Author Topic: Cemetery celebrations  (Read 2665 times)

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Offline Maik

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Cemetery celebrations
« on: Monday, 16 April, 2018 @ 11:15:21 »
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Pontian Greeks keep alive centuries old custom celebrating at cemeteries

Cemeteries worldwide are linked to pain of loss and tears of sorrow. For thousands of Pontian Greeks, an ethically group who lived for centuries on the shores of the Black Sea and has now dispersed across the world, once a year, the burial sites of their deceased loved ones are transformed into a place of joy.

The first Sunday after Greek Orthodox Christian Easter families gather at cemeteries, set the table on the marble graves, eat delicacies, drink wine, ouzo and vodka, narrate stories about their dead, play music with traditional instruments, sing and dance.

The roots of the odd tradition which may seem macabre to non Pontians go back to ancient Greece, according to scholars. From antiquity the offering of tasty food to the deceased was a way to honor their memory.
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2018-04/16/c_137113304.htm