Palm Sunday- Willow Tradition

[Tempo]

Hello Irene,

I recieved this email from Lviv and would like to know if this is a poem or greeting about Palm Sunday. I ran it thru Google/Bing and believe it is about the ***** willows that are used as palms. Could you or others add a little more detail about the tradition.

Верба б’є, не я б’ю,
За тиждень – Великдень!
Уже недалечко
Червоне яєчко.
Лоза б’є, не я б’ю,
За тиждень – Великдень!
Будь здоровий, як вода,
І багатий, як земля.

Thanks

Tempo

[IreneLviv]

I heard these words several times yesterday - coming out of the church after the service, people were ' whipping' and striking one another gently on the shoulder with blessed willow branches repeating these words: 'It is not me but the willow branch which is striking you to remind you that a week from now wil lbe Easter!'
Willow branches are believed to chase away all diseases and also bring wealth and good crops.
This excercise is especially liked by Orthodox - Greek-Catholics usu simply walk holding these branches.

[Hannia]

With the coming of Christianity to Kyievan Rus 10th century, the Church merged the pagan Spring holiday with Easter - the Resurrection of Christ. Many of the ancient rituals became a part of the Easter cycle of celebrations.

The first sign of the coming of Spring was the return of migrating bird flocks. To greet the birds, the harbingers of Spring, people baked dough birds. These were given to the children who frolicked in the fields by throwing the birds into the air while singing appropriate songs and offering prescribed sayings. The Church incorporated this tradition into the Feast of the Forty Martyrs which is celebrated on March 22nd.

On the Sunday before Easter, which is also called "Willow Sunday" branches of the willow tree (called loza) are blessed in the Church and given to the faithful. This particular ritual had a magical intent in pagan times. The willow tree had medicinal properties, was considered a holy tree, and was one of the first in the Spring to show signs of life. The people believed that by tapping each other with the freshly blooming willow tree branch, they could draw from it the same energy and strength which allowed it to come to life. The Christian Church on the other hand, marks this Sunday in accordance with the Gospel and the liturgical prescription celebrating the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem where he was greeted by throngs of people waving palm branches. To remember this event, the Church initiated a custom of distributing palm branches. The Ukrainian Church combined the ancient pagan ritual with the Christian one, with the difference that willow branches are given to the people instead of palm branches.

The week before Easter is called "white, clean, illuminating, grand, Passion Week or willow week." The days were busy with physical and spiritual cleansing and rebirth. Following supper on Passion Thursday and until Easter morning it was forbidden to eat meat or dairy foods. On Thursday evening the Twelve Gospels of Christ's Passion were read during a special service in Church. The attending faithful held large lit candles or three candles, called passion candles, tucked in a bed of aromatic herbs. In olden times these candles were made from bees wax by the master of each household. Following the service the faithful walked home with the lit candles. Through the year these candles were kept in a safe place until the following year's Passion Thursday. The people believed that the candles had magical powers which could protect the house from lightning, prevent hail from ruining the crops, and deter illness.

During the night before Easter or sometimes even on Thursday and Friday, men and boys lit bonfires near the woods, on hills, by the water, in cemeteries or near the church. According to belief, these fires were meant to cleanse the neighborhood of all evil illness and disaster. The flames also lit the way for the souls returning to their former families. A token household item was thrown into the bonfire as a sacrifice to the gods to insure prosperity during the year.

Ukraine and Ukrainian Easter at BRAMA

The Resurrection and the Willow - About Byzantine/Slavic liturgical tradition

[IreneLviv]

The Orthodox probably are more Pagan, than Greek-Catholics - meaning that they have preserved more Pagan traditions - therefore they are so vigorously lashing one another with willow whips.
There is hardly any other country where so many different traditions and holidays are mingled together as in Ukraine - we celebrate everything - St Valentine's Day and October revolution anniversary, International Women's Day and Mother's Day,
Bandera's and Lenin'd birthday, all catholic, pagan, and orthodox feasts, etc
I guess that 'Watering Monday' to be celebrated on 25 April also has Pagan roots.

[Hannia]

During the Easter season the cult of the dead is also observed. The dead are remembered on Holy Thursday and during the whole week after Easter, also called the Week of the Nymphs. During this week family gravesites are groomed, getting them ready for Providna Sunday, when the family dead are commemorated. The Sunday after Easter, the family gathers in the church cemetery, bringing with them some blessed Easter food. The priest is then invited and paid to bless each family grave. The pysanki, paska and willow branches are then left behind at the graves.

[Tempo]

I would have like to been there to observe these traditions. Thank you Irene and Hannia for the wonderful insights.

Tempo

[Hannia]

Tempo,

The Ukrainian Cult of the Dead is still practiced in States. If you can locate nearest Ukrainian Orthodox or Greek Catholic Church, you can experience the event for yourself. The larger the Church, the bigger the event is.

My parents and some adopted elders are buried at St. Andrews Orthodox Cemetery in Bound Brook, New Jersey. This is a huge event here. Ukrainian descendants fly in from all over the country. The elderly from the nearby cities are bused in. Both Ukrainian Orthodox and Ukrainian Greek Catholic priests are on call for gravesite blessing.

The best way to describe this ritual is that it's a celebration of death, as a part of life. This is not a morbid activity. It really is a feel good thing.