Ruse Horse

As midnight arrived, people gathered for worship at the Orthodox churches across entire Bulgaria to celebrate the Orthodox Easter. On the holy night of Easter and all over the next forty days, the Orthodox believers greet each other with "Christos voskrese" (Christ has resurrected) and "Vo istina voskrese" (Indeed he has risen). At midnight on Saturday people go to church with their red-painted eggs and tap each other's ones after the priest proclaims that Easter has come. According to tradition, the first red-painted egg is kept at home next to an icon till the following Easter. The ritual of tapping the eggs in turns takes place before the Easter lunch. The person who ends up with the last unbroken egg is believed to have a year of good luck. The Easter breads, called "kozunak", are another important element of the Orthodox Easter tradition. This bread is taken to church on Saturday evening when a special sequence of services takes place. Easter is in the fundamentals of Christian faith, it gives meaning to the whole cycle of Christ's birth and life on earth. This past week has been Holy Week, including special worship services on Holy Thursday, Holy Friday and Holy Saturday. MORE About the Orthodox Easter READ in For the Record Section

Ruse Orthodox Bulgarians Celebrate Easter