The descent of the Holy Fire is a miracle that happens every year on the eve of Orthodox Easter in the Jerusalem Church of the Holy Sepulcher. In 2017, the whole Christian world will celebrate the Holy Resurrection of Christ on the same day - April 16th.
On Holy Saturday, tens of thousands of pilgrims flock to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher from all over the world to wash themselves in its blessed light and receive God's blessing.
The Holy Fire was brought to Georgia from JerusalemThe greatest miracle is awaited with excitement not only by Orthodox Christians, but also by representatives of various denominations.
For many hundreds of years, people have been trying to understand where the Holy Fire comes from. Believers are sure that this is a real miracle - God's gift to people. Scientists do not agree with this statement and try to find an explanation for this phenomenon from a scientific point of view.
Holy Fire
According to many testimonies, both ancient and modern, the appearance of the Holy Light can be observed in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher throughout the year, but the most famous and impressive is the miraculous descent of the Holy Fire on Great Saturday, on the eve of bright resurrection Christ.
Throughout almost the entire time of the existence of Christianity, this miraculous phenomenon has been observed annually by both Orthodox Christians and representatives of other Christian denominations (Catholics, Armenians, Copts and others), as well as representatives of other non-Christian religions.
The distribution of the Holy Fire during the Easter service The miracle of the descent of the Holy Fire on the Holy Sepulcher has been known since ancient times, the descending fire has a unique property - it does not burn the first minutes.
The first witness to the convergence of fire was the Apostle Peter - having learned about the Resurrection of the Savior, he hurried to the tomb and saw an amazing light where the body had previously lay. For two thousand years, this light has descended every year on the Holy Sepulcher with the Holy Fire.
The Church of the Holy Sepulcher was erected by Emperor Constantine and his mother Queen Helena in the 4th century. And the earliest written references to the descent of the Holy Fire on the eve of the Resurrection of Christ date back to the 4th century.
The temple with its huge roof covers Golgotha, and the cave in which the Lord taken down from the cross was laid, and the garden where Mary Magdalene was the first of the people to meet His resurrected.
Convergence
Approximately at noon, a procession headed by the Patriarch. The procession enters the Church of the Resurrection, goes to the chapel erected over the Holy Sepulcher, and, after going around it three times, stops in front of its gates.
All the lights in the temple are extinguished. Tens of thousands of people: Arabs, Greeks, Russians, Romanians, Jews, Germans, Englishmen - pilgrims from all over the world - are watching the Patriarch in tense silence.
The patriarch undresses, the police carefully search him and the Holy Sepulcher itself, looking for at least something that can make fire (during the Turkish rule over Jerusalem, Turkish gendarmes did this), and in one long flowing chiton, the primate of the Church enters.
On his knees in front of the Tomb, he prays to God for the sending down of the Holy Fire. Sometimes his prayer lasts a long time, but there is interesting feature- The Holy Fire descends only through the prayers of the Orthodox Patriarch.
And suddenly, on the marble slab of the coffin, a kind of fiery dew appears in the form of bluish balls. His Holiness touches them with cotton wool, and it ignites. With this cool fire, the Patriarch lights the lampada and candles, which he then takes out to the temple and passes to the Armenian Patriarch, and then to the people. At the same moment, dozens and hundreds of bluish lights flash in the air under the dome of the temple.
It is difficult to imagine what kind of jubilation seizes the crowd of many thousands. People shout, sing, the fire is transferred from one bunch of candles to another, and in a minute the whole temple is on fire.
Miracle or trick
This wonderful phenomenon at different times had many critics who tried to expose and prove the artificial origin of fire. The Catholic Church was also among those who disagreed. In particular, Pope Gregory IX in 1238 spoke out with disagreement about the miraculous nature of the Holy Fire.
Not understanding the true origin of the Holy Fire, some Arabs tried to prove that the Fire is allegedly obtained using any means, substances and devices, but they have no direct evidence. At the same time, they did not even witness this miracle.
Modern researchers also tried to study the nature of this phenomenon. In their opinion, it is possible to produce fire artificially. Spontaneous combustion of chemical mixtures and substances is also possible.
Christian Orthodox worshipers light candles from the Holy Fire in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in the Old City of Jerusalem But none of them is similar to the appearance of the Holy Fire, especially with its amazing property - not to burn in the first minutes of its appearance.
Theologians, representatives of various confessions, including the Orthodox Church, have repeatedly stated that the ignition of candles and lamps in the Temple from the supposedly “sacred fire” is a falsification.
The most famous are the statements in the middle of the last century by professor of the Leningrad Theological Academy Nikolai Uspensky, who believed that in Kuvuklia the fire is lit from a secret hidden lamp, the light of which does not penetrate into the open space of the Temple, where all the candles and lamps at this time are extinguished.
