When can you take the Holy Fire from the temple? Holy Fire - revelation

The Holy Fire, or Holy Light (Greek: Ἅγιο Φῶς), is the fire taken out of the Holy Sepulcher at a special service held annually on Holy Saturday, on the eve of Orthodox Easter in the Church of the Resurrection of Christ in Jerusalem. The removal of the Holy Light symbolizes the exit from the Tomb of the True Light, that is, the risen Jesus Christ.

Many Orthodox believers believe that the Holy Fire appears supernaturally. The first written eyewitness accounts of the appearance of the Holy Light in the Tomb miraculously date back to the 9th century...

And now the revelation...

Learn chemistry... :)

Initially, the ceremony dedicated to the so-called. The Holy Fire was celebrated at night from Saturday to Sunday. Constant fights between believers forced the Muslim authorities in Jerusalem to move the divine miracle from night time to day time. Prof. AA Dmitrievsky, referring to prof. AA Olesnitsky writes: “Once upon a time, the festival of fire at the Holy Sepulcher was connected directly with Easter Matins, but due to some disturbances that occurred during this celebration, at the request of the local authorities, it was moved to the previous day” (*_*).
In ancient times, the first whistleblowers (devout Muslims) did not particularly bother themselves with serious research work. They believed that fire appears with the help of a special device filled with compounds for spontaneous combustion.
This is how the 12th century historian Ibn al-Kalanisi described this technology: “When they are there on Easter... they hang lamps in the altar and arrange a trick so that the fire reaches them through the oil of balsam wood and devices made from it, and its property is the appearance of fire when combined with jasmine oil. It has a bright light and brilliant shine. They manage to pass a stretched iron wire like a thread between neighboring lamps, running continuously from one to another, and rub it with balsam oil, hiding it from view, until the thread passes to all the lamps” (*_*).

According to Islamic writers, there is an agreement between Muslim authorities and priests on mutually beneficial cooperation and fair distribution of funds received from donations from pilgrims. So al-Jaubari (d. 1242) writes: “Al-Melik al-Mu'azzam, the son of al-Melik al-Adil entered the Church of the Resurrection on the day of the Sabbath of Light and said to the monk (attached) to it: “I will not leave until I see this light go away." The monk said to him: “Which is more pleasing to the king: this wealth that flows to you in this way, or familiarity with this (business)? If I reveal its secret to you, then the government will lose this money; leave it hidden and receive this great wealth.” . When the ruler heard this, he understood the hidden essence of the matter and left him in his previous position” (*_*).

The income from the miracle is really big, prof. Dmitrievsky writes: “...Palestine feeds almost exclusively on the gifts that are brought to it by the admirers of the holy tomb from Europe. Thus, the Feast of the Holy Sepulcher is a holiday of happiness and prosperity of the country” (*_*). Muslims even thought of charging an entrance fee to an Orthodox church, a truly unique case. By the way, tickets are still being sold, only the profit goes to the Israeli treasury (*_*).
Around the 13th century, the ceremony of finding BO underwent an important change; if earlier fire was expected outside the Edicule and its appearance was judged by the white flash of light coming out from there, then after the 13th century they began to enter inside the Edicule to find fire. All past revelations talking about a special mechanism have lost their relevance. However, after such a change, the priests were very quickly caught in the act by a meticulous Muslim researcher (Ibn al-Jawzi (d. 1256)), who decided to independently find out how fire appears: “I lived in Jerusalem for ten years and went to the Temple of the Resurrection on their Easter and other days. I researched how the lamp is lit on Sunday - the festival of light. (...) When the sun sets and it becomes dark, one of the priests takes advantage of his inattention, opens a niche in the corner of the chapel, where no one can see him, lights his candle from one of the lamps and exclaims: “The light has come and Christ has had mercy.”. . "(*_*).

In other words, the fire is lit from a lamp hidden in a niche behind the icon. Naturally, such a trifle did not touch the greedy hearts of the local rulers, and this revelation was simply forgotten. The presence of niches behind icons is no longer a secret; they can even be seen in photographs of pilgrims posing against the backdrop of the slab of the Holy Sepulcher.

