Holy Fire in Jerusalem 2017

Easter is truly a Great holiday, because every year it is accompanied by a real miracle - the descent of the Holy Fire. Believers all over the world are waiting for this event, but only a few manage to see this fire and the very moment of its appearance with their own eyes.
The fact is that the flame appears only in one place - in the temple, which is located in Jerusalem. This church, despite its impressive size, is always packed to capacity, and everyone who wants to, of course, cannot get there. Therefore, people mainly watch the flames appear on TV; it is good that some channels broadcast live to many countries. You can also watch the live broadcast on some websites.


Since it constantly falls on different dates, and the fire appears on the eve of this holiday, not everyone knows exactly when to expect the Holy Fire in Jerusalem. 2017 is notable for the fact that Easter is celebrated quite early, on April 16, which means that magical flames can be expected from April 15.

The appearance of the Holy Fire

The Holy Fire appears annually in the Church of the Resurrection. It is located in Jerusalem. This is a big church. The roof of the temple covers Golgotha, as well as the Cave where Jesus was resurrected and even the garden where Mary Magdalene met the resurrected Jesus.
The temple where the miracle takes place was built by Emperor Constantine and his mother, whose name was Helen, back in the fourth century. Therefore, researchers claim that the tradition of meeting magical fire existed even then. However, other historians say that it arose only ten centuries after the construction of this temple.


Features of the ritual today
The emergence of the sacred fire occurs in a split second, but preparations for this event take a very long time. Already at twelve o'clock in the afternoon, the Patriarch with several clergy leaves the Patriarchate and makes a religious procession to the temple. Then the column goes to the chapel, which is built above the Holy Sepulcher, and circles around it three times.
At this time there are already many people in the temple. In the crowd you can see many foreigners who come to see a real miracle at least once in their lives. All the lights in the temple are extinguished and people, silently, watch what the Patriarch will do next.
The clergyman takes off unnecessary things and remains only in simple attire. Several policemen approach him and search the Patriarch. Then the law enforcement officers conduct a search in the Holy Sepulcher. The police are looking for nothing more than objects that could contribute to a fire.
After this, the Patriarch in a tunic sits on his knees in front of the Tomb and begins to pray. Very often the prayer lasts a very long time, but all the people wait patiently, look intently and at the same time do not talk to each other, so as not to miss an important moment.
No one can predict exactly how long the fire will take. At some point, the prayers become heard and balls with a bluish tint appear on the coffin slab. The Patriarch immediately brings a piece of cotton wool to them, and it immediately begins to burn. This fire is not hot, but cool.
Then the Patriarch brings the fire to the lamp and candles, and then the temple goes to transfer the magic flame to the Armenian Patriarch. And he, in turn, then transfers the magic fire to people. Thousands of candles are lit under the dome. People begin to rejoice, pass on the fire, and gradually the temple becomes brighter and brighter.


Every person who comes to this temple must hold thirty-three candles in his hand, which is exactly how old Jesus was when he was crucified. Believers are not afraid of this flame, so they pass it over parts of the body that are easily ignited by ordinary fire.
After some time, this property is lost, and the fire loses this property, so it can burn. Law enforcement officers ask parishioners to put out the candles, but this does not stop people’s joy.
It is worth remembering that such a miraculous phenomenon occurs only once a year, before... Moreover, the Patriarch must pray for the appearance of fire.
There is a story about how once the Armenians, preaching Orthodoxy, once bribed the Turks, who at that time had power and came to the Cave of the Holy Sepulcher before Easter.
Whatever the Armenian priests did, nothing worked. And at the same time, the Patriarch, who was supposed to light the fire, was at the closed doors and crying. And after a while lightning appeared. She hit a column made of marble. At the same moment, the column disintegrated, and huge tongues of flame came out of it, which themselves lit the candles of all those present.
After this event, no one is trying to take away the right to conduct the ceremony of lighting the sacred fire from the Orthodox Patriarch.