At the same time, Uspensky argued that "the fire lit on the Holy Sepulcher from a hidden lamp is still a sacred fire received from a sacred place."
Russian physicist Andrei Volkov, allegedly, a few years ago, managed to take some measurements at the ceremony of the convergence of the Holy Fire. According to Volkov, a few minutes before the removal of the Holy Fire from Kuvuklia, a device that fixes the spectrum of electromagnetic radiation detected a strange long-wave impulse in the temple, which no longer manifested itself. That is, an electrical discharge has occurred.
In the meantime, scientists are trying to find scientific confirmation of this phenomenon, and in contrast to the complete unsubstantiated claims of skeptics, the miracle of the convergence of the Holy Fire is an annually observed fact.
The miracle of the descent of the Holy Fire is available to everyone. It can be seen not only by tourists and pilgrims - it takes place in front of the whole world and is regularly broadcast on television and the Internet, on the website of the Jerusalem Orthodox Patriarchate.
The Holy Fire from Jerusalem Every year, several thousand of those present in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher see: the patriarch entered the Cuvuklia, which was checked and sealed, with a bunch of candles, whose clothes were specially examined. He came out of it with a burning torch of 33 candles, and this is an indisputable fact.
Therefore, the answer to the question of where the Holy Fire comes from can be only one answer - it's a miracle, and everything else is just unconfirmed speculation.
And in conclusion, the Holy Fire confirms the promise of the Risen Christ to the apostles: "I am with you all the days until the end of the age."
It is believed that when the Heavenly Fire does not descend on the Holy Sepulcher, this will be a sign of the onset of the power of the Antichrist and the imminent end of the world.
The material was prepared on the basis of open sources.
Holy Fire- one of the strongest symbols of faith and confirmation of its truth among Orthodox Christians. Once again, he descended from heaven last Saturday in Jerusalem in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher (erected in the 4th century by decree of the Roman Emperor Constantine and his mother, Queen Helena, in the place where earth path Christ was completed) on the eve of the Great Feast of the Orthodox Easter of Christ.
The descent of the Holy Fire - as proof of the truth of the Orthodox faith.
The Holy Fire descends only on Orthodox Easter and only through the prayers of the Orthodox Patriarch. There was an experience of achieving convergence of fire in 1101 and in 1578, when the Turks owned Jerusalem. All attempts failed.
The Lord revealed his will to people: the fire did not descend into Kulukvia, in which the Armenian patriarch was praying intensely at that time, but descended on one of the outer columns of the temple, at which the Jerusalem patriarch prayed together with the faithful - the column cracked in this place, and this crack can be see now.
After such a phenomenon, the Latins and Armenians were forced to negotiate in the Orthodox and recognized that God has the will to give the Holy Fire only into the hands of a minister of the Orthodox Church. It is known that for the appearance of fire there is one more condition - in the Holy Sepulcher Church with songs and dances, local Orthodox Arabs must necessarily appear, offering a prayer to the Mother of God and Christ on Arabic.
Holy Fire: miracle or man-made reality?
Scientists and atheists have been trying to explain the power and nature of the Holy Fire for a long time, but so far the attempts have not been successful. Believers accept fire as the highest grace of God, without questioning even the slightest doubt about its divine nature. Skeptics and atheists carefully try to explain this phenomenon from a scientific point of view, and I think this is also normal.
Let's try to understand the mystery and nature of the convergence of the Holy Fire.
How is the preparation for the reception of the Holy Fire
Not for the first millennium, the Holy Fire descends in one place, only in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, and only on the eve of Orthodox Easter, subject to a few more conditions.
The first mention of this phenomenon dates back to the 4th century, they are found among church historians.
A vivid description, full of depth of experienced feelings, is given in his book “I saw the Holy Fire” by Archimandrite Savva Achilleos, who for more than 50 years was the main novice at the Holy Sepulcher. Here is a fragment of a book about how the Holy Fire descends:
“... the patriarch bowed low to approach the Life-Giving Tomb. And suddenly, in the midst of dead silence, I heard some kind of quivering, barely perceptible rustle. It was like a thin breath of wind. And immediately after that, I saw a blue light that filled the entire inner space of the Life-Giving Tomb.
Oh, what an unforgettable sight it was! I saw this light whirl like a strong whirlwind or storm. And in this blessed light, I clearly saw the face of the Patriarch. Big tears were running down his cheeks...
