Coronavirus Easter: Orthodox Churches Brace For Holy Holiday

RFE
18 Apr 2020, 14:15 GMT+10

At midnight on April 18, bells throughout the cathedrals and sanctuaries of the Orthodox Christian world will toll, devout Christians will cross themselves and rush to kiss holy icons as priests chant 'Christ has risen' and mark the beginning of the holiest day of the Orthodox calendar.

April 19 is Easter, celebrated with centuries-old rituals marking the story of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

This year, it's different.

For epidemiologists and medical experts, the holiday is potentially shaping up to be a critical moment for curtailing -- or the opposite, fueling -- the spread of the pandemic that is wreaking havoc across the globe.

Just as many governments have struggled to respond to the infection, Orthodox leaders across the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe have also struggled, trying to balance the exacting demands of religious rituals with the realities of medical science.

SEE ALSO: Coronavirus Vs. The Church: Orthodox Traditionalists Stand Behind The Holy Spoon

A week earlier, Roman Catholicism and most Protestant denominations marked their Easter holidays with televised services, and shuttered churches. At the Vatican, Pope Francis broke with centuries of tradition by celebrating Easter Sunday mass on April 13 via livestream from a nearly empty St. Peter's Basilica.

In Orthodoxy's largest denomination, in Russia, church leaders hesitated to impose restrictions as the coronavirus danger built in February and March, and in some cases gave conflicting guidance.

St. Petersburg church officials on March 26 announced a ban on parishioners from attending services, but that was then overruled by the Russian Orthodox Church's headquarters in Moscow.

The Russian church also moved weeks ago to impose stricter hygiene measures: for example, restricting people from kissing holy icons or from reusing a special communion spoon used to give people sanctified wine.