This Saturday, on the day before Orthodox Easter, in the Holy Sepulcher Church in Jerusalem, which supposedly has a small entrance to Christ's tomb, Orthodox Christians claim a white fire miraculously appears from inside that opening. An Orthodox patriarch, using an oil lamp in the opening, waits. After a humble prayer, the holy fire appears.
The holy fire is then passed to candles. Eyewitnesses state that for the first 33 minutes, the holy fire does not burn human skin, nor human hair.
On the internet, videos circulate showing the fire causing pain 34 minutes after the miracle appears.
So, what is this and why have so many within the Christian tradition never heard of this?
Within the chronicles of Orthodox history, there are supposed references dating back to the first century. But while that may be enough for a traditional Eastern Orthodox, what can be said from other sources. Are there any?
Throughout documented history, the Greek Orthodox authorities have been involved in the tradition. There have been dates where it did not happen, although rare. There were a thousand years ago. Those dates usually corresponded to a religious tension between Christian groups.
There are plenty of doubters. The patriarch is hiding his hand inside the tomb opening, so could it be manipulated inside the tomb? Could the flame be ignited from planted phosphorous from inside the tomb? And why is it that the Greek Orthodox patriarch is favored?
Whatever the truth, the "holy fire" that allegedly appears has more believers than you might first assume. Among others, there was at one time a tradition among Lutheran churches to have an "eternal flame" hanging somewhere in the sanctuary. I can attest to this as I witnessed this in my childhood. But, I was a child and found the mystery of the "eternal flame" just that, a mystery for others to discuss.
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