… the blue light has returned to a state of motion. Then it suddenly turned white... Soon the light took on a rounded shape and in the form of a halo stood motionless above the head of the Patriarch. I saw how His Beatitude the Patriarch took bundles of 33 candles into his hands, raised them high above him and began to pray to God to send down the Holy Fire, slowly stretching his hands to the sky. As soon as he raised them to the level of his head, all four beams suddenly lit up in his hands, as if they were brought close to a flaming furnace. At the same moment, the halo disappeared from the light above his head. Tears flowed from my eyes from the joy that engulfed me .... "
Information taken from the site https://www.rusvera.mrezha.ru/633/9.htm
Holy Fire in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, preparation for the descent
The ceremony of preparation for the descent of Fire begins almost a day before the start of Orthodox Easter. The Church of the Holy Sepulcher, which can accommodate 10 thousand people, is in a hurry to visit these days not only Orthodox believers, but also other Christians, Muslims, and atheist tourists. Representatives of the Jewish police are also present here, vigilantly monitoring not only order, but also ensuring that no one brings fire or devices into the temple that cause it.
Then, an unlit oil lamp is placed on the center of the bed of the Holy Sepulcher, and a bunch of candles in the amount of 33 pieces is also placed here - the number of years of the life of Jesus Christ. Pieces of cotton wool are laid around the perimeter of the bed, a tape is attached along the edges. Everything is done under the strict supervision of the Jewish police and Muslim representatives.
It is important that the manifestation of the descent of Fire is ensured by the obligatory presence in the temple three groups of participants:
- Patriarch of Jerusalem Orthodox Church or, with his blessing, one of the bishops of the Jerusalem Patriarchate.
- Abbot and monks of the Lavra of St. Savva the Sanctified .
- Local Orthodox Arabs, most often represented by Arab Orthodox youth, who make themselves known by noisy non-traditional performance of prayers in Arabic .
The Orthodox Patriarch, accompanied by the Armenian Patriarch and the clergy, closes the festive procession.
Then the Patriarch undresses from the vestments, demonstrating the absence of matches and other things that can cause fire, and enters Kuvukliya.
After that, the chapel is closed, the entrance is sealed by a local Muslim keykeeper.
Those present from this moment are waiting for the Patriarch to come out with Fire in his hands. Interestingly, the waiting time for convergence varies from year to year, from a few minutes to several hours.
The moment of expectation is one of the strongest in faith: believers know that if the Fire is not sent from above, the temple will be destroyed. Therefore, the parishioners take communion and pray fervently, asking to grant them the Holy Fire. Prayers and rituals continue until the appearance of the blessed Fire.
How the Holy Fire descends
This is how people present in the temple at different times describe the atmosphere of expectation of the Holy Fire. The phenomenon of convergence is accompanied by the appearance in the temple of small bright flashes, discharges, flashes here and there ...
When shooting with a slow-motion camera, the lights are especially clearly visible near the icon located above Kuvuklia, in the area of the dome of the Temple, near the windows.
A moment later, the whole temple is already lit up with glare, lightning, and right there .. the doors of the chapel swing open, the Patriarch appears in his hands with the same Fire sent down from Heaven. At these moments, candles in the hands individual people ignite spontaneously.
An incredible atmosphere of joy, delight and happiness fills the entire space, it truly becomes an energetically unique place!
At first, Fire has amazing properties - it does not burn at all, people literally wash themselves with it, scoop it up with their palms, pouring water on themselves. There are no cases of ignition of clothes, hair and other objects. The temperature of the fire is only 40ºС. There are cases and witnesses of the healing of ailments and diseases.
They say that droplets of wax falling from candles, called the Blessed Dew, will remain on people's clothes forever, even after washing.
And in the future, from the Holy Fire, lamps are lit throughout Jerusalem, although there are cases in areas near the temple of their spontaneous combustion. Fire is delivered by air to Cyprus and Greece, and so all over the world, including to Russia. In the areas of the city adjacent to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, candles and lamps in churches light up on their own.
There were fears that this year the Fire would not come down due to the fact that archaeologists in the fall of 2016, for scientific purposes, opened the tomb with the Holy Sepulcher, in which, according to giving, the body of Jesus Christ rested after the crucifixion. The fears were in vain.
Video about the descent of Fire in Jerusalem.
Scientific explanation of the Holy Fire
How does science explain the nature of the Holy Fire? No way! There is no scientific evidence for this phenomenon. Just as there are no scientific interpretations of all things that happen according to the will of God. One must accept the fact of Fire as divine essence.
Attempts to somehow explain the nature of this phenomenon are rather revealing, as is usually the case, the desire to convict the Church of insincerity, deceit, and concealment of the truth.
But in fact, why does the Fire come down only among Orthodox Christians? Well, God is one, faiths are just different? And why does Orthodox Easter fall on different calendar dates every year, and why does the fire come down at the right time? By the way, in the past, its convergence was observed at night with the onset of Holy Saturday before Easter, now it happens during the day, closer to noon.
