If you could visit Corfu only once in your lifetime, then you should definitely do it in Spring during the Passion Week. Greek-Orthodox Easter and especially the celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus is the most important event in the Or-thodox Church's calendar. It is celebrated on the first Saturday after the full moon that follows the spring equinox (March 21st) according to the Julian calendar in the Greek Orthodox Church and according to the Gregorian in the Roman-Catholic Church. With the term "Resurrection", we refer either to the Resurrection week up until the Saturday of the Bright Week, or to the 50-day-period that follows the celebration of the Resurrection.
The importance of the celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus affects the celebration calendar of the Orthodox Church 40 days before (Easter Lent, Triodion) and 50 days later (Pentecost). The Masses performed during this period are characterized by devoutness, splendour and are described in detail in the Greek Orthodox ceremonial. Easter Sunday is right in the heart of Spring, a season in which Corfu has all its natural and cultural delights on display. Corfu offers a heady mix of natural beauty, culture and tradition, a blend of Eastern and Western cultures as evidenced by the island's mosaic of customs and language. Islanders and visitors partake in the local festivities in a joyous atmosphere.
Easter in Corfu is always an incomparable experience due to the island's renowned Easter traditions amidst one of the best Spring settings on Earth. Corfu in Easter is truly glorious, the flowers are in bloom, music is ever-present and the religious events are spiritually uplifting.
Holy Week is inaugurated with the celebrations of Saint Lazarus and Palm Sunday, in tune with Spring celebrations & with the religious undertones of the upcoming Resurrection. The discerning visitor will able to see the influence of pagan and fertility customs in the chants of children, mainly girls, but also in the custom of women who pass around an effigy while ringing bells and singing the carol of Saint Lazarus. Nowadays, Lazarus carols are chanted in very few areas of Greece and the Greek islands.
This is is a unique experience, completely different with the rest of Greece and exceptional to all visitors. These customs are one of a kind and this why Corfu attracts thousands of visitors during Easter with Good Friday to Easter Sunday being particularly busy. Easter in Corfu is one big celebration during which Orthodox Christianity, pagan traditions, the presence of Saint Spyridon, the Catholic community, the Venetian flavour, the Corfiot humour and the philharmonic orchestras coexist in a heady mix of Spring exhilaration and tradition. |