In principle, with some exceptions, Muslims did not doubt the fraud in connection with BO; only greed and other vices, the required funding, allowed them to calmly coexist with their religious competitors. In rare cases, when fanaticism and pure faith prevailed, the Muslims did not bother themselves with revelations, but simply destroyed the temple on the basis of suspicion alone, which, as we know among fanatics, is the queen of evidence (*_*).

The next exposer of the BO fraud was Polotsk Archbishop Melety Smotrytsky. His tossing soul tried to try on Catholics and Orthodox, which led him to the union. The devil pulled him to visit Jerusalem and join in the mystery of the appearance of the Holy Fire to strengthen the Orthodox faith. He wrote to his former teacher, Patriarch of Constantinople Cyril Lucaris in 1627: “Your Eminence, probably remember that I once asked you why your predecessor Meletius wrote against the new Roman calendar and tried to prove the superiority of the old before the new one, cites various miracles to confirm his opinion, not excluding those that are no longer repeated, but does not mention at all about this famous, annual miracle in Jerusalem. Did your Eminence answer this question to me in the presence of two of your household? dignitaries, protosyncellus Hieromonk Leontius and archdeacon Patriarch of Alexandria, that if this miracle had really happened in our time, then all the Turks would have believed in Jesus Christ long ago.

The Patriarch of Jerusalem, the same one who takes this fire, takes it out and distributes it to the people, spoke even more harshly about this. Thus, it is sad to say that our Orthodox co-religionists, regarding this miraculous fire, which once really appeared, but now, for our sins, has ceased to appear, prefer to be at one with the heretics, such as the Eutychians, Dioscorites and Jacobites, rather than with the Catholics, who are the miracle of this They are not allowed for very respectful reasons, especially when they see what the Abyssinian heretics are doing at the tomb at that time. This is what worries me, these are the four worms that, having sunk into my soul during my stay in the East, still do not stop sharpening and gnawing at it"(*_*).
Throughout all the centuries of the existence of the miracle of BO, Christians could not calmly perform this ritual without hurting each other’s faces. This shame is even recorded in Mark Twain’s book, “Innocents Abroad”: “Every Christian sect (with the exception of Protestants) under the roof of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher has its own special chapels, and no one dares to cross the boundaries of other people’s possessions. It has long been and definitively proven that Christians are not able to pray peacefully all together at the tomb of the Savior" (*_*).

Not only ordinary priests fight, but also the Greek patriarch and the Armenian archimandrite who entered the Edicule to wait for the fire (). Because of this, the Israeli authorities decided that at the moment of the fire, an Israeli policeman must be present in the Edicule to maintain order; in one of the videos, it is seen how the policeman first enters the Edicule, then the Greek patriarch, and then the Armenian archimandrite ( Video, 1.20-1.28). In a word, they were outrageous.

It was the outrages in the temple that caused the loudest revelation of the Holy Fire.
In 1834, a fight in the temple escalated into a brutal massacre, in which the Turkish army had to intervene. About 300 pilgrims died (*_*). The English traveler left memories of a conversation with the local chief Ibrahim Pasha, which describes the ruler’s determination to publicly expose this deception, but also his fear that this action could be perceived as oppression of Christians in the holy land (*_*)
We learn about the actions taken by Ibrahim Pasha after 15 years from the diaries of a prominent scientist and leader of the Orthodox Church, founder of the Russian Orthodox Mission in Jerusalem, Bishop Porfiry (Uspensky). Porfiry kept a diary, where he recorded his impressions of events of historical scale, thoughts on abstract topics, descriptions of monuments and various little things. They were published in 8 volumes by the Imperial Academy of Sciences at the expense of the Imperial Orthodox Palestine Society under the editorship of P. A. Syrku after the death of Uspensky, the third volume was published in 1896. Here's the exact quote:

