Over 30,000 people attended the Orthodox Easter midnight mass on Saturday night last week-end in Bucharest, and around 7,000 of them went to the Patriarchy church mass. Most of those who attended did not stay for the entire mass, however, and left home soon after they took the blessed light, at around 1 to 1.30 at night. The mass ended at 3.00 in the morning.The Patriarchy brought the blessed light to Romania from Jerusalem by airplane, and then carried it throughout Romania.

Those who stayed for the entire mass waited for the priests to bless the food they had brought to the church, this marking the end of the Lent. Some of them knocked their first traditional red eggs in the church, saying “Jesus has risen!” (In Romanian “ Hristos a inviat!”) and responding “Indeed He has risen!” (In Romanian “Adevarat a inviat!”)

editor@romania-insider.com