Learn all about Good Friday and Easter
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| Hello, and welcome to the Culture Class- Holidays in Bulgaria Series at BulgarianPod101.com. In this series, we’re exploring the traditions behind Bulgarian holidays and observances. I’m Eric, and you're listening to Season 1, Lesson 9- Good Friday and Easter |
| As in many other countries, Easter is celebrated in Bulgaria. The date varies every year, but it’s always between April 4 and May 8. |
| In this lesson, you’ll learn how Bulgarians celebrate Good Friday, or Crucifixion Friday, or in Bulgarian Razpeti Petak, and Easter, or in Bulgarian, Velikden. |
| Now, before we get into more detail, I've got a question for you- |
| Do you know why the first Easter egg is traditionally dyed red? |
| If you don't already know, you’ll find out a bit later, so keep listening! |
| According to “Orthodox Christianity,” or in Bulgarian Pravoslavno hristiyanstvo, Easter is also called “Pasch,” in Bulgarian Pasha, or “The Resurrection of Christ,” in Bulgarian Vazkresenie Hristovo. On Easter, people “greet” each other, or in Bulgarian se pozdravyavat, with the words 'Christ has risen!', and the usual response is ‘He has truly risen!’ This is the greeting in its “contemporary version,” or savremenen variant. The Slavonic church version is Hristos voskrese! Voistinu voskrese! Both are used nowadays. |
| Before the Resurrection, however, Christians celebrate “Passion Week,” or Strasnata sedmitza, and most of all Good Friday, when the Savior Jesus Christ was crucified. Each day of this Passion Week is called ‘Great'—Great Monday, and so on. This is also the last week of the Great Lent. |
| On Saturday evening before midnight, there’s a solemn liturgy and all the lights in the church are “turned off,” or izgasyavat. The priest brings out a triple candlestick from which all people light their “candles,” or sveshti, and go out of the church. At 12 o’clock, the bells start ringing and the priest announces the resurrection with the words ‘Christ has risen!’ |
| At home, Bulgarians welcome the holiday by dying eggs and kneading Easter cakes, or in Bulgarian kozunatsi. The dyed eggs are of various colors and Bulgarians like to have fights with boiled eggs, an event also known as “knocking eggs,” or chukane s yaytsa. |
| Now it's time to answer our quiz question- |
| Do you know why the first Easter egg is traditionally dyed red? |
| It’s thought that the color red symbolizes the “blood,” or krav, of Jesus Christ spilled on the cross. For this reason, Bulgarians dye the first egg bright red and some even make a cross with it on their children’s foreheads for health. |
| How was this lesson? Did you learn something interesting? |
| Do you celebrate Easter in your country? |
| Leave a comment letting us know at BulgarianPod101.com, |
| and we'll see you in the next lesson! |
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