Holy Fire is a myth
What arguments do skeptics give, exposing the miracle of the descent of the Holy Fire, thereby trying to dispel the myths about the divine nature of fire in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher:
- Fire at the right moment is obtained from essential oils, pre-sprayed into the atmosphere of the temple and capable of self-ignition.
- The candles that are given out in the temple shop are impregnated with a special composition that saturates the atmosphere of the temple, causing the same flashes and spontaneous combustion of candles.
But after all, other candles were lit, which passionate skeptics brought with them to the temple.
- Some substances, such as white phosphorus, exhibit spontaneous combustion. Concentrated sulfuric acid, when combined with manganese, ignites spontaneously, while the flame does not burn. The fire does not burn for some time when the ethers are burning. But only the first moments.
Divine fire does not burn after a while.
- Here is another recipe for self-ignition:
“... they hang lamps in the altar and arrange a trick so that the fire reaches them through the oil of the balsam tree and accessories from it, and its property is the appearance of fire when combined with jasmine oil. Fire has a bright light and brilliant radiance.
- The phenomenon of fire can be explained as the result of the interaction of streams of charged particles passing through the upper atmosphere, through magnetic field Earth.
But why here and now? Unconvincing!
- Perhaps the answer lies in geophysics? The land of Jerusalem is very old, in addition, the temple is located in a unique place, on ancient tectonic plates.
Perhaps this fact contributes to the phenomenon.
- Or maybe the believers themselves, gathered at the Temple of the Lord, with their energy of excitement, special condition nervous system in anticipation of a miracle are able to generate energy flows, which are already not poor places of pilgrimage.
- Does not recognize the miraculous nature of fire and the Catholic Church.
- A lot of noise in 2008 was made by the interview of the Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos III to Russian journalists, in which he brought the phenomenon of the descent of the Holy Fire closer to an ordinary church ceremony, without any emphasis on the miracle of the descent.
Scientific experiment confirming the divine essence of Fire
Professor Pavel Florensky in 2008 took measurements and recorded three flash-discharges, akin to those that occur during a thunderstorm, and thereby confirmed the special atmosphere during the appearance of Fire, that is, simply its Divine origin.
Just a year ago, in 2016, Andrey Volkov, a Russian physicist and employee of the Russian Research Center "Kurchatov Institute", managed to bring equipment to the temple for the ceremony of the convergence of the Holy Fire and make measurements of the electromagnetic field inside the room. Here is what the physicist himself says:
- For six hours of observing the electromagnetic background in the temple, it was at the moment of the descent of the Holy Fire that the device recorded a doubling of the radiation intensity.
- Now it is clear that the Holy Fire was not created by people. This is not a deception, not a hoax: its material "traces" can be measured.
In fact, can this inexplicable surge of energy be called a message from God?
“Many believers think so. This is the materialization of the Divine miracle. You won't pick another word.
I think there are other attempts to explain the mystery of the phenomenon of the convergence of the blessed fire. But whether God's plan can be squeezed into mathematical formulas is a question.
Conclusion
After analyzing the above facts, everyone will decide for himself: A miracle sacrament or a man-made process with the participation of people is the Holy Fire. The truth of faith does not need proof! For others, miracles do not exist, and everything that happens around us must be subject to the laws of science.
Scientists managed to get to the Holy Sepulcher and conduct research, the result of which shocked believers.
Regardless of whether a person considers himself a believer or not, at least once in his life he was interested in real evidence the existence of higher powers that every religion talks about.
In Orthodoxy, one of the testimonies of the miracles indicated in the Bible is the Holy Fire descending on the Holy Sepulcher on the eve of Easter. On Great Saturday, anyone can look at it - just come to the square in front of the Church of the Resurrection. But the longer this tradition exists, the more hypotheses are built by journalists and scientists. All of them refute the divine origin of fire - but can one of them be trusted?
History of the Holy Fire
The convergence of fire can be seen only once a year and in the only place on the planet - the Jerusalem Church of the Resurrection. Its huge complex includes: Calvary, a cave with the Cross of the Lord, a garden where Christ was seen after the resurrection. It was built in the 4th century by Emperor Constantine and the Holy Fire was seen there during the first service on Easter. Around the place where this happened, they built a chapel with the tomb of the Lord - it is called Cuvuklia.
At ten o'clock in the morning of Great Saturday, all candles, lamps and other sources of light are extinguished in the temple every year. The highest church ranks personally monitor this: Kuvuklia passes the last test, after which it is sealed with a large wax seal. From that moment on, the protection of holy places falls on the shoulders of the Israeli police (in ancient times, the Janissaries of the Ottoman Empire handled their duties). They also put additional printing over the seal of the Patriarch. What is not proof of the miraculous origin of the Holy Fire?
