Orthodox Holy Week begins this week

The Holy Week, also called the Passion Week, begins today for the Orthodox Church. It marks the culmination of the Jesus Christ’s sufferings and of his Apostles, as well as spiritual sufferings of eastern Christians. The following 7 days represent the most special week of the church year, the rector of the Church Sfanta Teodora de la Sihla, Ioan Ciuntu affirmed. According to father Ciuntu, the week before the Easter Sunday, the most important events of the salvation history take place, starting with the last advice sent by Jesus to his apprentices and ending with crucifying and forgiveness of human sins. The Lent, which began 6 weeks ago, is during the Holly Week very close to its real meaning, being the path through which we come back to heaven Adam once closed, Ioan Ciuntu noted, adding that greed expelled humans out of the heaven, and its antidote, the fast, makes them come back to heaven. Participation at liturgies during the Holly Week means real co-participation in events lived by Christ: the Maundy Thursday, His sufferings and Resurrection. One of the most important days of this week is Thursday, or Maundy Thursday, when it is recalled the ritual when Jesus washed the feet of his apprentices at the Last Meal, giving an example of serving humans. In the same day, at the Last Meal, the settlement of Eucharistic Secret takes place, or the Holy Eucharist through the words addressed by Jesus to his Apostles: "Take and eat it, this is My Body, which suffers for you". At the evening liturgy on Thursday night, Ioan Ciuntu mentioned, there are 12 Gospels read which retell about Judah betraying Christ, His arrest in Gethsemane garden, Peter’s denial, Pharisees passing Christ’s death sentence. Friday is characterized by a special “black” fast, when neither water nor food is consumed. It is a day of deep sadness, as it is the day when Jesus was crucified, the day of His death and burial. At Friday evening liturgy people make three circles around the church. It is referring to those three days when Jesus was in the grave. He highlighted that participation at the events hold in the Holy Week means the identity of the path that the Christians follow, similar to the model of the Cross path followed by Jesus Christ.