The Harrowing of Hell (or Hades) is a central part of the celebration of Holy Saturday in the Greek Orthodox Church. It is one of the most fascinating parts of Easter (or Pascha, as the Eastern Orthodox call it).

You will hear a similar theme in the Syriac Orthodox evening prayers:

The living ascended down to the dwellings of death and there announced resurrection, the revival of the deceased and forgiveness of guilt. He broke the gates of hell, broke their bars in two, destroyed the power of death and destroyed its victory. Blessed be the giver of life who brought life to our deceased. Blessed be the guardian who drives away our drowsiness. Blessed be He who gave us life through his grave. Forgive, be merciful and have mercy on us.

My life went down into the pit, said David. He meant the king, the son of David, who went down to the dwellings of death. My soul was full of the evil of the executioners. According to their will, I was counted among those who went down to the grave. But I will revive the dead who are in the Sheol. I will free those who are bound in captivity. I will rise up and be exalted and the crucifiers will be ashamed.

Christ, who has revived our mortality through your death, direct our deceased, accept our ministry, and have mercy on us.

His Eminence Mor Clemis Eugene Kaplan presided over the Saturday of Lights liturgy at St. Ephraim Cathedral in Burbank, CA.

The hymnody on Easter Saturday in the Greek Orthodox Church states:

Today, Hades groans and cries out, "It would have been better for me if I had not received the One born of Mary; for when He came here, He destroyed my power. He shattered the gates of brass; and, as God, He resurrected the souls, which I held captive for ages." Glory to Your Cross and Your Resurrection, O Lord!

Today, Hades groans and cries out, "My authority has been destroyed. I took One who died, as though He were mortal, but I am powerless to contain Him. Along with Him I lose all those, over whom I had ruled. I had held the dead from all ages, but behold, He raises them all." Glory to Your Cross and Your Resurrection, O Lord!

Today, Hades groans and cries out, "My power has been swallowed up; the Shepherd has been crucified; and He raised Adam. I have been deprived of those, over whom I ruled; and I have thrown up all those, whom i had swallowed when I was strong. He who was crucified has emptied the tombs. The power of death is no longer in force." Glory to Your Cross and Your Resurrection. O Lord!

A resurrection icon provided by The United to Christ

Most resurrection icons depict Jesus grabbing those in Hades by the wrist and freeing them. The gates of Hades are shown as destroyed. Hallelujah! Christ’s death conquered death, and we have life because of Him.

Here is another explanation of what Christ accomplished in Hades:

So truly, we can rejoice already. And we haven’t even arrived yet on Sunday!

Holy Saturday was here in all its glory. After the Vesperal Liturgy in the morning, we went home, got our Pascha basket ready for the breaking of the fast (a Russian Orthodox tradition that is also celebrated at St. George), and took a nap to prepare for a long night ahead.

Toward the evening, I watched His Eminence Mor Clemis celebrate the Holy Quorobo in Burbank, CA. It was fascinating to me, as I don’t normally have this view on the consecration of the gifts! I meant to grab a screen recording from the live transmission, but by the time I went back, it was gone. Sigh. So here are just some screenshots. I would have loved to have split into halves and seen both the Syriac Orthodox and the Greek Orthodox celebrations of Christ’s resurrection.

We arrived at the church at 10:40 p.m. to leave time to drop off our basket, which Father Jeffrey would bless after the close of the Paschal Matins and procession. The church was already dark, and all lights except an altar lamp were extinguished. You have to tiptoe in very carefully!

After prayers and hymns, Father Jeffrey lit his candle from the altar candle and, via the altar servers, began to spread the light to every parishioner holding a candle. It is a beautiful moment! Shouts of “Christ is risen!,” “Al Masih Qam!,” and other languages resound throughout the church.

Then, the parishioners follow Father Jeffrey and the choir around the church in a procession. Finally, once they arrive back at the front door, the ritual of knocking at the locked door, based on Psalm 24 (23 in the Septuaginta), proceeds after a Scripture reading.

Lift up your heads, O gates!
and be lifted up, O ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in!
Who is the King of glory?
The Lord, strong and mighty,
the Lord, mighty in battle.
Lift up your heads, O gates!
and be lifted up, O ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in!
Who is this King of glory?
The Lord of hosts,
he is the King of glory.

Once we were all back in the building, the Paschal Matins concluded, and Father Jeffrey blessed us with a red egg to remember the Resurrection of Christ. We then went into the courtyard to bless all the Pascha baskets, which will be shared among the families and attendees.

And then the greatest joy of the season begins for all! You will never know how good meats, cheeses, and eggs taste when you have not had them for fifty days! The feasting goes until 3 am or later.

A typical Pascha basket

Rejoicing in our shared meal on Pascha morning!

After a brief sleep and a sumptuous breakfast, we returned to church at 12:30 pm on Sunday. This is the final part of the Pascha celebrations, the Agape Vespers. Here, the Gospel of St. John 20:19-25 is read in various languages. I got to read the precious Gospel in German. Typically, only the Priest will read the Gospel, so this is a very special time for me!

I am reading the Gospel of St. John 20:19-25 in German during Agape Vespers.

Our day concluded with a most scrumptious dinner featuring a beef roast to ensure we remembered the taste of meat! 🤣

I hope you learned a bit about the customs in the different branches of Orthodoxy for Easter/Pascha. Join us next year - come and see! It is a glorious time of remembering our Lord’s death, burial, and resurrection, which gives us life. Hallelujah!