Holy fire to every home
Since the Holy Fire appears only in one country, it is customary to transport it. Usually a group of people, consisting of church ministers and ordinary people, carries the fire straight to Moscow. But often it is sent directly by plane.
It is expected that about ten thousand people will greet the Holy Fire in Jerusalem 2017 in the temple. People believe that if they see this miracle, the Lord will forgive them all their sins. But every time it is an exciting event, because there is a prophecy that one day the fire will not appear. And for people this will be a warning that the end of the world is near.
It is also worth saying that not everyone believes that this is truly a miracle. Some people believe that it's all about technology and mirrors are used to make fire. And the unusual property of fire, that is, that it does not burn, is attributed to the fact that it is ether that burns.
But even if this is just the work of technology, people still rejoice at such an event, because the Holy Fire is a symbol of the fact that life after death does not end, because every year it is reborn. Hard to imagine

The Holy Fire descends once a year in Jerusalem on Orthodox Easter. The descent takes place on Holy Saturday (April 15, 2017) in Kuvuklia, in the chapel inside the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. For two thousand years now, Christians who celebrate their main holiday - the Resurrection of Christ (Easter) in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, have witnessed the miracle of the descent of the Holy Fire.

Conversations about inexplicable things in the courtyard of this Temple, where all roads lead, are commonplace. It is on its territory that the main Christian shrines are concentrated - the place of execution, burial and resurrection of the Savior.

According to legend, the annual mysterious ignition of fire in the Holy Land is a sign of God’s mercy, which notifies the Lord’s care and gives believers hope that God will prolong the existence of the world for another year. In different years, the wait lasts from five minutes to several hours.

The prayer of tens of thousands of Christians for the descent of the Holy Fire will take place on the pre-Easter Holy Saturday in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem. The Holy Fire is considered a symbol of God's blessing to the human race. It is carried by pilgrims throughout the Orthodox world. The fire will be delivered to Russia by a delegation of the St. Andrew the First-Called Foundation, which in 2017 included the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova.

Descent of the Holy Fire in 2017 date time where to watch

The descent of the Holy Fire in Jerusalem will be broadcast on television. The NTV channel will show this great miracle live on Russian TV. In accordance with the TV program, the live broadcast of the descent of the Holy Fire in Jerusalem will begin on NTV at 13:15 Moscow time.

The convergence of the Holy Fire will be broadcast on Ukrainian television by Inter TV channel, the broadcast will begin at 12:45 (local time).

Descent of the Holy Fire 2017 live broadcast watch online

When will the Holy Fire 2017 arrive in Russia?

The delegation of the St. Andrew the First-Called Foundation will deliver the holy fire to Russia in special lamps, made according to the “Olympic” model, on a special flight from Jerusalem to Moscow. Everyone will be able to receive a particle of the Holy Fire right at the Vnukovo-1 airport, where the plane from the Holy Land will land presumably at 22.00 Moscow time. The Holy Fire will be brought to many cities in Russia, as well as to Russian parishes abroad.

During Bright Week (the first week after Easter), the Holy Fire can be received at the foundation’s office in Moscow at Pokrovka building 42, building 5 (from 9.00 to 18.00). Those interested must have their own lamps.

The Descent of the Holy Fire - how it happens

In our time, the descent of the Holy Fire occurs on Holy Saturday, usually between 13 and 15 hours Jerusalem time.

Approximately one day before the start of Orthodox Easter, a church ceremony begins. To see the miracle of the descent of the Holy Fire, people have been gathering at the Holy Sepulcher since Good Friday; many stay here immediately after the procession of the Cross, which takes place in memory of the events of that day. By ten o'clock on Holy Saturday, all candles and lamps in the entire huge architectural complex of the Temple are extinguished. A lamp filled with oil, but without fire, is placed in the middle of the bed of the Life-Giving Sepulcher. Pieces of cotton wool are laid out throughout the bed, and tape is laid along the edges.

The Church of the Holy Sepulcher was built on the site where the Tomb of Jesus Christ was. This is where the Holy Fire appears. In a crowd of pilgrims, it is difficult to calculate the distance from Golgotha ​​to the last bedchamber of Christ, but it is 33 steps, which is equal to the years of Jesus’ earthly life.

