Religious festivals in the life of Cypriots – Roots deep in time, intertwined with religious sentiment, but also a social, commercial event
Roots deep in time, intertwined with religious sentiment, but also a social, commercial event are the festivals that continue still continuing their course today, with those organized on the fifteenth of August standing out.
The festival was, said Anna Tselepou, who studies the tradition, at KYPE, an open-air religious and social event, but at the same time a commercial event, as on this day they could buy fruits, vegetables, legumes and also useful items, such as utensils, tools and traditional products.
The churches scattered all over the island – magnificent or humble – dedicated to the Virgin Mary on this day will function with grandeur and will attract the faithful, as well as those who worship, while in some communities the classical festival is combined with other events and musical and dance performances.
The Virgin Mary for the faithful of Cyprus, especially for the women who wore black from the wars in our country, always has a special place in their hearts, said Mrs. Tselepou, noting that it is the permanent invocation that it comes to their mouths in joys and sorrows.
My Virgin Mary, Virgin Mary help, the most frequent invocation. The Dormition of the Virgin, which is celebrated on the fifteenth of August, can be considered one of the most important holidays of Christianity and in Cyprus, he noted, adding that an entire fortnight is dedicated to the Virgin Mary, preceded by fasting, until the fifteenth of August marks the day when her name will be celebrated .
It is such a magnificence that it is called the Summer Easter or the Easter of the Virgin Mary, he added.
In the churches, he continued, there are hundreds of handmade breads for the celebration of the Virgin Mary.< /p>
With majesty in the churches, especially those dedicated to the Virgin Mary, on this day her name will be glorified. Housewives take the breads they leavened from the evening together with the breads for the festive table the next day, to the churches and they will “celebrate the Virgin Mary” as they say to glorify her name.
At noon on the fifteenth of August a feast will be set up with the whole family. In the afternoon the festival begins…
