Christ is Risen!

Photo by: Anonymous, Public domain. Downloaded from: https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6451545 

 

 Χριστός Ανέστη! Χρόνια πολλά!

 

Some of my friends who don’t speak Greek

may not be familiar with the Greek script in the phrase above

and might find it difficult to understand its meaning,

so, here’s a brief explanation:

 

“Χριστός Ανέστη!” means “Christ is Risen!”

It is the phrase the Greeks use to greet each other for the next 40 days

beginning from the moment Jesus’ resurrection is declared by the priest

and is joyfully chanted in church at midnight of Holy Saturday to Easter Sunday. 

 

“Χρόνια Πολλά!” means “May you live for many years!”

It is a wish-phrase we express immediately after “Χριστός Ανέστη”

 

So,

Χριστός Ανέστη! Χρόνια Πολλά to you ALL!

[No matter what language you speak.]

from Tagton, the blogger.

  

***

  The above image is a photographic depiction

of a mosaic of the early 11th century (c. 1020–1030),

located in the Monastery of Hosios Loukas

[Google Maps: 38.395444, 22.746839].

 

It is titled ‘Anastasis’ [=Resurrection]

and depicts Jesus' descent into Hades (= Hell) after Crucifixion

to bring salvation to humanity.

 

It is a masterpiece bearing a lot of symbolism.

As a whole,

the image of Resurrection symbolizes Jesus' triumph over death.

The figure of Jesus, in particular, is placed in the center of the composition

triumphantly standing on the shattered gates of Hell

to symbolize the defeat of death.

He grasps Adam by the wrist and raises Adam and Eve from their tombs;

a symbolic gesture of universal salvation.

On the left,

two prominent figures from the Old Testament,

probably the Kings David and Solomon, as identified from their crowns,

witness the moment of redemption.

The dark, lower portion of the mosaic

represents the profound darkness of the underworld,

contrastingly highlighting Christ as the light. 

 

In a nutshell,

this mosaic, executed in shimmering gold tesserae,

is a Byzantine mosaic of outstanding artistic quality;

as such, it is worth seen in person on the church wall

of a monastery considered a World Heritage monument by UNESCO.