Easter: The Greek Way!

In Greek, the greeting is Kala Pascha, but the meaning is the same, Happy Easter! This year, as frequently happens, the dates for this holiday are different on the Eastern Orthodox and Western liturgical (church) calendars. In 2012, Easter is celebrated on Sunday, April 15, in the Greek Orthodox Church. For the more than a one-hundred million faithful of the worldwide Eastern Orthodox Communion, this feast is the holiest day of the year.

In addition to being a major religious holiday, Easter is also observed as an occasion to welcome the return of the Spring season and a time of hope. As is the case in most cultures, following the observance of our faith traditions and rituals, we Greeks always find the time to party with family and friends. My extended family is no different.

Church is at midnight as we honor and welcome the day of the Resurrection from mortal death. We believe both earth and heaven are united in the celebration of the divine. Because this is the most important day in the religious cycle, churches are crowded and overflowing as we gather to commemorate this joyous event.

As this religious service brings an end to the strict period of fasting known as Lent, my immediate family, like many others, gets together right after the Divine Liturgy for a sinfully huge Easter breakfast despite the fact that it is the early predawn hours. It's important to nourish the body for all the festivities of the coming day. It's not called a feast for nothing! There's plenty of food and drink to last the entire day and well into the night ahead. After all, Greek civilization has had thousands of years to perfect this epicurean festival. Centrally placed in every home is the icon (holy image) of the Resurrection, shown here to the right. It represents the church triumphant over the darkness of hell.  

Sunday afternoon is when my extended family joins together for the Easter Dinner. Typically, not only are all the families included, but there's always more than a couple of family friends who join this tribal revelry. This is the part of the celebration where serious partying is involved, as my Greek uncles pull out their instruments and we begin dancing to traditional songs that extol life in the homeland. Our family fun is unique as two of my Nigerian uncles bring their traditional Yoruba (my Nigerian tribe) drums that  add an African flavor to the festivities.

One of my favorite Easter treats is the tasty tzoureki, Easter bread. Rolls of yeast dough are intertwined and hardboiled eggs dyed red are used to decorate the loaf. Now, my Nigerian mother for years was schooled by her Greek sisters-in-law and trust, her tzoureki is by far the best in either Africa, Greece and the USA! Opa`! Kala Pascha!