Russian Easter Celebrated with Zeal and Passion

Easter is celebrated all over the world with enthusiasm. It is celebrated in order to remember the rebirth of Jesus Christ. In different part of the world, it is celebrated in different ways, apart from having some similar rituals. There is difference in the celebrating Easter in the Eastern Orthodox Christians and the Western Christians. Russia, being an Eastern Orthodox Country, follows distinct rituals from those of the western country.

Paskha, is the Russian word for Easter. It is celebrated as one of the important festivals and is also one of the significant Russian holidays. It is celebrated as per the Orthodox calendar that is one week later than in the west with lot zeal.

Traditions of Russian Easter

• Many Christians keep the fast during the lent. This commences eight weeks prior to Russian Easter. People keep the fast to remember sufferings of Jesus Christ. During this fast the Russians stick to vegetarian diet.
• During the lent period people go to the Church regularly. At least they try to attend Good Friday vespers.
• Traditional food is prepared for the Easter feast. On this day they have   non- vegetarian food. Special desert named Paskha, is prepared on this day. This resembles cheesecake.
• People take Ester eggs to the church for blessings. They decorate the boiled eggs. These eggs are boiled with red onion skins and as a result these are red in color. Some people also paint these same as seen on Faberge eggs.
• At the Russian Orthodox Church, people attend Paskha service. This begins on Saturday night just before the Easter. This continues for several hours.
• After this service Russians greet each other with three kisses. And exchange the Easter eggs after greeting each other.

Delicious Food on Easter

Russians commemorate Easter with an Easter meal or breakfast. Foods items on the Russian Easter include:

• Kulich: This is Russian Easter bread. This is made up of butter, eggs, candied fruit, raisins, and nuts.
• Paskha: This is a desert made up of cheese, curd, and other ingredients. This is served with Kulich mostly.
• Soups: Soup such as rassolnik, lapsha, and borsch are.
• Kurnik: This is an authentic Russian speciality. It is savour pie made up of chicken, mushroom, and rice filling along with creamy sauce.
• Salads: Various types of salads such as beet salad, egg salad, and cucumber salad are prepared on the occasion of the Easter. These are served with different seasonings such as mayonnaise, dill, garlic, and horse-radish.
• Draniki: This is type of a potato pancake. It is stuffed with grated potatoes, onions, or garlic and fried.
• Baked ham in flaky crust: This delicious ham is also very famous at the Easter time.

People here celebrate Easter in Russia with special foods, customs, and decorated eggs.