Three Hierarchs Celebration

The teachers and the children of the 2^nd primary school of Vrontados celebrated the Feast of the Three Hierarchs on Friday January 30th.

From the eleventh century, the Orthodox Church observes on this day a special remembrance of the common witness of St. Basil the Great, St. Gregory the Theologian and St. John Chrysostom. The Church honors them as ‘Ecumenical Teachers’ because of their appreciation of education and their outstanding contributions to theology and pastoral care.

The commemoration began on Thursday morning, January 29th, with the transportation of the holy icon to the school from the children of the 5^th and 6^th class.

At the 30 of January morning,  the whole school children was carrying the holy Icon of the Three Hierarchs, attended to the ceremony at Panagia Erithianh church.

After the service, the children and the parents had a nice meeting at the meeting room of the church.

The parents offered the New Year pie for each child and also to the teachers and volunteers.

The children of the 6^th class did a speech, explaining the history of the Three Hierarchs.

Everybody had a good time and celebrated the day of the protectors of the education.

On the 30th of January, Greek Orthodox all over the country attend the church.  There, they listen to the traditional orthodox worship that is celebrated every year at this winter day in honor to the three Saints: St. Bassilis, St. Gregorious and St. Jiannis.

St. Gregorious  - also called Gregory the Theologian – was a Philosopher and an Archbishop in Constantinople in the 4^th century. Being in an influential position, he established Hellenism and Trinitarian theology into the church.

St. Bassilis, well-known as St. Basil the Great, was a Greek Bishop of Caesarea Mazaca in Capadocia. Some of his biggest impacts are the definition of guidelines for the community life in monasteries and his support of poor and less privileged human beings. Therefore, he is said to be the Saint of traditions.

St. Jiannis carries the epithet Chrysostom. This old Greek term means “golden-mouthed” and refers to his outstanding talent of holding speeches and preaching about the connection between the bible and the everyday-life. Furthermore, he spent some time of his life in asceticism, barely eating, speaking and sitting. His thoughts were only dedicated to the bible at this time.

The holy trinity has always been very important in the faith story, but in the 11^th century, people in Constantinople split up into three religious orthodox groups: the Basilians, the Gregorians and the Johnites   – each convinced that their hierarch is the greatest.

In 1084, the three holy Saints appeared to the Bishop of Euchaita, also known as Bishop John (in Greek: Jiannis). They insisted on their equality before God and asked him to remove all disagreements and disputes among the three faith groups.

For that reason, the bishop chose the 30^th of January for a common festiveness. This feast ensured a peaceful coexistence and the tribute and recognition of the equate importance of St. Bassilis, St. Jiannis and St. Gregorious.

On that celebration day that has been coming down to the present days, a bread-loaf gets blessed by the local priest and is shared out to the orthodox community. This tradition is a symbol of luck.

After the worship, often orthodox communities sit together, drink and eat while listening to speeches, containing religious and moral ideas. This ritual is characterized by social cohesion and a welcoming atmosphere.

This event is a significant part of the Hellenistic culture.