“In that year, when the famous lord of Syria and Palestine Ibrahim, Pasha of Egypt, was in Jerusalem, it turned out that the fire received from the Holy Sepulcher on Holy Saturday is not a blessed fire, but a kindled one, just as any fire is kindled. This Pasha decided to make sure whether the fire really suddenly and miraculously appeared on the lid of the Tomb of Christ or was lit by a sulfur match. What did he do? He announced to the patriarch’s governors that he wanted to sit in the edicule itself while receiving the fire and vigilantly watch how he appears, and added that in case of truth they would be given 5,000 pungs (2,500,000 piastres), and in case of lies, let them give him everything money collected from deceived fans, and that he will publish in all the newspapers of Europe about the vile forgery. The governors of Petro-Arabia, Misail, and Metropolitan Daniel of Nazareth, and Bishop Dionysius of Philadelphia (currently of Bethlehem) came together to consult what to do. During the minutes of deliberation, Misail admitted that he was lighting a fire in a cuvuklia from a lamp hidden behind a moving marble icon of the Resurrection of Christ, which is near the Holy Sepulcher. After this confession, it was decided to humbly ask Ibrahim not to interfere in religious affairs and a dragoman of the Holy Sepulcher monastery was sent to him, who pointed out to him that there was no benefit for his lordship to reveal the secrets of Christian worship and that the Russian Emperor Nicholas would be very dissatisfied with the discovery of these secrets. Ibrahim Pasha, having heard this, waved his hand and fell silent. But from that time on, the Holy Sepulcher clergy no longer believed in the miraculous appearance of fire. Having told all this, the Metropolitan said that God alone is expected to stop (our) pious lies. As he knows and can, he will calm the peoples who now believe in the fiery miracle of the Great Saturday. But we cannot even begin this revolution in minds; we will be torn to pieces right at the chapel of the Holy Sepulchre. “We,” he continued, “notified Patriarch Athanasius, who was then living in Constantinople, about Ibrahim Pasha’s harassment, but in our message to him we wrote instead of “holy light,” “sanctified fire.” Surprised by this change, the most blessed elder asked us: “Why did you start calling the holy fire differently?” We revealed to him the real truth, but added that the fire lit on the Holy Sepulcher from a hidden lamp is still sacred fire, received from a sacred place” (*_*).

In this post, it is important to pay attention to the following points:
1. The recognition was made in a close circle of the highest hierarchs of the Orthodox Church.
2. A direct participant in the events told Uspensky what happened. An eyewitness to the confession of forgery.
3. Ibrahim was threatened with aggravation of relations with Russia. Let me note that the Crimean War showed how dangerous it is for the authorities to interfere in the religious life of the Orthodox Church in the Holy Land.
4. “But from that time on, the Holy Sepulchre clergy no longer believed in the miraculous appearance of fire.” This means that the result of the recognition was the loss of faith in the miracle of the Holy Sepulcher clergy. Bishop Porfiry himself has already witnessed this.
After 500 years, nothing has changed. The same lamp behind the icon.
Several decades later, doubt spread beyond Palestine, as the famous orientalist I. Yu. Krachkovsky writes in 1914:
“The best representatives of theological thought in the East also notice the interpretation of the miracle that Prof. allows. A. Olesnitsky and A. Dmitrievsky talk about “the triumph of the consecration of fire at the Holy Sepulcher”” (*_*).

The most complete Orthodox criticism of BO was revealed by an outstanding figure of the Orthodox Church, professor of the Leningrad Theological Academy ND Uspensky (a student of Dmitrievsky AA) and reported at a church meeting in an assembly speech on October 9, 1949. Having analyzed ancient evidence, Uspensky comes to the following conclusion:
“Your Eminence, Your Eminence, dear colleagues and dear guests! (...) We can agree with the explanation of Metropolitan Dionysius of Bethlehem, “that the fire lit on the Holy Sepulcher from a hidden lamp is still sacred fire, received from a sacred place,” and add our own to these words of the Vicar of the Patriarch of Jerusalem “that for us this fire is, was and will be sacred also because it preserves the ancient Christian and universal tradition” ().
A former professor at the Leningrad Theological Academy, who broke with religion and became one of the most prominent atheists and critics of religion, A. A. Osipov, left notes on the reaction to this report by the leadership of the Russian Orthodox Church.
“Having studied ancient manuscripts and texts, books and testimonies of pilgrims,” writes A. A. Osipov about Uspensky, “he proved with exhaustive accuracy that there was never any “miracle”, but there was and is an ancient symbolic rite of burning over the coffin by the clergy themselves Lamps. (...) And as a result of this whole matter, the now deceased Metropolitan of Leningrad Gregory, also a man with a theological degree, gathered a number of theologians of Leningrad and told them (many of my former colleagues probably remember): “I also know that this is only a legend ! What... (here he named the author of the speech and research by name) is absolutely right! But don’t touch the pious legends, otherwise faith itself will fall! ”(*_*).