Moreover, each believer has 33 candles. Those who did not take care of them in advance are forced to buy them directly in the temple from the monks at three times the price.

In turn, the guards check the chapel, lock the door and put a seal, which means there is no source of fire inside.

Meanwhile, young Arab Christians sitting on each other's shoulders loudly stir up emotions in the crowd. According to legend, in the year when Arab youth were forbidden to misbehave in the temple, the fire lingered for several days. So, young Arabs can now do whatever they want in the temple.

According to tradition, two clergymen enter the chapel. The hierarchs remain in very simple clothes without belts. This is due to the fact that when the Holy Land belonged to the Ottoman Empire, the Turkish guards could not believe in the miracle of Fire; they carefully checked the belts so that matches would not be hidden there. Now the inspection function has been inherited by Israeli policemen, who, moreover, take care that representatives of two competing faiths do not start to sort things out.

Shortly before the patriarch, the sacristan (assistant to the sacristan - the manager of church property) brings a large lamp into the cave, in which the main fire and 33 candles should burn - according to the number of years of the Savior’s earthly life.

Only after this the patriarch enters the Edicule and kneels in prayer.

After the patriarch enters the Edicule, the entrance is sealed, and the wait for the miracle of the descent of the Holy Fire begins.

The carrying out of the Easter fire symbolizes the exit from the Tomb of the “True Light,” that is, the risen Jesus Christ. After the service, light appears inside the Edicule (Chapel over the Holy Sepulcher), and bells ring in the temple. Burning bunches of candles appear from the windows of the Edicule, served by the Greek Patriarch and the Armenian Archimandrite. The walkers light the fire from their candles, after which the fire quickly spreads throughout the temple.

Pilgrims leave notes with best wishes. When the fire subsides, it leaves no burns in the first few seconds.


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When the Holy Fire descends in Jerusalem in 2018 directly depends on the date of Orthodox Easter. In 2018, Easter will be on April 8, which means thousands of believers around the world will expect the descent of the Holy Fire on the 7th. They say that if the fire does not go down in a certain year, it will be a symbol of the imminent end of the world. So, I would like to hope that this year in Jerusalem, in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, fire will definitely appear.

If we return to history, it should be noted that the first evidence of the occurrence of this fire precisely on the territory of the city of Jerusalem, the holy land, appeared back in the fourth century. This has always happened since then in one place - in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. According to legend, it was in this cave that the body of Jesus Christ was located after the crucifixion and until the moment of his resurrection. So, that’s exactly what happened, on Holy Saturday, believers await the descent of the Holy Fire. If you were unable to get into the temple itself, it is difficult to do so, because there are more and more people wishing to do so every year, then you can watch the process of the descent of the fire online on the Internet or on television.

About the ceremony

The Descent of the Holy Fire is a whole ceremony that includes many rules and rituals. The ceremony begins about a day before Easter. This ceremony is called litany. At lunch, the patriarchs make a religious procession to the chapel, which is located in the very center of the temple. During the procession, a lamp is carried. It doesn’t burn yet and that’s where the fire appears later. Around the lamp there are 33 candles, which are a symbol of the years of Jesus Christ’s life on earth until the moment of the crucifixion.

The patriarch enters the chapel alone. He is wearing a minimum of clothing, and representatives of the Israeli police check and search the patriarch to ensure that he does not have any items with him that could cause fire. Moreover, in the temple itself, on the eve of Holy Saturday, all lamps, candles and other sources of fire are extinguished.

The lamp is placed by the patriarch directly in the center of the coffin bed. There is also cotton wool around the perimeter, and tape along the edges. After this, the police once again inspect the chapel, and then the main clergyman, who is already inside and searched, is sealed. Nobody knows where exactly the fire comes from. This secret has been preserved for more than a millennium. You can make it for the holiday table on Easter.

About obligatory rituals

The obligatory ritual that must be observed for the fire to appear is the presence of young people in the temple who ask the Mother of God and the Lord to grant fire. Eyewitnesses who were in the temple when the fire went down all unanimously say that flashes of bright light appear from nowhere right above the Holy Sepulcher.