Edicule
At twelve o'clock in the afternoon, a procession of the cross begins to stretch from the courtyard of the Jerusalem Patriarchate to the Holy Sepulcher. It is headed by the patriarch: having bypassed Kuvuklia three times, he stops in front of her doors.
“The patriarch dresses in white clothes. With him, at the same time, 12 archimandrites and four deacons put on white vestments. Then clerics in white surplice with 12 banners depicting the Passion of Christ and His glorious Resurrection come out of the altar in pairs, followed by clerics with ripids and life-giving cross, then 12 priests in pairs, then four deacons also in pairs, and the last two of them in front of the patriarch hold bunches of candles in their hands in a silver stand for the most convenient transfer of holy fire to the people, and, finally, the patriarch with a rod in right hand. With the blessing of the patriarch, the singers and all the clergy, while singing: “Thy Resurrection, Christ the Savior, the angels sing in heaven, and make us on earth glorify You with a pure heart” go from the Church of the Resurrection to the Kuvukliya and bypass it three times. After the third circumambulation, the patriarch, the clergy and the chanters stop with the banner-bearers and the crusader in front of the holy life-giving tomb and sing the evening hymn: “Quiet Light”, reminiscent of the fact that this litany was once part of the rite of evening worship.
Patriarch and Holy Sepulcher
In the courtyard of the temple, the Patriarch is watched by thousands of eyes of pilgrims-tourists from all over the world - from Russia, Ukraine, Greece, England, Germany. The police officers search the Patriarch, after which he enters Kuvuklia. An Armenian archimandrite remains at the front door in order to offer prayers to Christ for the forgiveness of the sins of the human race.
“The patriarch, having stood at the door of the holy tomb, with the help of the deacons, takes off his miter, sakkos, omophorion and club and remains only in the vestment, stole, belt and handrails. The dragoman then removes the seals and cords from the door of the holy tomb and lets in his patriarch, who has the aforementioned bunches of candles in his hands. Behind him immediately goes inside the Kuvuklia one Armenian bishop, dressed in sacred garments and also having bunches of candles in his hands for the speedy transfer of the holy fire to the people through the southern opening of the Kuvuklia in the chapel of the Angel.
When the Patriarch is left alone, behind closed doors, the real sacrament of magic begins. On his knees, the Holy One prays to the Lord for the message of the Holy Fire. His prayers are not heard by people outside the doors of the chapel - but they can see their result! Blue and red flashes appear on the walls, columns and icons of the temple, reminiscent of reflections during fireworks. At the same time, blue lights appear on the marble slab of the Coffin. The clergyman touches one of them with a cotton ball - and the fire spreads to her. The patriarch lights a lampada with a cotton wool and hands it over to the Armenian bishop.
“And all those people in the church and outside the church say nothing else, only: “Lord, have mercy!” they cry unremittingly and shout loudly, so that the whole place buzzes and thunders from the cry of those people. And here tears are shed in streams from faithful people. Even with a stone heart, a person can then shed a tear. Each of the pilgrims, holding in his hand a bundle of 33 candles, according to the number of years of the life of our Savior ... hurries in spiritual joy to kindle them from the primary light, through the clergy deliberately appointed for this from the Orthodox and Armenian clergy, standing near the northern and southern openings of the cuvuklia and the first to receive holy fire from the holy tomb. From numerous lodges, from windows and cornices of walls, similar bundles descend on ropes. wax candles, since the spectators, who occupy their places at the top of the temple, immediately strive to partake of the same grace.
Transfer of the Holy Fire
In the first minutes after receiving fire, you can do anything with it: believers wash themselves with it and touch it with their hands without fear of getting burned. After a few minutes, the fire turns from cold to warm and acquires its usual properties. Several centuries ago, one of the pilgrims wrote:
“He lit 20 candles in one place and burned his brother with all those candles, and not a single hair writhed or burned; and having extinguished all the candles and then kindled them with other people, I kindled those candles, and I also kindled those candles on the third day, and then touching my wife with nothing, I didn’t singe a single hair, nor writhed.
Conditions for the appearance of the sacred fire
Among the Orthodox, there is a belief that in the year when the fire does not light up, the apocalypse will begin. However, this event has already happened once - then a follower of a different confession of Christianity tried to extract the fire.
“The first Latin Patriarch Arnopd of Choquet ordered the expulsion of heretic sects from their limits in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, then he began torturing Orthodox monks, seeking where they kept the Cross and other relics. A few months later, Arnold was replaced on the throne by Daimbert of Pisa, who went even further. He tried to expel all local Christians, even Orthodox Christians, from the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and admit only Latins there, generally depriving the rest of the church buildings in or near Jerusalem. God's retribution soon struck: already in 1101, on Holy Saturday, the miracle of the descent of the Holy Fire in Kuvuklia did not happen until Eastern Christians were invited to participate in this rite. Then King Baldwin I took care of the return of the local Christians of their rights.