Before continuing with further revelations, I want to describe the sequence of actions during the ceremony.

They examine the Edicule (two priests and a representative of the authorities).

The entrance doors of Edicule are sealed with a large wax seal.

The keeper of the coffin appears and brings a large lamp, covered with a cap, inside the coffin. The seal is removed in front of him and he goes inside Kuklii, and after a few minutes he comes out.

A solemn procession appears, led by the Greek patriarch, and circles the Edicule three times. The patriarch is stripped of his robes of patriarchal dignity and he, together with the Armenian archimandrite (and the Israeli policeman) enters the Edicule.

After 5-10 minutes, the Greek patriarch and the Armenian archimandrite come out with fire (before this they managed to distribute fire through the windows of the Edicule).

So, after the search and before entering the Edicule of the Patriarch, a priest comes in with a lamp (perhaps the same one that is unquenchable) and places it on the coffin (or in a niche behind the icon), which is uncertain.

As I already noted, the Armenian archimandrite enters the Edicule. Although in his recent interview this Armenian church leader did not directly talk about the forgery, he noted an important fact.
“Tell me, how do you pray? Is this a special prayer according to a prayer book, or an impromptu prayer, the one that comes from the soul? How does the Greek Patriarch pray?
- Yes, the prayer is read according to the prayer book. But, in addition to the prayers from the prayer book, I also offer my heartfelt prayer. At the same time, we have a special prayer for this day, which I recite by heart. The Greek patriarch reads his prayer from a book, this is also a special prayer for the Ceremony of Light.
- But how do you read prayers from a prayer book if it’s dark there?
- Yes. It’s not easy to read because of the darkness” ().
Indeed, it is impossible to read without light; there must be a source.
To correctly understand this hint, you can turn to the information disseminated by another priest of the Armenian Church, the abbot of the Monastery of the Holy Archangels (AAC) Hieromonk Ghevond Hovhannisyan, who attended the ceremony of consecrating the fire for 12 years, and is personally acquainted with the priests of the Armenian Apostolic Church entering inside the Edicule for consecration of the fire together with the Greek patriarch. He writes:
“By one o’clock in the afternoon the doors of the Coffin are sealed with wax. Where there are 2 clergymen: an Armenian and a Greek. By two o'clock, the doors are torn off and the Greeks bring in a closed (lit) Lamp and place it on the Tomb. After which the procession of the Greeks around the Tomb begins, on the 3rd circle the Armenian archimandrite joins them and together they move towards the doors. The Greek patriarch enters first, followed by the Armenian. And both enter the Tomb, where both kneel down and pray together. After the first, the Greek lights the candle from the lit lamp, and then the Armenian. Both go and serve candles to the people through the holes, the Greek comes out of the coffin first, and after him the Armenian, who is carried in his arms to our abbot" (). You can chat with Ghevond in his LiveJournal.
It remains to be stated that the Armenian church, although a direct participant in the ceremony, does not support the belief in the miraculous appearance of fire.
The words of Patriarch Theophilus about the Holy Fire are interesting:
“Patriarch Theophilus of Jerusalem: This is a very ancient, very special and unique ceremony Jerusalem Church. This ceremony of the Holy Fire takes place only here in Jerusalem. And this happens thanks to the very Tomb of our Lord Jesus Christ. As you know, this Holy Fire ceremony is, so to speak, an enactment that represents the first good news, the first resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. This representation- like all sacred ceremonies. It's like our burial ceremony on Good Friday, isn't it? How we bury the Lord, etc.
So, this ceremony is taking place in a holy place, and all the other Eastern Churches that share the Holy Sepulcher would like to take part in this. People like Armenians, Copts, Syrians come to us and receive our blessing, because they want to receive the Fire from the Patriarch.
Now, the second part of your question is actually about us. This is an experience, which, if you like, is similar to the experience that a person experiences when he receives Holy Communion. What happens there also applies to the Holy Fire ceremony. This means that a certain experience cannot be explained or expressed in words. Therefore, everyone who takes part in this ceremony - priests or laymen, or laywomen - each has their own indescribable experience.”
Protodeacon A. Kuraev commented on his words:
“His answer about the Holy Fire was no less frank: “This is a ceremony that is a representation, like all other ceremonies of Holy Week. Just as the Easter message from the Tomb once shone and illuminated the whole world, so now in this ceremony we perform a representation of how the news of the Resurrection from Kuvukpia spread throughout the world.” There was neither the word “miracle”, nor the word “convergence”, nor the words “Holy Fire” in his speech. He probably couldn’t have said more frankly about the lighter in his pocket” (). A real political struggle unfolded around these words of the patriarch, including a new “interview” with Theophilus, where he, using quotes from articles by Russian apologists of the Holy Fire, confirms the miraculous nature of fire. Kuraev declared this material to be fake. Details of this story have been collected.

