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Patmos Holy Week
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When:
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24 - 28 Apr 2008 (annual)
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Where:
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Chora (Patmos Town)
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It is said that Saint John completed his writing of Revelations in Patmos. Every Easter the Monastery of St John, a holy retreat dedicated to the memory of the disciple, hosts an impressive dedication to Jesus' last days.
The legend has made Patmos one of the better known islands in the Dodecanese chain and a source of one of the most traditional Easter ceremonies realised in these Hellenic Isles - The Washing of the Disciples' Feet.
On Maundy Thursday, hundreds of people converge on the main square in Chora, the biggest town on the island, to take in the specatacle of this solemn re-enactment of one of Christ's last acts before the Crucifixion. The ceremony, which lasts an hour and a half, sees the Bishop, who plays the part of Christ, wash the feet of 12 "disciples".
The monks from the monastery parade many of the icons on a traditional route through the town, drawing considerable crowds. Easter Sunday, however, is marked by protracted and solemn ritual. At 3pm the second Resurrection takes place, in which the Gospel of the Resurrection is recited in seven different languages and chanted in hexameters. Red eggs, denoting the life blood of Christ, are distributed to the faithful.
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