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The Holy Light

From the book I Saw the Holy Light by Archimandrite Savvas Achilleos, Agios Georgios, Athens, Greece

Archimandrite Savvas Achilleos recounts the experience of his elder, Father Mitrofanis, who in 1925 served as a guard at the Holy Sepulchre on Holy Saturday when the Holy Light appeared.

Many things have been told and have been written about the Holy Light. However, no matter what has been recorded, the Holy Light still remains on enigmatic phenomenon. This mysterious Light spontaneously and inexplicably pours forth every Holy Saturday from the Most Holy and Life-giving Tomb of the Resurrected Savior Christ.

Fr. Mitrofanis saw our desire and our persistence. The Holy Light, he told us, is not defined. No one can localize or contain it. It is unlimited and interminable. In the past, as much as I can remember, many have written about the Holy Light. Chrysostomi Papadopoulos mentions it in his book “The History of the Church of Jerusalem”. Also, on the same subject, T.P. Themelis wrote under the title “The Ceremony of the Holy Light” on the one hundredth anniversary of the most sacred Church of the Resurrection. If my memory serves me well, Adamantios Koraes wrote the book “Dialogue about the Holy Light in Jerusalem.” Many other similar works were written at times, which I cannot recall now.

We truly marveled at his memory and knowledge about the Holy Light, but he interrupted our admiration when he told us, “I am sorry that I cannot discuss with you either the historical or scientific aspects of the Holy Light. I will tell you what my experience has taught me for so many years. I will describe to you in detail whatever I was able to see with my own eyes. My faith in God was and is infinite. He raised me to the heights of Divine Grace. He filled a tremendous empty space in my heart which was full of doubts, thoughts, and questions about the Light.

Mysteriously somehow I was granted to gain a glimpse of the Holy Light! There was not a trace of doubt to prey on my mind. The Grace of the Holy Light allowed me to witness an event which rarely a person is able to experience at first hand.

In 1925, when I undertook to serve as a Guard of the Tomb of Christ, I was obsessed with the question: What is the Holy Light? At that time, Easter was nearing. Until then, in all of the past years, I remained afar from the Holy Sepulchre. I was an observer, just as other people were. I was a pilgrim among thousands of pilgrims. But now, things had changed radically. I was no longer an apathetic but faithful spectator. I was responsible for whatever would take place according to the order and the service of the Holy Light. Fr. Anatolios, my austere spiritual father, would not accept any disobedience to his orders, nor allow any hesitations and doubts to loom. When finally he Holy Week of the Passion of the Lord was approaching, he told me in his strict tone of voice, “Listen and pay attention as to what you must prepare on the morning of Holy Saturday. At 9 o’clock you will take 5 kilos of pure beeswax which has been blessed beforehand for forty days during the daily Divine Liturgies. It is intended only for the service of the Holy Light. You will heat the wax in a special utensil, which is set apart for this purpose. The softened wax will be used to seal the entrance of the Tomb until the time for the Patriarch to enter.

At 10 o’ clock you will hear a rhythmical tapping. Special selected guards, in impressive traditional uniforms, with their long wooden staffs, clear the way through throngs of people. In such a manner the procession with the Patriarch and a retinue of holy clergy proceed toward the Church of the Resurrection. Everyone stands in awe before the beauty and splendor of the ceremonial march into the house of God. The Orthodox faith finds it befitting to honor our Lord Jesus Christ with the finest in beauty and resplendence.

For a moment Fr. Anatolios paused and then remarked, “Fr. Mitrofanis, I see that you are carried away with what I am telling you. It is time to stop. Later you will hear more, but for now you must assure me that you are read to undertake the whole responsibility within the Holy Sepulchre. It is the first time after so many years that I will not take part to serve in this ceremony. You will bring to completion your mission with utmost care and attention Contrary to this, if you fail, you, as much as I who have {55} entrusted this service to you, must leave the Patriarchate. Be very careful, Fr. Mitrofanis.”

I reassured him that I was paying attention precisely to the letter and to each detail. After he was convinced of the truth of my words, he continued, “The Patriarch then will enter the Holy Church of the Resurrection. Following him will be the leaders of other dogmas, the Armenians, the Latins, the Ethiopians, the Copts, and the Syrians who will go to the Patriarchal Throne, all in line, one after the other, to kiss the hand of the Patriarch. By following this established order, they then have the right to receive the Holy Light from the hand of the Patriarch. This significant event is an official recognition, that only Orthodoxy possesses the truth and the Apostolic Tradition in its entirety. The Armenians at one time wanted to obtain the right to be the only ones to enter the sanctuary of the Sepulchre for the Holy Light ceremony.

When I heard this shocking fact, I asked with much distress, “Holy Father, how could they want to displace the Orthodox from this time-honored position as successors to Christ and His Apostles?”

He replied thus, “No, here is what happened. When in the year of 1517 A.D., while the Arabs occupied Jerusalem, the Armenians took advantage of their presence. They approached the Moslem governor and with a gift of gold, asked to be allowed the privilege to receive the Holy light. This they asked and this they succeeded. They also implored to him that the Orthodox be forbidden entrance to the Holy Sepulchre for the sacred ritual.”

