Easter is considered as one of the important religious days in Egypt. It arrives right after the Holy Saturday and Christian end their Lent to commemorate Easter.
The Egyptian Christians offers their prayers in Coptic and Arabic language. All of the followers living in Egypt remember the phrase, ‘Ekhrestos Anesti, Alisos Anesti’ even if they are not familiar with Coptic language.
The phrase means, ‘Christ is risen! Truly He is risen’.
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You’d be surprised to know the Easter traditions that are being followed by Christians in Egypt and how much fabulous they are.
The excited traditions include:
1. The Great Virgil
The Great Virgil is a religious worship that is a bit similar to Lent but differs on the count of days. Great Virgil is practiced by fasting from Holy Saturday to Easter dawn in which the practitioner does not take any sort of food or drink.
2. Lent
Lent – an Easter tradition, is practiced almost everywhere around the world by Christians in order to attain God’s blessing. It is the sanction to be purified before Easter so they can embrace the holy occasion with full zeal.
Lent lasts up to 40 days in other parts of the world.
But,
In Egypt, Lent is like a 55-day period in which no animal product such as milk, meat or even cheese can be eaten.
3. Resurrection Play
On the Easter day, a religious event takes place representing the blessings of Jesus Christ upon Christians known as ‘Resurrection Play’.
The script of the show that is played in theaters, reveals how Jesus Christ saved humanity from the evil by opening the gates of heaven when they were closed on Adam.
As the part arrives, where Adam is expelled from the heaven, the lights go off and the theatre goes dark. The theatre lights up as a sign of Christ shinning his grace upon all.
Resurrection play is loved by all the followers living there as it reflects how they have been saved from darkness.
4. Sham al-Nessim
In Arabic, it means Spring Day.
Sham al-Nessim has a significant value in the Coptic Easter culture which is followed by the Spring day. It is a proper occasion that is celebrated by the people of Egypt. The occasion of Sham al-Nessim is deep rooted in the history of Egypt.
Coptic Celebrations in Egypt
By now, you must have read all the Easter traditions followed by the people living in Egypt. Let’s move on to the Coptic celebrations enjoyed in this country;
1. Religious Devotion
A week before the day of Easter, the Christians living in Egypt express their devotion to the religion by getting deeply involved in their prayers. The purpose of this week is to solely lose yourself in the worship of God.
Families sit together to read more about their religion. This week is important for the followers, as it represents the week of crucifixion of Jesus and his re-birth.
2. Egg Coloring
Coloring the eggs on the occasion of Easter is an activity that is enjoyed by people globally.
For many, painting the Easter eggs in different colors signifies welcoming the season of Spring and beautiful colors that it brings along.
3. Fish
As a part of a cultural and ancient tradition followed in the city of ‘Isna’, the fish has been closely linked with the occasion of Easter.
City of Isna was famous for its sacrificial ceremonials being exported to other parts of the country and as a result, it became an Easter tradition strongly followed by majority of the people living in Egypt.
All in all,
Easter in Egypt is a blend of ancient traditions mixed with religious obligations which make the occasion more beautiful as well as meaningful.
You can have the experience of a lifetime, if you travel to Egypt for Easter 2019.
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