It is impossible to determine exactly the time when the Holy Fire 2018 descends in Jerusalem and appears. But we know for sure that this always happens.

Following the conversation in the blog topic, I decided to do a little searching for information from different sources, and what do they promise if the Holy Fire does not descend?

First, about the origin of the event.

“There are references to the descent of heavenly fire in the Old Testament. There are several cases described there when the Lord sent fire from heaven as a sign that the sacrifice was pleasing to Him, that He accepted it. In the days of the New Testament, the very first information about the descent of the Holy Fire is found in Gregory of Nyssa, Eusebius and Sylvia of Aquitaine. They date back to the 4th century. Although there are earlier mentions. According to the testimony of the Apostles and Holy Fathers, the uncreated Light illuminated the Holy Sepulcher shortly after the Resurrection of Christ. One of the apostles, Peter, saw this. However, it is impossible to name a specific date. We can only say that the Fire began to descend from the time of the first Christians, and this is already more than two thousand years ago.
With this miracle, the Lord seems to confirm the favor and grace of God towards people. This is when God favors us, our prayers, our repentance.
It is extremely important whether the Holy Fire descends or not, because its descent is a symbol that life will continue, that God has blessed humanity. ”

There were three cases of fire not descending.
- In 1101, on Holy Saturday, the miracle of the descent of the Holy Fire in Edicule did not occur until Eastern Christians were invited to participate in this rite. Then King Baldwin I took care of returning their rights to local Christians.
- On Holy Saturday 1579, Orthodox Patriarch Sophrony IV and the clergy were not allowed into the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. They stood in front of the closed doors of the Temple from the outside. The Armenian clergy entered the Edicule and began to pray to the Lord for the descent of the Fire. But their prayers were not heard.
The Orthodox priests standing at the closed doors of the Temple also turned to the Lord with prayers. Suddenly a noise was heard, the column located to the left of the closed doors of the Temple cracked, Fire came out of it and lit candles in the hands of the Patriarch of Jerusalem. With great joy, the Orthodox priesthood entered the Temple and glorified the Lord. Traces of the descent of Fire can still be seen on one of the columns located to the left of the entrance.

According to traditions that have taken root over 2000 years, the obligatory participants in the sacrament of the descent of the Holy Fire are the abbot, the monks of the Lavra of St. Savvas the Sanctified and local Orthodox Arabs.
On Holy Saturday, half an hour after the sealing of the Edicule, Arab Orthodox youth, screaming, stomping, drumming, sitting astride each other, rush into the Temple and begin singing and dancing. There is no evidence about the time when this ritual was established. The exclamations and songs of the Arab youth are ancient prayers in Arabic, addressed to Christ and the Mother of God, who is asked to beg the Son to send Fire, to St. George the Victorious, especially revered in the Orthodox East.
According to oral traditions, during the years of British rule over Jerusalem (1918-1947), the English governor once tried to ban “savage” dances. The Patriarch of Jerusalem prayed for two hours: The fire did not go down. Then the Patriarch ordered with his will to let in the Arab youth. After they performed the ritual, the Fire descended...
So what will happen if the Holy Fire does not descend? There are many legends and beliefs about what will happen if the Holy Fire does not descend.
Christian legend says that when the Holy Light does not appear in the Edicule, the end of the world will come.

The fire did not go down (above the evidence), and the prophecy was not fulfilled, why?
It turns out that the fire’s non-convergence is not enough, there must be three foreshadowing events to fulfill the prophecy.

1. The exact location of Noah's Ark will be revealed.

2. The 5000-year-old oak of Mamre will dry up (where Abraham met the Holy Trinity).

3. The Holy Fire will not descend.

According to the Ark . Presumably on Mount Ararat in Turkey, traces of it were discovered.

Mamre oak . Judging by the photos, it has dried up. Although they write that something has turned green there from the roots, there are no close photos, what leaves are not visible, and it doesn’t look like oak.

