Arrival of Holy Fire from Jerusalem to be ‘modest’ affair this year

The Holy Fire arriving to Athens from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem on Saturday — the eve of Orthodox Easter — will not be welcomed with honors reserved for visiting heads of state, according to a government source, in a break with tradition.

Citing the conditions imposed by the ongoing pandemic, the source said the ceremony will take place with “the due humility and modesty, not with the honors reserved for a visiting head of state.”

The same sources stated that the Holy Fire will be brought to Greece by Deputy Foreign Minister Kostas Vlasis and Metropolitan Nikolaos of Mesogaia, before being shared under government supervision to cities across Greece.

Last year, due to the ongoing pandemic, the Holy Fire had not been shared at all.