Macedonia celebrates Feast of the Epiphany

22/01/2010

The Christian belief that whoever retrieves a cross from a lake or river on the Epiphany will have luck all year long continues in Macedonia.

By Marina Stojanovska for Southeast European Times in Skopje -- 22/01/10 Photos by Tomislav Georgiev

Jovan Rilkovski, 30, from Ohrid (centre) recovered the cross.

Ohrid, known as the Jerusalem of Macedonia, is the centre of the country's Feast of the Epiphany celebrations.

Epiphany -- or "God shining forth" -- is celebrated in the Eastern Orthodox calendar on January 19th. In the eastern church, the feast echoes the baptism of Christ in the Jordan River by St John the Baptist. It also commemorates the revelation of Jesus as the Messiah and is considered the third most important day in the Orthodox year after Easter and Pentecost.

Each year, the faithful arrive in Ohrid to observe the feast day while the more courageous dive into an ice-cold lake to retrieve a wood-and-brass cross said to bring good luck to the one who finds it. On Tuesday more 20,000 people gathered for the event.

Epiphany liturgies were held at 9am, after which two religious processions started at St George Church in Dolna Maala and St Nicolas Gerakomija in Varosh. Both marches merged into one big celebration in the city square.

The cold did not deter a crowd of 1,000 at the harbour as the Metropolitan Debarsko-Kichevski, Bishop Timotej, blessed the water and the cross about to be thrown into the lake. The cross was wrapped with red and white yarn and adorned with basil. In Orthodox churches throughout the Balkans, basil is used in the preparation of holy water and often placed near altars.

The Epiphany liturgies were held at 9am.

The cross was recovered by 30-year-old Ohrid resident Jovan Rilkovski. He and his friends then climbed aboard the boat "Macedonia" and sang the popular hymn "Vojordanie". Rilkovski received a gold cross award weighing 1kg from festival organisers. "

There is no bigger joy for me than retrieving the cross. It is my fourth success on the Day of Epiphany, and, I may say, that during the previous three times my family and I were followed by happiness and good health," said Rilkovski.

In Macedonia, it is customary that the person who finds the cross, accompanied by a band, visit the families in Ohrid, which in turn give money to the swimmer, who donates the cash to charity.

After the wood-and-brass cross makes its rounds in Ohrid, it is returned to the church of St Nicolas Gerakomija where it stays until the following year.

During the Epiphany celebration, most Ohrid residents -- and those in cities across Macedonia -- swim in the lake and fill bottles with water blessed by the bishop. The faithful believe that those who swim in the blessed water are cleansed of their sins and can begin the new year fresh.

"The Epiphany celebration is the most beautiful and emblematic of the city of Ohrid tradition, especially in the winter time," said Mayor Alexander Petrevski. "Local government employees and Ohrid citizens do their best to attract a high number of tourists during the festivities."

This year, Ohrid gave EU envoy to Macedonia Ervan Fuere an Honorary Citizen award. He regularly participates in Epiphany festivities there and this year took part in retrieving the wine barrel thrown into the lake Wednesday, Fisherman's Day, in honour of St John.