Up to this time such orders were unheard of and unprecedented. The unexpected deviations resulted in unimaginable sadness and distress for the Orthodox faithful. Holy Saturday dawned and the most Holy Church of the Resurrection was closed to all of the Orthodox. Even the Patriarch and the clergy were not allowed to enter. With them gathered a host of Orthodox pilgrims from all parts of the world. On that day there was much lamentation and wailing. All of the faithful with tears were praying to God, to forestall this unheard-of injustice. They were saddened by the unexpected action of the Armenians against the Orthodox. Precisely above the compound of the Church of the Resurrection, the Moslem Emir was sitting at the pinnacle of a minaret. He selected such a place in order to see every movement. He was overcome by the agonizing question: “What is going to happen now?” For this reason he was following ever movement with undivided attention.

The patriarch was kneeling at the entrance of the Most Holy Church. He was holding in his hand the bundle of the thirty-three candles and was praying. Tears streamed down his face as he pleaded to God:

“Lord, You who abhors injustice, heed the prayers of your children. Grant that Your glory may appear through Your miracle and do not deprive Your Holy Light from Your faithful people.”

Fr. Anatolios, was observing me and he said, “I am certain that you have seen the column at the left-hand side of the doorway to the Church. Surely you have noticed that there is a blackened vertical split in a portion of the column. It has been that way for a little more than 400 years.

“I observed this detail, my Father,” I said, “and even something more. Full of perplexity I bent over to examine it closely and I discovered a delicate fragrance coming from this stone column, the same fragrance that continually comes from Golgotha, where the Cross had been.”

On that fateful Holy Saturday in 1517, the Divine Light did not visit the Holy Sepulchre where the Armenians were in charge and waiting. Instead, before the amazed eyes of clergy and pilgrims, the Holy Light flashing brilliantly, struck the column with the sound of a forceful wind. Instantaneously the stone column was split and blackened near the bottom. The prayers of the Patriarch and his people were answered.

Many who do not believe ask, “Does the Holy Light give off smoke and blackens wherever it touches?” Don’t forget that the Holy Light does not cease to have the same quality as a common flame and every flame has smoke.

“Then why is it called Holy Light?”

“Because it comes from the Holy Tomb spontaneously without human intervention. It is given through the grace of the Holy Spirit, which appears as a brilliant light at first and then as a “tongue of fire” just as on the day of Pentecost to the Disciples of Christ.”

Every year at the precise hour when this Light is to appear in the Holy Tomb, a pure white cloud comes before the Patriarch. When an intense luminescent radiance appears he then lifts with piety and faith the candles he is holding. Suddenly wondrously and inconceivably they are ignited.

Now can you imagine what took place in the courtyard of the church? All of the faithful, the clergy, the attendants, all burst out in loud ringing voices and doxologies. The bells of the Church began to ring joyfully. The whole of nature, everything, all of Heaven and Earth, all were sending songs of glory and thanksgiving to the True God. It is practically impossible to describe the delight and happiness of that day.

Then an act of self-sacrifice was made that has been historically recorded. The Moslem Emir, who was following everything from the high Minaret, was transformed into an enthusiastic witness of Orthodoxy. As soon as he saw this miracle, he cried loudly:

“Great is the faith of the Christians! I now believe in the Resurrected Christ. I worship Him as the True God”

At the same time, with this acknowledgement and declaration, he jumped from the Minaret to an empty space in the courtyard of the Holy Church. And behold the miracle! Nothing happened to him. He suffered no injury by his fall. The Moslems were embarrassed. As soon as they heard his confession and observed the courage of the Emir, they rushed over, seized him, and beheaded him on the spot. They considered him a betrayer of the faith of Islam. Mohammed did not want traitors on his side. The Christians gathered with great love and care the body of the martyr who was baptized in his own blood. They buried him as a faithful son of Orthodoxy and as a martyr of Christ. His Holy remains are preserved and are kept in the Holy Monastery of the Great Panagia (the Most Holy Virgin Mary).”

“And the Armenians, Geronda? What happened to them?”

“The Armenians after this chagrin came out of the Church and disappeared. Never again did they attempt to displace the Orthodox from the Holy Sepulchre.

Now, that you have heard something that you didn’t know until now, listen and pay attention to what you must do in your role as servant of the Tomb. You must bring your mission to a favorable end.

After the Liturgy in the Church of the Resurrection on Holy Saturday, the Patriarch blesses heads of other faiths. He then proceeds toward the entrance of the Holy Sepulchre. There all around are seated high ranking government, civil, and military officials from the vicinity and from different parts of the world.