By the way, during the gift between the Armenian priest and the Greek patriarch inside the Edicule, the Armenian’s candles were extinguished and he had to light them with a lighter (*_*). So rumors that the Armenians will not be able to get fire on their own are baseless.

Indirect evidence of the kindling of fire from the already burning lamp is the text of the patriarch’s prayer, which he reads inside the Edicule. This text is discussed in the article “The Myth and Reality of the Holy Fire” by Protopresbyter George Tsetsis:
“..The prayer that the patriarch offers before lighting the Holy Edicule is completely clear and does not allow for any misinterpretation.
The Patriarch does not pray for a miracle to happen.
He only “remembers” the sacrifice and three-day resurrection of Christ and, turning to Him, says: “Having reverently accepted this kindled (*******) fire on Your luminous Tomb, we distribute the true light to those who believe, and we pray to You, You showed him the gift of sanctification."
The following happens: the patriarch lights his candle from the unquenchable lamp, which is located on the Holy Sepulchre. Just like every patriarch and every cleric on the day of Easter, when he receives the light of Christ from the unquenchable lamp, which is on the holy throne, symbolizing the Holy Sepulcher” (*_*).

Wonderful flashes, non-burning fire, spontaneous combustion of candles.
Thanks to cinema, we can see everything that happens with our own eyes. Unlike pilgrims, who are in a crowd and find it difficult to distinguish anything, we will be shown everything from the most advantageous positions, we can re-watch interesting moments, and even in slow motion. I have at my disposal 7 recordings of video broadcasts, two Orthodox films of not very good quality and a high-quality secular film about the Holy Fire. That is, 10 films about 9 ceremonies. At various forums where I participated in discussions about the Holy Fire, I asked for video materials proving the miraculous spontaneous combustion of candles or the non-burning properties of fire. No one has ever managed to do this.

Unburning Fire.

Pilgrims write in their testimonies that the fire does not burn for a period of time, which lasts from 5 minutes to several months. You can find evidence in which pilgrims tell how the Holy Fire brought to Moscow (their temple) still did not burn, or how they washed themselves with the Holy Fire when visiting Jerusalem in winter. Mostly they write about not burning the Holy Fire during the first 5 – 10 minutes. A huge number of videos watched of pilgrims washing themselves with fire show that they simply move their hands through the fire, scoop fire with their hands, or move fire in front of their face and beard. The same thing is easy to repeat using a burning bunch of candles with regular fire (as I do). By the way, the wicks of the Holy Fire candles are lit quite easily, which would be strange if the fire were warm.

