Holy Fire’ ceremony succesfully held in Jerusalem
The holy fire descended in the temple of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem.
The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem and the Jerusalem Patriarchate of the Armenian Apostolic Church hold the ceremony annually on Holy Saturday before Easter. The carrying out of the fire of grace symbolizes the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
On the eve of Easter, Israeli police imposed restrictions on visits to the temple and surrounding streets due to the terrorist threat – no more than 1,700 people were allowed to attend the service.
The fire of grace symbolizes the non-manufactured light of the Resurrection of Christ, mentioned by the Apostle Peter, and is considered sacred to believers. His appearance on the eve of Orthodox Easter, despite its regularity, is called the "miracle of the ascension of the Blessed Fire."
Before the patriarch of Jerusalem, Theophilus, entered Kuvuklii (the most sacred place is the chapel above the stone bed of the Holy Sepulcher in the Jerusalem temple of the same name), where he prayed for the ascension of the Blessed Fire, all candles and lamps in the temple were extinguished. According to an ancient ceremony, before entering Kuvukli, the robes of Patriarch Theophilus III and the chapel itself were carefully inspected for any means of artificial fire.
There is a climb at different times, most often – from 12 to 16 hours.
The patriarch comes out of the tomb with 33 lighted candles, according to the number of years of Jesus at the time of his death. Candlelight is called beneficent because it ignites on its own.
It is believed that the beneficent fire does not burn in the first 30 minutes.
After ascending from the main lamp, other candles and lamps are lit, some of which are flown to other countries.
There is a belief that if the Blessed Fire does not come down, it will indicate a universal catastrophe, the near end of the world
