Palm Sunday

Today Christians celebrate the great Orthodox holiday Palm Sunday (Κυριακή των Βαΐων). This year the celebration took place on April 28.

One of the main Christian holidays, the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem, is the twelfth moving holiday. That is, its date is not constant, but depends on Easter. However, this holiday is always celebrated on Sunday. In 2024, the church remembers the events of New Testament history on April 28. On this day, believers bring willow branches to the temple, which symbolize palm branches and candles. Palm Sunday is inextricably linked with Lazarus Saturday, the holidays follow each other. Despite this, historically there was a difference of a month or even two between these events.

What is Palm Sunday
The events of this holiday took place after the miraculous resurrection of Christ's friend Lazarus, whom Jesus revived four days after death. These actions are described by four evangelists: Matthew, John, Luke and Mark. After the miraculous events in Bethany, Jesus went to Jerusalem. After people saw with their own eyes the resurrection of Lazarus, they went to the city following Christ. The people were so delighted with what the Savior had done that when Jesus Christ entered Jerusalem, the inhabitants began to throw palm branches at his feet and exclaim: “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!”

Palm Sunday
However, not all people understood that Jesus came not to reign on earth, but for divine heavenly mercy. And therefore, after some time, that same “Hosanna!” was replaced by a merciless “Crucify him!” But even before the Savior entered Jerusalem, he knew that as a result the people would not accept him, and that he would perish. For Christian believers, Palm Sunday precedes Holy Week – the week of the strictest fasting. For Jesus Christ himself, this day was the last before his suffering-filled Way of the Cross began. It turns out that today this is a symbol of the road to Calvary along with the Savior.

Palm Sunday traditions
Before Palm Sunday, an all-night vigil is held in Orthodox churches. It is customary to go to services with palm wreaths in honor of the Lord’s entry into Jerusalem. They collect willow in the morning on Lazarus Saturday. The main tradition of Palm Sunday is the blessing of green branches, which are sprinkled with holy water by priests after the service. Young spring shoots (in Russia – willow) symbolize the victory of life over death, that is, the Resurrection of the Lord. The consecrated branches are kept for a whole year and then burned – they cannot be thrown away.

Fasting on Palm Sunday
The nutritional rules for fasting people on this day differ from other days of Lent. On Sunday, in addition to lean hot food in vegetable oil, you can also eat fish.

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