Easter is the most important festival of the Eastern Orthodox Churches, celebrating the Christian belief of Jesus Christ’s resurrection. The Easter date is set around the time of the Vernal Equinox (March 21) and, since most Eastern Christian Churches use the Julian calendar, where March 21 corresponds, during the 21st century, to April 3 in the Gregorian Calendar, they celebrate Easter between April 4 and May 8 (April 12 in 2015).
An Orthodox priest blesses cakes and colored eggs during an Orthodox Easter ceremony in the village of Zaskovichi, some 95 kms northwest of Minsk. April 11, 2015.
Consecration of Easter eggs and cakes at the Holy Spirit Cathedral in Minsk, Belarus.
A monk of the Greek Orthodox Church looks at an image of Jesus crucified, during the ceremony marking the Apokathelosis, the removal of Christ’s dead body from the Cross, which forms a key part of Orthodox Easter, at the Church of the Dormition of the Virgin in Penteli, north Athens on April 10, 2015.
A Christian passes under a table on which a Bible is placed during the Good Friday service in the eastern-orthodox golden-domed Alexander Nevski cathedral in Sofia. April 10, 2015.
Egyptian Coptic Christians pray during the Easter Eve service at St. Sama’ans Church in the Mokattam district of Cairo, Egypt. April 11, 2015.
An Orthodox priest blesses traditional Easter cakes and painted eggs in preparation for an Easter celebration at a church in the town of Novogrudok, 150 kilometers (93 miles) west of the capital Minsk, Belarus. Saturday, April 11, 2015.
Easter Sunday service at the Dormition of the Mother of God Church in Vladivostok, Russia.
Christian Orthodox priests look through a hole in the main door of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, before the Holy Fire ceremony around Jesus’ tomb, in Jerusalem’s Old City. April 11, 2015.
Worshipers hold up candles lit from the “Holy Fire” as thousands gather in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem’s Old City. April 11, 2015.
In this photo taken with long time exposure, Orthodox believers walk with candles during Easter midnight mass at a church in St. Petersburg, Russia. April 12, 2015.
Russian President Vladimir Putin (C), Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev (L), his wife Svetlana (second from the left), and Mayor Sergei Sobyanin (R) cross themselves during the Easter service in Christ the Savior Cathedral in Moscow, Russia. April 12, 2015.
Easter service at the Christ the Savior Cathedral in Moscow, Russia.
Worshippers walk with candles around the golden-domed Alexander Nevski cathedral during the Orthodox Easter service in Sofia. April 12, 2015.
Egyptian Coptic Christian pray during the Easter Eve service at St. Sama’ans Church in the Mokattam district of Cairo, Egypt. April 11, 2015.
A Kyrgyz Orthodox worshiper lights candles as she celebrates Orthodox Easter during a midnight mass at a church in Bishkek. April 12, 2014.
Worshippers light candles in the St. Sava temple during an Orthodox Easter service in Belgrade. April 11, 2015.
A man touches an icon with the crucifixion of Jesus Christ on Good Friday at St. Petka Orthodox church in Skopje, Macedonia. April 10, 2015.
Romanian nuns and believers attend a religious service during Easter celebrations at the Pasarea Monastery in Pasarea. April 11, 2015.
Ethiopian Christian women pray during the Easter Eve service at St. Mark’s Cathedral, in Cairo, Egypt. April 11, 2015.
The Sun sets behind the St. Yelisei’s Lavrishevo monetary during Orthodox Easter at the village of Gnesichi in the Grodno region, about 150 km from Minsk, Belarus. April 11, 2015.
Worshippers light candles to participate in a procession at St. Clement Christian Orthodox church in Macedonia’s capital Skopje, during Easter service. April 12, 2015.
Men dressed as Serbian knights attend an Orthodox Easter service in the St. Sava temple in Belgrade. April 12, 2015.
Kosovo Serb women decorate Easter eggs for the upcoming Orthodox Easter in the village of Brezovica, 55 miles northwest Pristina. April 10, 2015.
