Holy Week

Wow, are we all ever ready to be done with Lent! But first comes Holy Week. What an amazing week. If you've never been to an Orthdox service and are the least bit curious, I'd suggest you get yourself over for one or more services this week. Preferably at a church that has enough English that you'll understand what's going on! Today is the beginning of Holy Week--we celebrate Lazarus Saturday today. For four days we've been hearing in the hymnology of the church about how Lazarus has been lying in a tomb, dead. Today, we celebrated his rebirth. The hymn of celebration:

Oh Christ our God,
When you raised Lazarus from the dead before your passion,
You confirmed the universal resurrection.
And so, we like children,
Carry the symbols of victory,
And we cry to you, oh conqueror of death,
Hosanna in the Highest!
Blessed is he that comes in the name of Lord!

Tomorrow will be Palm Sunday (yes, I know everyone else is celebrating Easter tomorrow--a long story, but we have Easter next week) and the journey to Christ's death and resurrection begins. On Thursday night is the most heart-rendingly beautiful service ever--the passion of the Christ. We don't just talk about Jesus' death, we don't just sing about it, we don't just hear sermons about it. We live it. Paul's and my very first Holy Thursday service I remember us falling to our knees spontaneously, we were so struck by awe and beauty.

Then on Friday night the sweetly sad lamentations will be sung. Saturday morning we are already proclaiming that death is being shaken and life itself is rumbling back again! I love the Holy Saturday service becuase it is so full of joy. The priest goes around the church throwing bay leaves all around and we all sing What God is so great as our God? God alone is the God who works wonders. My children crawl all over the floor picking up the wonderfully scented bay leaves, sometimes with rose petals mixed in. We usually put some leaves into our holy week book and the next year, when we pull it out, we remember Holy Weeks past.

And then, there is the long wait. It seems so long to wait between Saturday morning service and the Resurrection service, which starts at 10:30 or 11, because we've been in church so often in the last week it seems we practically live there. But this afternoon is when I do my baking and cooking, getting ready for the biggest feast of the year. The Pascha (Easter) bread smells so good we never know how we're going to endure it until 2 am or so, when we can eat it! I always make a Pascha bread, and a Pascha cheese to go on it. Yesterday, someone found my blog from a search of pascha cheese, cream cheese, sour cream....sounds like they're looking for the recipe I use, so I'll post it! It's from the Lenten cookbook Food From Paradise. I'll post it as written, but it's written to make a bunch, like to feed a crowd, and I always halve it or make even less than half.

Cream Cheese Paskha

3 pounds softened cream cheese
1 pint sour cream
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 pound softened butter
2 cups confectioner's sugar
golden raisins
slivered almonds

Cream the butter and add the cheese, continuing to cream them both. Add sugar and vanilla. Next stir in the sour cream and raisins and almonds in desired quantities (I never use the raisins or almonds). Spoon into bowls and decorate the top.

This will keep for about a week in the fridge....I think. Our supply usually peters out about 5 days after Pascha. It is delicious as a spread on Pascha bread or bagels.

So, the bread and the cheese and the candy and the pastitsio are ready....now it's time to rest....but we can't ever get to sleep. We will be up most of the night, but we're too keyed up to sleep. Way after the kids' bedtimes, they get dressed in their new clothes and we gather up our special Pascha candles. When we get to the church there is such a feeling of excitement! We begin the service of Orthros, which is, as Paul says, just wasting time until at midnight we can finally celebrate the Resurrection service! The church is darkened so there are no lights at all. It is quiet. Then, we hear the priest sing

Come, receive the Light, from the Light! That is never overtaken by night! And glorify Christ, who is Risen From the Dead!

He comes out of the altar with a lit candle and lights others' candles with it. Soon we are all holding lit candles, from the light of Pascha. Christ is Risen!

A good Holy Week to all Orthodox Christians, and a good Easter to those who celebrate tomorrow.