In the days when Orthodox Christians await Christ’s resurrection with prayer and hope, an old custom deeply rooted in spiritual tradition still lives in the Ohrid-Struga region.
Starting on Holy Thursday, during the evening service, the churches, in addition to the large number of believers, are filled with colorful baskets of painted eggs and pieces of clothing. Beautifully packaged, each with its own recognizable detail, they complement the already magnificent atmosphere in the churches. They remain there until Good Friday or Holy Saturday, when the believers take them home again. It is believed that they bring health, salvation and healing.
The preservation of this custom precisely in the Ohrid-Struga region, according to Father Riste Naumovski, Vranishta’s parish priest, can be explained through the continuity of the strong church and spiritual life connected with the heritage of the Ohrid Archbishopric. As an important spiritual center, this space has enabled the transmission and preservation of various forms of folk piety over the centuries, which in other parts have gradually been lost or transformed.
The theological symbolism, he explained, is deepened through its temporal setting. Leaving the eggs in the temple on Holy Thursday – the day of the Last Supper and taking them back on Good Friday – the day of Christ’s suffering and crucifixion, creates a symbolic connection between the domestic life of the believers and the central events of Christ’s sacrifice.
The tradition, according to the priests, is based on the belief that everything that touches the cross, on which Jesus Christ was crucified, is sanctified. Similarly, the eggs that stand at church services are consecrated, and their shells are thrown into lake or river waters or buried in clean soil. They are brought out on the evening of Holy Thursday, when the cross is brought out, symbolizing the moment of Christ’s suffering.
