by Bishop Athenagoras of Nazianzos
In the Greek Orthodox Church, there is an important and long-standing tradition of praying to God for our departed brothers and sisters. Saturday is the day of the week which is traditionally reserved for those who have fallen asleep, because our Lord’s own salvific passing took place on Great and Holy Saturday.
While each Saturday provides an opportunity for the remembrance of those who have fallen asleep, there are three Saturdays every year, called “Saturday of Souls,” which are designated specifically for this purpose. On each of these Saturdays, Greek Orthodox Christians honor those who have fallen asleep, beginning from Adam and Eve, all the way to the most recently departed soul. With reverence, we ask God to forgive all their transgressions, and to grant them rest “in a place of green pasture.” In addition to calling out the names of our loved ones, our prayers also include all those who have fallen asleep in the hope of the Resurrection of Christ.
Even before Christianity was established, it was common practice for various cultures in the Mediterranean world to hold commemorations for the dead, where sacrifices were offered, family get-togethers were organized, and petitions in favor of the spirits of those who had perished were made.
In our Orthodox faith, we participate in the celebration of the Divine Liturgy and partake of the Holy Eucharist on the Saturday of Souls.
As in every liturgy, the faithful offer bread (prosphora) and wine, and Christ offers Himself – His Body and Blood – for the salvation of the world. The Divine Liturgy is the ultimate place of encounter and communion with all of God’s creation, with all those present, and with those not present, including all those who have fallen asleep. In addition to bread (prosphora) and wine, the faithful offer olive oil for the vigil lamps of the church, which are lit as a reminder of God’s benevolence. The faithful also offer kollyva.
Kollyva is a sort of sweet offering made primarily from wheat and includes some or all of the following: raisins, nuts, pomegranate, cinnamon, and powdered sugar. It’s then formed in the shape of a mound to resemble a grave and decorated with candy in the sign of a cross. The custom of preparing kollyva predates Christianity and is believed to have started in Ancient Greece where a dish of wheat and nuts was offered to the dead.
Each family brings a prayerfully prepared kollyva dish on the Saturday of Souls, and places it in front of the icon of our Lord. Candles are lit and placed in the kollyva dish. Toward the end of the liturgy, the service with the special memorial hymns and supplications is conducted, and the priest calls out the names of those who have fallen asleep, and then everyone chants together, “May their memories be eternal.” After the service, the kollyva is distributed among the people in the church and then family and friends visit the gravesite of their beloved who have fallen asleep.
If a priest is also present, it is customary for him to pour wine and some of the blessed kollyva, in the sign of a cross, onto the gravesite.
Kollyva is an image of the Resurrection. The wheat, which is planted in the earth and grows into something new, is a symbol for those who have passed on in the expectation of revival. As Saint Paul explains: “So also is the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body” (1 Corinthians 15:42-44).
May their memories be eternal!
