“One of the sweetest and most spiritual holidays of the Christian world is the Assumption of the Most Holy Theotokos, which the Church celebrates today. Already from the first centuries of our era, the honor and reverence that Christians paid to the Virgin Mary was excellent. But today’s holiday is mainly the memory of the Mother of God, and I had Her Assumption, ”says the publication of the novelist and poet Alexandrou Papadiamantis in the newspaper “Efimeris” dated August 15, 1887.

With Her Dormition, which, according to pious tradition, took place on August 15, the connection between corruption (earthly life) and incorruption (heavenly life) ends.

The crew, named Christos, honors her with solemn events and ceremonies of worship.

In the churches of the sea and mountains, where Her grace is revered, hymns and hymns are the most beautiful things written by the hymnographer Cosmas and John of Damascus. In fact, as they say, the procession of the Assumption of the Virgin competes with the procession of the individual Christian holidays of Holy Week and Christmas.

The most famous events of the fifteenth of August in Tinos – Paros and Panagia Sumela.

The fifteenth of August is associated with Tinos, where the double Assumption of the Virgin and the anniversary of the torpedoing of the Elli are celebrated, and is celebrated on the island with all honors.

On the day of the celebration, the Divine Liturgy is celebrated in the city of V. gospel and during it, as is customary, the head of the Navy and a representative of the government board a torpedo boat and lay a wreath at the site of the sinking of the frigate “Elli” during the Divine Liturgy on August 15, 1940 by the Italians. Honorary cannon shots sounding at this time in the port come from the “Hell Cannon”, salvaged from the ship’s hull and mothballed.

This is followed by a procession of the holy image carried by the navy and then by the bands of the navy and the municipality of Tinos performing funeral marches, prayers of honor, high priests and a crowd of people.

The procession ends on a marble platform in Pantanasi Square, where a deesis is performed and panegyrics are pronounced. After their completion, the procession accompanies the holy icon on its return to the Holy Evangelistrian Church.

The church was built on the spot where on January 30, 1823, the icon of the Annunciation was found after a vision to nun Pelagia. The Mother of God of Tinos is directly connected with the sacrifices of our country for freedom, and the acquisition of the icon by the Greek leaders in 1821 was considered a symbol of the course of the struggle.

The religious celebration of the Fifteenth of August also takes place in Paros, an important attraction for thousands of pilgrims, which stands out thanks to the impressive church of Panagia Ekatontapyliani in the port of Parikia.

As usual, the procession of the Epitaph of the Virgin is followed by a traditional feast with music, dancing and plenty of local wine. In the picturesque port of Naoussa, dozens of boats with burning torches light up the night and approach the pier, signaling the start of the holiday. This is followed by a loud feast with traditional songs and dances, most notably a ball.

One of the most historic early Christian sites, Panagia Ekatontapiliani was built in 326 by Agia Eleni and completed in the 6th century. according to Justinian. According to tradition, the church has 91 known gates, and the centimeter will be opened by an angel when “we take the City”.