Fire under the Latin Patriarch and a crack in the column
In 1578, the clergy from Armenia, who had not heard anything about the attempts of their predecessor, tried to repeat them. They obtained permission to be the first to see the Holy Fire by forbidding the Orthodox Patriarch to enter the church. He, along with other priests, was forced to pray at the gate on the eve of Easter. See the miracle of God to the minions Armenian Church did not succeed. One of the columns of the courtyard, in which the Orthodox prayed, cracked, and a pillar of fire appeared from it. Traces of its convergence can be observed by any tourist today. Believers traditionally leave notes in it with the most cherished requests to God.
A series of mystical events forced Christians to sit down at the negotiating table and decide that it was pleasing to God to transfer the fire into the hands of an Orthodox priest. Well, he, in turn, goes out to the people and gives the sacred flame to the abbot and the monks of the Lavra of St. Savva the Sanctified, the Armenian Apostolic and Syrian Church. The last to enter the temple must be the local Orthodox Arabs. On Holy Saturday, they appear in the square with songs and dances, and then enter the chapel. In it, they say ancient prayers in Arabic, in which they turn to Christ and the Mother of God. This condition is also required for the appearance of fire.
“There is no evidence of the first performance of this ritual. The Arabs ask the Mother of God to beg the Son to send Fire to George the Victorious, who is especially revered in the Orthodox East. They literally shout out that they are the most eastern, the most Orthodox, living where the sun rises, bringing candles with them to kindle the Fire. According to oral tradition, 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, but to no avail. Then the Patriarch ordered his will to let the Arab youth. After they performed the ritual, the Fire descended"
Were attempts to find a scientific explanation for the Holy Fire successful?
It is impossible to say that the skeptics managed to defeat the believers. Among the many theories that have physical, chemical and even alien justification, only one deserves attention. In 2008, physicist Andrey Volkov managed to get into Kuvuklia with special equipment. There he was able to make the appropriate measurements, but their results were not in favor of science!
“A few minutes before the removal of the Holy Fire from Kuvuklia, a device that fixes the spectrum of electromagnetic radiation detected a strange long-wave impulse in the temple, which no longer manifested itself. I do not want to refute or prove anything, but such is the scientific result of the experiment. There was an electric discharge - either lightning struck, or something like a piezo lighter turned on for a moment.
Physicist about blessed fire
The physicist himself did not set the goal of his research to expose the shrine. He was interested in the very process of convergence of fire: the appearance of flashes on the walls and on the lid of the Holy Sepulcher.
“So, it is quite likely that the appearance of Fire is preceded by an electrical discharge, and we, by measuring the electromagnetic spectrum in the temple, tried to catch it.”
This is how Andrei comments on what happened. It turns out that to unravel the mystery of the sacred Holy Fire is beyond the power of modern technology ...
In the wake of the conversation in the blog topic, I decided to look for some information from different sources, what do they promise if blessed fire won't come down?
First, about the origin of the event.
“There are also references to the descent of heavenly fire in old testament. There are described several cases when the Lord sent fire from heaven as a sign that the sacrifice was pleasing to him, that he accepts 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 from the 4th century. Although there are more early references. According to the testimony of the Apostles and Holy Fathers, the uncreated Light illuminated the Holy Sepulcher shortly after the Resurrection of Christ. This was seen by one of the apostles - Peter. However, no specific date can be given. One can only say that the Fire began to descend from the time of the first Christians, and this is more than two thousand years ago.
By this miracle, the Lord, as it were, confirms the benevolence, the 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 of the fact that life will continue, that God has blessed humanity. ”
There were three cases of non-convergence of fire.
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In 1101 in Great Saturday the miracle of the descent of the Holy Fire in Kuvuklia did not take place until Eastern Christians were invited to participate in this rite. Then King Baldwin I took care of the return of local Christians of their rights.
- On Holy Saturday 1579 Orthodox Patriarch Sophronius IV with the clergy was not allowed into the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. They stood in front of the closed doors of the Temple from the outside. The Armenian clergy entered Kuvukliya and began to pray to the Lord for the descent of Fire. But their prayers were not answered.
Standing at the closed doors of the Temple Orthodox priests 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 Jerusalem Patriarch. With great joy, the Orthodox priesthood entered the Temple and glorified the Lord. Traces of the convergence 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 2,000 years, the obligatory participants in the sacrament of the descent of the Holy Fire are the abbot, the monks of the Lavra of St. Savva the Sanctified, and local Orthodox Arabs.