LiveJournal user Andronic (andronic) wrote about an interesting experiment @ 2007-04-08 07:40:00:
“Yesterday, on the daily news on NTV, a few minutes after the descent of the Holy Fire, Evgeniy Sandro, live, slowly moved his hand in the candle flame and confirmed that it practically does not burn. I became interested, and at midnight, when my wife, at the start of the procession of the Cross (where I went with her “for company”), lit a Jerusalem thirty-three candle bundle in front of the church, I also put my hand into the fire, and slowly stirred it there too. Although this flame was not lit from the Holy Fire, the hand did not immediately become hot. I repeated Sandro’s trick a couple more times, and was so carried away that I did not notice how my actions attracted the attention of those around me who came to the Easter procession. The believers ran up, began to light their candles from our thirty-three candlestick, joyfully thrust their hands into its flame and shouted “It doesn’t burn!” It doesn’t burn!” Some tried to “catch” the fire, like water, with their hands folded into a “ladle” and wash themselves with it. The influx of people wishing to take part in the miracle was so great that we could not move and the procession left without us. Thus, I unwittingly became the culprit of an outbreak of religious enthusiasm. It is curious that the “affection” of fire towards those who partake of it depended in a rather amusing way on the degree of faith. Those who doubted it cautiously brought their palms to the upper tip of the flame and fearfully pulled it back. The enthusiastic ones (like me before) boldly put their hands directly into the center of the flame, where the temperature of the fire is significantly lower, and did not get burned. As a result, everyone received it according to faith”().

Of all that I have seen, and this is about a hundred washings with the Holy Fire, I can repeat all the washings with fire, except one. In only one video, the pilgrim held his hand over the Holy Fire for a full 2.2 seconds, which is difficult to repeat without getting burned. My record is 1.6 seconds.
Two explanations for this case can be put forward: firstly, religious ecstasy allows one to reduce pain sensitivity. Many have seen how people in a state of religious stupefaction beat themselves with iron-tipped whips, crucify their bodies and commit many other disgusting acts, while their faces are illuminated by grace. Hence the pilgrims do not feel the burning properties of the fire. The second explanation is a draft in the temple. Thanks to the wind, the flame is deflected and an air cushion is created between the hand and the fire; if you “catch the wind,” you can simulate holding your hand over the fire for 3 seconds.
I spoke with many pilgrims who attended the ceremony and not all of them testify to the burning flame:

Hieromonk Flavian (Matveev):
“Unfortunately, it sets fire. In 2004, an acquaintance of mine, literally five minutes after receiving the fire of the flame (we didn’t even leave the temple), tried to “wash ourselves with fire.” The beard seemed to be small, but it began to flare up noticeably. I had to shout at him to put it out. I had a video camera in my hands, so this sad incident remained documented. (...) He himself took an example from others, held his hand over the fire. Fire like fire. It burns!” (The post was deleted from the forum).

Solovyov Igor, Orthodox Christian (novice):
“I don’t know how much time passed since the Holy Fire descended, but when the fire reached me and I tried whether it burned or not, I singed the hair on my arm and felt a burning sensation. (...) In my opinion, the burning sensation was normal. From our group, some people were quite close to the Holy Sepulcher, but none of them said that fire does not burn” ().

Alexander Gagin, Orthodox Christian:
“When the fire went down and it was handed over to us (a few minutes later), it burned as usual, I didn’t notice anything special, I didn’t see any men putting their beards into the fire for a long time” ().

In the article “In Defense of the Holy Fire,” Y. Maksimov writes:
“If we look at least at the video footage posted online, we will see, for example, that in one case a pilgrim holds his hand in the flame from a whole bunch of candles for three seconds, in the second case another pilgrim holds his hand over the flame for five seconds, but the third shot where another elderly pilgrim holds his hand in the flame for five seconds" ().

However, in the video offered in the text of the article, people just pass their hands through the fire, but do not hold parts of their body over the fire for 2 or 3 or 5 seconds. At the Orthodox forum of A. Kuraev, this point was raised in a topic with the same article title, and an Orthodox Christian was the first to draw attention to this discrepancy when he bothered to check Maksimov’s words (). It’s amazing how an Orthodox apologist can present video fragments that do not correspond to the caption in the article, and this can be easily found out by just watching the video. Why do people so easily accept words without checking?