About oak.
Mamrian, or, in the Russian religious tradition, the Mamrian oak (aka the Oak of Abraham, aka the Palestine oak, aka Russian oak (because it belongs to the Orthodox Russian Mission), also known as the oak grove of Mamre.), is considered the oldest tree under which, according to the Bible, Abraham received God: “ The Lord appeared to him at the oak grove of Mamre, when he was sitting at the entrance to the tent, during the heat of the day"(Genesis 18:1). The Mamvrian oak is marked by the glory of the Epiphany. It is believed that the age of this tree is about five thousand years. Moreover, religious texts report that Mamvrian oak has been growing since the creation of the world. Perhaps this oak is a symbol of the World Tree.

This is if with t.z. physical phenomena. But I think that “physics” is secondary. Yes, and allegories have a place here.
I remembered the legend about Prometheus (by the way, there is an opinion that he is one of the prototypes of Christ).

So what kind of fire did Prometheus bring to people? You can think sublimely and say - internal, spiritual, the light of reason, insights. Quite acceptable. Moreover, he stole it from the Gods.

You can think pragmatically and say that yes, he gave fire, but not the fire itself, but gave the secret of its production. But which one? I don’t think he taught people how to use improvised objects to knock out a spark. And if you remember that divine fire, then most likely we were talking about some kind of magical act that would “pierce the veil” and slightly nourish the souls from within with light divine Mind, and as proof that the action took place, in the space of the magical ritual the physical fire was concentrated and descended (manifested), which immediately after its manifestation was slightly different, but “cold”...
So... What kind of magical ritual is this? A question of questions. Most likely, the Messenger gave people a Word (spell, sound, “vibration”) that resonated with other conditions. Only by performing the ritual in all its subtleties and within a certain period of the space-time corridor, one could count on success.

Now about “what will happen if the Holy Fire does not descend.”

All IMHO. Since this fire is the Light of the divine mind, given to people for salvation, then its descent will not entail cataclysms and worldwide collapse, but what will happen is that people, deprived of their annual “feeding”, will begin to degrade mentally, and increasingly. And this will already lead to dire consequences, because “ the sleep of reason will give birth to monsters“... wars, strife, greed and other negative aspects... And yes... there will be some more, as was said: “ To everyone who has, more will be given and he will have an abundance, but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away "(Matthew 25:29) - this is about the Spirit (Mind). Therefore, there will be a gathering and harvest... of the Spirit.
But this will not affect the bodies... humanity will live the same way it lived, eat, drink and enjoy. What will be the impact of degradation? Yes, if there is a replacement of values, there will be a severe moral decline, disbelief and darkness in souls, etc...

“There are many substances that can spontaneously combust.”

The descent of the Holy Fire is a great Easter miracle. This year, on April 7, thousands of pilgrims will be waiting for his appearance, as always, in the Church of the Resurrection of Christ. However, for many years, skeptics have been arguing: is fire really of divine origin, or is it the work of human hands? The latest scandal associated with the exposure of this miracle occurred almost a month before Easter: a representative of the Armenian Patriarchate, Samuil Agoyan, stated that the patriarchs themselves light wax candles from an oil lamp.

“MK” decided to conduct an experiment and create fire using a chemical method - without matches, lighters or other attributes that the priest definitely cannot carry with him.

Let us note right away: we do not want to offend anyone’s feelings with this text and do not set ourselves the goal of disproving the divine origin of fire. If a certain phenomenon can be imitated with the help of a trick or experiment, this does not mean that the phenomenon itself is a trick. We show that with the help of simple chemical manipulations you can reproduce something similar, get fire. But whether the Holy Fire itself is a miracle or the result of a chemical reaction - everyone decides for himself. In the end, everyone will be given according to their faith.

What do we know about the environment in which the fire descends? It is known that this is a closed phenomenon - only one person enters the chapel over the Holy Sepulcher, the patriarch of the Jerusalem Greek Orthodox Church. Even those who stand directly next to the walls of the edicule cannot see what is happening inside. It is also known that the patriarch, before he goes inside to pray for the descent of the fire, is searched: he should not have any matches or lighters with him.

