Journalists everywhere, no doubt, use stock phrases to describe the events they report on, but they may be more evident in a foreign language, rather than in one’s own where they are, as it were, part of the furniture. Greek reporters seem particularly prone to this habit, and especially in local media such as the Haniotika Nea. Thus, criticisms of politicians by other politicians are always “sfodres epitheseis” (withering attacks), damage to property and crops from natural phenomena are always “vivlikes catastrofes”(biblical catastrophes), and the victims of such catastrophes are always described as “se apognosi” (in a state of desperation), especially if government help seems to be slow in coming.
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The Blessing of the Waters returns to Kolymbari
After an intermission of a couple of years caused by the coronavirus pandemic, on Friday January 6th the ceremony of the Blessing of the Waters, which marks the feast of Epiphany in the Greek Orthodox Church, was once again celebrated at Kolymbari harbour.
Epiphany, known in the Eastern Church as Theophany, marks the end (the 12th day) of the Christmas period. Both words have Greek roots: “epifaneia” means “appearance” or “manifestation”, while also being used in modern Greek as the word for “surface”; “theofaneia” means “divine manifestation”. In the Western tradition it is associated with the visit of the Three Wise Men to the infant Jesus, but in the Eastern Orthodox church the association is with the baptism of Christ by John the Baptist. The feast is also known vernacularly in Greek as “Fota” (“Lights”). In both cases it is symbolic of the revelation of Christ as God incarnate.
The baptism of Christ is considered to be of triple significance: according to Wikipedia, “the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River by St. John the Baptist marked one of only two occasions when all three Persons of the Trinity manifested themselves simultaneously to humanity: God the Father by speaking through the clouds, God the Son being baptised in the river, and God the Holy Spirit in the shape of a dove descending from heaven”.
Like baptism, the Blessing of the Waters ceremony is a ritual of purification. All over Greece, and among established Greek communities in the rest of the world, the public and local clergy gather at the nearest suitable stretch of water and, after a series of prayers, the officiating priest throws a cross into the water and local youths dive in to retrieve it. The person who gets the cross receives the blessings of the bishop, which will bring good luck to him and his family for the rest of the year. Although primarily a male-dominated ritual, it is by no means exclusively so, and newsreel shots from around the country often show women taking part, albeit in fewer numbers.
The event in Kolymbari, as elsewhere, is a big social occasion, with people enjoying the opportunity to breathe some sea air and greet friends and acquaintances with a handshake and the customary “Chronia polla”, or if they have not already had the opportunity, “Kali chronia” (Happy New Year). The cafés and restaurants around the harbour are packed as parties of families and friends gather for a coffee before the ceremony or for meal afterwards.
This Friday the ceremony got under way shortly after midday, presided over by Father Dionysios from the church of Agia Marina in Kolymbari. Also present on the rostrum on the quayside were Amphilochios, Metropolitan of Kissamos and Selino, the director of the nearby Orthodox Academy of Crete Dr Kostas Zorbas, and the mayor of Platanias, Giannis Malandrakis. As the weather was warm and sunny the swimmers were not obliged to stand shivering on the quayside as so often happens, and launched themselves with gusto into the water as the cross was thrown. The victorious swimmer took the cross back to the waiting priests, while the assembly of fishing and leisure boats in the harbour sounded their sirens and let off emergency flares – a convenient occasion for disposing of their old stock, which has a limited shelf life.
The ritual was repeated three times in all, with the cross being thrown for the last time by Metropolitan Amphilochios. While more often it is thrown only once – no doubt to spare the swimmers the shock of diving repeatedly into the cold water – the full, correct ceremony is the triple one, as local friends informed us, being symbolic of the Trinity.
Similar ceremonies were being held across the country and around the world – at different intervals according to time zone. What is claimed to be “the largest Epiphany celebration in the Western Hemisphere” is organised by the Cathedral of St Nicholas in Tarpon Springs Florida, the largest Greek community in North America, which is twinned with the city of Chania. In Australia, Archbishop Makarios was scheduled to officiate at ceremonies in Sydney on 6th January and Melbourne two days later.
In Istanbul prayers were held in the garden of the Greek Patriarchate at Fener. The congregation then proceeded to the shores of the Golden Horn where Patriarch Bartolomeos threw a cross into the sea, and as reported on Greekreporter.com, “Twenty people promptly jumped into the frigid waters to retrieve it…. Thanos Apostolakis, who said he came from the island of Crete, was the one who succeeded in grabbing the cross.”
In Athens, the Blessing of the Waters took place at Hadrian’s Reservoir in Dexameni square, Kolonaki – the Roman monument is opened once a year for that purpose. Archbishop of Athens and all Greece Ieronymos performed the ritual at Piraeus, with opposition leader Alexis Tsipras in attendance.
Kyriakos Mitsotakis visited Gavdos for the occasion, the first prime minister to do so since 1996. His presence was a highly symbolic one, considering that the far-flung island is one of those, Greece’s sovereignty over which has been specifically questioned by the Turks. “Greece does not accept suggestions on how to assert its sovereign rights,” Mr Mitsotakis said in a speech.
The President of the Republic Katerina Sakellaropoulou was on the island of Lemnos for the celebration of Epiphany. “Today brings the message of the victory of light over darkness. Light which modern man seeks so that it may flood his heart with hope, especially in times of difficulty. Celebrating Epiphany on the frontier island of Lemnos, I wish long life and enlightenment for all,” she said.