On Great Saturday, half an hour after the sealing of Kuvukliya, Arab Orthodox youth, shouting, stomping, drumming, sitting on top of each other, breaks into the Temple and starts singing and dancing. There is no evidence of the time when this ritual was established. The cries and songs of Arab youth are ancient prayers in Arabic, addressed to Christ and Mother of God Who is asked to beg the Son to send down Fire, to George the Victorious, especially revered in the Orthodox East.
According to oral tradition, 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 come down. Then the Patriarch ordered his will to let the Arab youth. After they performed the ritual, the Fire descended ...
So what will happen if the Holy Fire does not come down? There are many legends and beliefs about what will happen if the Holy Fire does not come down.
Christian tradition says that when the Holy Light does not appear in Kuvuklia, the end of the world will come.
The fire did not go down (higher than the testimony), and the prophecy was not fulfilled, why?
It turns out that one non-convergence of fire 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 5,000-year-old Oak of Mamre will dry up (where Abraham met the Holy Trinity).
3. The Holy Fire will not descend.
By the Ark
. Presumably on Mount Ararat in Turkey, traces of it were found. 
Mamvrian oak
. Judging by the photos, it's dried up. Although they write that there is something green from the root, but there are no close phots, which leaves are not visible, but it does not look like an oak.
About oak.
Mamri, or, in Russian religious tradition Mamvrian oak (aka Abraham's Oak, aka Palestine oak, aka Russian oak (because it belongs to the Orthodox Russian mission), he is the oak forest of Mamre.), is considered ancient tree under which, according to the Bible, Abraham accepted God: The Lord appeared to him at the oaks of Mamre, when he was sitting at the entrance to the tent, during the heat of the day"(Genesis 18:1). The oak of Mamre 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 the so-called. physical phenomena. And I think that “physics” is secondary. Yes, and allegories are quite a place to be here.
I remembered the legend of 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 judge sublimely and say - internal, spiritual, the light of reason, insights. Quite acceptable. Moreover, he stole it from the Gods.
One can think pragmatically and say that yes, he gave the fire, but not the fire itself, but gave the secret of its extraction. But what? I don't think he taught people how to use handy objects to knock out a spark. And if you remember that fire divine, then most likely it was about some kind of magical action that “pierces the veil” and slightly nourishes the souls from the inside with light divine Mind, but as proof that the action took place, in the space of accomplishment magical rite the physical fire was concentrated and descended (manifested), which immediately upon its manifestation was a little bit different, but “cold”…
So ... What kind of rite is this magical? Question of questions. Most likely the Messenger gave people the Word (spell, sound, “vibration”), resonating with other conditions. Only the fulfillment of the rite in all its subtleties and within a certain period of the space-time corridor could count on success.
Now about “what will happen if the Holy Fire does not come down”.
All IMHO. Since this fire is the Light of the divine mind, bestowed on people for salvation, then its non-descent will not entail cataclysms and global collapse, but it will be exactly the fact that people, having lost their annual “feed”, will begin to degrade mentally, and on the rise. And this will already lead to serious consequences, because “ the sleep of reason will breed monsters“… wars, strife, greed and other negative aspects… And yes… there will be something else, as it was said: “ to everyone who has, it will be given and multiplied, but from the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken away.
"(Mt.25:29) - this is a speech about the Spirit (mind). Therefore, there will be a gathering and a harvest ... of the Spirit.
But the body is not affected... humanity will live the same as it used to live, eat, drink and enjoy. What will be the effect of degradation? Yes, on the fact that there will be a replacement of values, there will be a severe moral and ethical decline, disbelief and darkness in the souls, etc...
Every year, the ceremony of the convergence of the Holy Fire takes place at the Holy Sepulcher in a temple located in Jerusalem - the only city in the world that is the center of the confluence of the three most common world religions. The process of the direct appearance of the Sacred Fire takes place in Kuvuklia (a small chapel), finished with pink-yellow marble. The entrance to Kuvukliya is through double wooden doors. It is the domed chapel - the birthplace of the Holy Light.
The Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem is the holy place where Jesus rested, after which his Resurrection took place. The appearance of the Sacred Fire shortly after the Resurrection of Jesus is a symbol of the remission of sins, victory over evil and darkness. Unfortunately, not everyone will be able to get to the ceremony to see this miracle with their own eyes. The temple and the area adjacent to it can accommodate a limited number of people. But everyone can become an eyewitness of the Descent of Fire, because the ceremony of the Descent of the Holy Fire from Jerusalem is broadcast online around the world. You can watch the action on television and on the Internet.
Catholics, Protestants, Syrians, copras and other Gentiles accept the Descent of Fire with great reverence and humility. During the ceremony, a spirit of submission is displayed on their faces. So they pay tribute and respect Orthodox faith in the face of the Patriarch. Before receiving the Holy Fire from the hands of the Patriarch, the Gentiles kneel before him and kiss the finger on his right hand. Even in Islam, watching the Descent of the Holy Fire is not considered a sin, so many Muslims go to Jerusalem to take part in the ceremony.
