Easter

Easter is the most important Christian celebration in the Republic of Moldova, the feast of the Resurrection of the Lord, met with devotion but also with a rich set of folk customs. Preparations begin as early as Lent, a period of abstinence and spiritual cleansing, and Holy Week brings the cleaning of the house, the dyeing of eggs and the baking of pascas and cozonacs, in an atmosphere of expectation and renewal.

The Resurrection service and the basket

On the night of the Resurrection, the faithful go to church with a lit candle and with a basket prepared for blessing, containing the pasca, the red eggs, the cozonac, salt, meat and a candle. On returning home, the Easter meal begins with the pasca and the red eggs, followed by the traditional dishes. Eggs dyed red are the symbol of the Resurrection and of the Saviour's blood, and knocking them together, with the greeting „Hristos a înviat!” (Christ is risen!) — „Adevărat a înviat!” (Truly He is risen!), is one of the best-loved gestures of the celebration, repeated on all the bright days after Easter.

The Easter of the Blajini

A distinct celebration, strictly preserved in Moldova, is Paștele Blajinilor (the Easter of the Blajini), which is held on the Monday after St Thomas Sunday, a week after Easter. It is the day dedicated to those who have passed into eternity: people go to the cemetery with baskets full of food — pasca, red eggs, cozonac, sarmale — which the priest blesses, and which they then give away as alms for the souls of the departed. It is believed that, by throwing red eggshells onto running water, the news of the Resurrection reaches the „blajini”, good and gentle beings of folk belief, also called „rohmani”, who are said to live in a distant world.

Significance

Together, the Resurrection service and the Easter of the Blajini show the way in which Christian faith is interwoven with an archaic layer of honouring ancestors and the departed. For Moldovans, Easter is not only the celebration of the victory of life over death, but also the moment of the reunion of families, of the return home and of the preservation of the unshaken bond between the living and those who have gone beyond. The bright days after the Resurrection, the visits between relatives, the decorating of eggs and the abundant meals make Easter a celebration of joy, of forgiveness and of spiritual renewal, kept devoutly in every Moldovan home.