Fire - ordinary, human - can be obtained in different ways. Mechanical: for example, by friction, or using a magnifying glass, glasses or binoculars, or even making a lens out of ice. However, it is unlikely that the priest will be able to carry some kind of device with him - then it would be easier to actually hide the lighter. The best way to simulate sudden spontaneous combustion of a candle is to use chemical methods.

There is a classic method that was used by magicians back in the 19th century. A piece of white phosphorus is dissolved in carbon tetrachloride, a volatile, poisonous liquid. A wick is dipped into the solution. After the carbon tetrachloride evaporates, the phosphorus ignites itself and lights the candle. It is convenient that spontaneous combustion does not occur immediately - there is just enough time to move the candle or lamp to the right place.

There are many substances that can spontaneously ignite, for example alkali metals,” a professor at the Russian Chemical Technical University named after A. Mendeleev Dmitry Mustafin. - If you take a piece of potassium or sodium and throw it into water, it will start to burn. In addition, alkali metal carbides burn. Quite a lot of active metals, especially if they are crushed into powders, aluminum, zinc, cobalt, all spontaneously ignite in air. Some immediately, others after some period of time. You can mix two substances - an oxidizing agent and a reducing agent. If you take saltpeter or potassium permanganate and mix it with alcohol, the mixture should catch fire.

You can’t just buy white phosphorus or other self-igniting substances in a store. We chose the simplest and relatively safe way to create fire - mixing glycerin and potassium permanganate, known as potassium permanganate. We warn you: do not repeat this experience at home. This should only be done in rooms specially designed for this purpose (for example, in chemical laboratories) and only with a fire extinguisher at the ready.

Potassium permanganate is a strong oxidizing agent. When reacting, it decomposes to atomic oxygen, which oxidizes glycerol. The reaction is exothermic, that is, it is accompanied by a strong release of heat and ignition of the suspension.

Simple glycerin from the pharmacy will not work. In fact, it is not even glycerin, but glycerol - an 85% solution. This concentration of the active substance is not enough: the solution boils, but does not burn. Therefore, we bought a 99.5% glycerin solution at a specialized chemical store. Potassium permanganate, in turn, is simply not sold in pharmacies - only by prescription. We got it from our own old stocks.

The experiment should only be carried out in glass or porcelain dishes - in no case in plastic and preferably not in metal. We will not reveal the secret of “how much to weigh in grams”. Glycerin is poured into a glass container (in concentrated form - a viscous transparent liquid). Potassium permanganate powder is added - there is no need to dilute it before this. After some time, the reaction begins sharply - everything seethes, boils and burns with a bright bluish flame. We placed a candle nearby, the wick of which was lit by chemical fire.

It is clear that no glassware will be brought into the edicule, and it is unlikely that members of the clergy are quietly chemistry in the corner. But there is a similar method where concentrated sulfuric acid is used instead of glycerin. The components taken in a certain ratio are used to make a paste. A small amount of it - literally a match head or less - is applied to the candle wick, which after some time lights up. To be sure, you can attach a tiny piece of paper to the wick. Alas, when we experimented with glycerin, we needed a fairly large volume of potassium permanganate, which definitely wouldn’t be possible to apply to the candle unnoticed.

There is one more property of the Holy Fire - it does not burn in the first minutes, and pilgrims can even wash themselves with it. A similar phenomenon of a chemical nature is used by illusionists in their work.

A special composition is taken from dry boric acid, ethyl alcohol and sulfuric or hydrochloric acid,” one of the magicians said anonymously. - Stir and heat slightly. You can roll a ball of thread and soak it in this composition, and only then set it on fire.

An ester of boric acid is released, which burns with a slightly greenish flame. It doesn't burn or even heat. However, as soon as all the ether burns out, the alcohol begins to burn. And now its flame really burns.


To get fire, we mixed a solution of glycerin and potassium premanganate powder, in other words, potassium permanganate.


A few minutes after mixing, the mixture began to bubble, and then suddenly flared up with a blue flame.


It is not necessary to extinguish the fire with water: it is better to limit the access of oxygen by covering the glass with something, or use a fire extinguisher.