Preparation for the Descent of the Holy Fire
A few hours before the ceremony, a cordon is set up on the territory adjacent to the Temple. People who come to the ceremony are searched by the police for prohibited items. Journalists who have gathered near the Temple to report on the Christian miracle are also being searched. The patriarch and other clergy are also inspected, checking clothes and ceremonial paraphernalia. All the premises of the temple and the areas adjacent to it are carefully searched. The focus is on the search for explosives. After all, a large crowd of people, especially during the day religious holiday, always carries the risk of terrorist attacks and riots.
The domed chapel with the Holy Sepulcher is subjected to special inspection. After the inspection by the police, the doors of the chapel are locked and sealed by representatives of the city hall. The key used to close and open the doors of the domed chapel has been in one of the Arab families throughout the entire time. The head of this family was once appointed the guardian of this shrine. The duties of this person include ensuring the safety of the key and issuing it to the Patriarch once a year for the ceremony.
How is the ceremony of the Descent of the Holy Fire
A solemn and silent atmosphere reigns in the Temple. First, young people enter the chapel, on whose shoulders the same young people sit. They are the first to be instructed to ask Fire for the Descent into Kuvuklia. Then the Patriarch and the clergy, dressed in bright festive clothes, make a procession, three times bypassing the chapel with the Holy Sepulcher. The Patriarch enters the Temple, reciting a special prayer and being in one cassock. In his right hand he holds a lamp with oil, in the other - 33 candles, personifying the age of the crucified and risen Christ. It is in the lamp that the Holy Fire should arise.
A lamp with oil is installed in the center of the Temple, and a special cotton wool with ribbons is laid out around it. When exactly the Holy Fire will appear, no one knows. Sometimes it takes half an hour, and in some cases the Fire descends only after 2-3 hours of prayer. But people are ready to wait for a miracle for hours.
The waiting itself takes place in complete silence. At the same time, all sources of electric lighting are extinguished in the temple. The beginning of the Descent of the Sacred Fire is marked by the appearance of sparkling discharges that can be observed in different parts of Kuvuklia. After that, the discharges reach the icon lamp installed in the center of the Temple and light it. Tradition forbids lighting candles from the lampada until the Patriarch leaves the domed chapel. When His Holiness leaves Kuvuklia, pilgrims can set fire to their candles from the Holy Fire. Anyone who wishes to take a handful of Divine Light with them can freely do so. Thus, billions of particles of the Holy Fire scatter to the most remote corners of our planet.
To the territory Russian Federation The Holy Fire in 2017 will be delivered by a special delegation headed by Vladimir Yakunin. The Holy Fire will be delivered to Russia on April 15, for the Patriarch's Easter service at the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. He will be brought on a special flight and handed over to Patriarch Kirill.
During the first minutes after the Descent, the Fire does not burn the skin when touched, but, on the contrary, gently envelops, renews, and heals. During the silent expectation and the very process of the Descent of Fire, people more than once observed accompanying amazing phenomena. For example, on one Great Saturday in the clear sky for several minutes thunder was heard and lightning flashed, and inside the Temple people felt how their faces were covered with small raindrops. Christians believe that the descended Fire is endowed with unearthly power and is able to work real miracles: to give strength, to get rid of troubles and illnesses.
There are cases when, after the Descent of Fire, the blind began to see, the deaf began to hear, and the gift of speech returned to the dumb. Many people who attended the ceremony in the Jerusalem Temple were cured of severe chronic ailments.
What will happen if the Holy Fire does not come down?
Orthodox Christians are sure that if the Fire does not descend, then the current year will be the last in the life of all people living on Earth. In other words, the end of the world will come. Experts refute this version, because in history there were cases when the fire did not go down, for example, in 1579 and 1101. The descent of the Holy Fire is the personification of the fact that people will be protected all year round Higher Forces. Due to the fact that the Fire that descended on Great Saturday is Divine, its absence cannot entail the onset of world cataclysms and, as a result, the end of the existence of mankind. Knowledgeable people say that if the Fire does not come down, society will begin to degrade mentally, which will lead to serious negative consequences. For the scripture says that it is the sleep of a stifled mind that can give rise to monsters. This means that world upheavals, wars, revolutions, uprisings, strife will begin. The earth will be dominated by greed, anger and violence. Not in vain in scripture it is also said that everyone who has will be rewarded and multiplied a hundredfold, and those who do not have will be taken away from more than they have.
For over 2000 years Sacred fire descends to Earth, as if recalling the death and resurrection of Christ. The Holy Fire is the Light Divine Mind, which is bestowed upon humanity for salvation. Many believers call this miracle the Lord's sign sent directly from Heaven.