The Great Entrance to the Church of the Resurrection

From 10 o’ clock in the morning of Holy Saturday until 11 o’clock, a rigorous search for any instrument or device for igniting is made inside the Holy Sepulchre. Above this most holy monument of Orthodoxy hang 43 golden vigil lights which are lit day and night. Thirteen belong to the Orthodox; 13 belong to the Latins. Thirteen belong to the Armenians and four to the Coptic Monophysites

All of these lights form a golden curtain. They are like torchbearing Heavenly Orders suspended over the Tomb of Christ. Inside the Holy Sepulchre, at the last hour, only authorized representatives of the Armenians, the Latins, and the Copts, together with the Orthodox enter the Tomb with the purpose to put out the 43 vigil lights. Precautions are taken so that at no time, either by error or intentionally, a vigil light remains lit or that anything suspect is present.

After a complete and thorough search is made in the Holy Sepulchre, a second and a third search follow to make certain that neither a person nor anything forbidden exists inside the Tomb. Only then do the inspectors come out.

At that time, 11 o’clock, procedures for the sealing of the Tomb are ready to begin. The blessed and softened beeswax now will be used to secure two pure white ribbons in the shape of an “X” over the door of the Holy Sepulchre.

After the wax has been put on the four ends of the ribbons, then at the exact center where the ribbons cross, more wax will be deposited. The rest of it will be placed all around the door. Finally every point is to be stamped by the official seal of the Patriarchate.

These procedures remind us of the desperate efforts of the Hebrew leaders who wanted to seal the Tomb of the Leader of Life. They made every effort to take all of the measures they could to guard the dead Christ. They went to the Roman ruler of Jerusalem, Pontius Pilate, in order to receive permission according to law. “Sir,” the Pharisees said to Pilate, “we remember that the deceiver said, I will live again. After three days I will rise” The Roman governor answered, “You have your guards, go your way, make it as sure as you can.” So they went, and made the sepulchre secure, sealing with a stone, and setting a watch.” (Matthew 27:63-66).

After the sealing of the Tomb, a magnificent and majestic procession takes place three times around the Holy Sepulchre. In the lead are the Patriarchal banners, altar boys bearing candles, crosses, and emblems of six-winged angels. The Patriarch follows with a host of priests in golden vestments. All around can be heard the chantings of the Byzantine hymns with their sacred tones. Pilgrims observing this solemn procession feel transported to Heaven. Rather heaven descends to earth and each pilgrim even briefly, becomes a citizen of the celestial Kingdom

At the end of the third time around the Patriarch stands at the entrance of the Holy and Life-giving Sepulchre. Before all of the officials and the pilgrims, the Patriarch is searched again by the vigilant attendants. Every suspicion that something capable of producing light inside the Holy Sepulchre must be eradicated. Then the Patriarch, arrayed with the Holy Stole (Epitrahilion) and the Archieratical Chasuble (Omoforon), is ready, to enter the Holy Sepulchre. Precisely at 12 o’clock noon of Holy Saturday the ribbons of the entrance are cut and the door is unsealed and opened.

...

When Holy Saturday came I reviewed my duties. The sealing wax was ready to be prepared as instructed by my geronda. I obtained the white ribbons which would be used to seal the Tomb. Finally I prepared the holy kantila and placed the great thick candle at the appropriate page in the Book of Holy Prayers. All this time I was at the mercy of exhaustion. Weak knees and profuse perspiration were the result of my fear and anxiety for my final achievement.

I continued working faithfully at my tasks. The difficulties of the urgent responsibilities pressed upon me without mercy. Everything seemed to be lined up against me and threatening me. Would I survive until the end or would my strength abandon me? Conquered by the thought of success or failure, the last hours of the critical phase of my mission were within reach. With the help of God (because I lacked the required strength to continue), everything, to the last detail would be in readiness. When the Holy Sepulchre was checked for the last time and all was carefully arranged, I completed the final additions. I placed the holy candle in its special golden case, and the Holy Book of Prayers with the thick candle between the proper pages. Then I departed.

The Holy Sepulchre was sealed. I checked for the last time every item and I took my place near the entrance. After the last round of the procession, at precisely 12 o’clock noon the Tomb was opened when the sealing wax and the ribbons were removed from the door. The Patriarch entered first. He was followed by the Armenian priest, who as an attendant, was to observe every move of the Patriarch and then to wait in the outer chamber. The Patriarch proceeded to the inner sanctuary.

After what seemed a lengthy interval, suddenly the Holy Light made its appearance flashing through every space and in every direction in the Most Sacred Church of the Resurrection. As the Light flitted about and touched on to wicks of kantilia and candles, many were uncannily ignited.

All were rejoicing. All faces shone with the radiance of the Holy Light.

Then at the doorway of the outer chamber appeared the Patriarch with the bundles of candles all aglow with the Holy Light. The Latin and Armenian prelates each received their candles to pass out the Light to their faithful. When the Orthodox prelate approached to receive his bundle of candles, he was carried on the shoulders of pilgrims into the Church of the Resurrection where everyone waited to light their tapers with the Holy Flame. All the while, could be heard the chanting of the Easter hymn of victory, the conquest of Life over Death – Christ is risen! Christos Anesti! Truly He is risen!

The joy of the people was tremendous. With heavenly glee the bells of the Church proclaimed the arrival of the Divine Light to all corners of the earth. The vibrant resounding of the bells declared the one and only Truth of the Orthodox faith: the triumph of Life – Christ – over Death, the evil one.