Wonderful flashes.
There are dozens of journalists with special equipment for taking photographs in darkened rooms and hundreds of amateur photographers in the temple. That's why there are a lot of flashbulbs there. Typically, on a high-quality video, the flash trail is 1–2 frames long and has a white or slightly bluish color. On 5 well-made live broadcasts, and in a secular film, all the flashes of light are exactly like that. On video of poorer quality, color may vary depending on defects in video setup, development quality and video processing features. As a result, flashes in different videos will appear different colors. The worse the quality of the video, the more varied in time and color the flash can be displayed on it. It is interesting that the criteria put forward by apologists for distinguishing a flash from a photographic flash fit into the possibilities of the “trace” of a regular photographic flash on videos of different quality. Hence the impossibility, using the criteria of apologists, to distinguish a miraculous flash from a flash trace by color, especially after video processing. Thus, it is difficult to refute or prove the presence of flashes based on video.

What do the evidence left behind in the years when there were no cameras give?
It is especially interesting to compare the testimonies of modern pilgrims and the testimonies of pilgrims of 1800 - 1900, written down in a language understandable to contemporaries and quite detailed. There is nothing in these testimonies about flashes of light in the temple during the ceremony. And for some reason the whistleblowers don’t try to explain them at all, as if they don’t know about them, but only talk about the deception of lighting the fire in the Edicule. Although such flashes would be an even greater miracle.
Apologists for the miracle were able to find evidence that seemed to confirm the flashes, for example, pilgrims until the 13th century said that the ignition of a fire was accompanied by a bright white flash. The single flash at the moment the fire appeared is explained by the peculiarity of the ceremony of that time - they did not enter the Edicule and the ignition of the fire inside was accompanied by a bright flash. This is how the 12th century Islamic historian Ibn al-Qalanisi, already quoted here, describes the spontaneous combustion substances used in the ceremony:
“...so that fire can reach them through the oil of balsam tree and devices made from it, and its property is the appearance of fire when combined with jasmine oil, it has a bright light and brilliant radiance.”

"Holy" fire in hands

Cold Fire - Salicylic Acid.

Potatoes + fluoride toothpaste + salt = Holy Fire

Who needs deception with the so-called and why? Holy Fire in Jerusalem

P.S.
The Holy Fire descended on earth in Jerusalem
The miracle of the descent of the Holy Fire took place in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. The Russian delegation with a part of him is preparing to fly to Moscow.
The Russian delegation is already heading to the airport in order to bring the Holy Fire to the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow before the procession...

...And so every year

By tradition, the mission is headed by the Chairman of the Trusteeship Fund of St. Andrew the First-Called, President of Russian Railways Vladimir Yakunin. Together with him, pilgrims will fly to the capital on a special flight to distribute the Holy Fire to all believers.

This year, the St. Andrew the First-Called Foundation, as part of the “Ask Peace for Jerusalem” program, will bring the Holy Fire to Russia for the tenth anniversary.

Every year, Russians fly to Israel on Friday afternoon, and immediately after the fire subsides they go back to Russia.

On Saturday, early in the morning, members of the delegation go to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, so as not to be late for the morning service. During the day, all traffic in the city center is blocked, the entrance to the temple is also closed, since the premises cannot accommodate everyone. 10 thousand pilgrims are waiting for the descent of the fire in the temple itself and hundreds of thousands outside it.

As soon as the fire subsides, the delegates of the Russian mission take a particle of it, place it in a special lamp and practically run to the bus so that they can go to the airport without wasting a minute...

Ostap leaned towards the keyhole, put his hand to his mouth with a pipe and said clearly:- How much is opium for the people?There was silence behind the door.- Dad, you are a vulgar man! - shouted Ostap.

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 order of the Roman Emperor Constantine and his mother Queen Helena on the spot where Christ’s earthly journey was completed) on the eve of the Great Feast of Orthodox Easter.

The descent of the Holy Fire is a 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 the convergence of fire in 1101 and in 1578, when the Turks controlled Jerusalem. All attempts did not lead to results.

The Lord revealed His will to people: the fire did not descend into Kulukvia, in which the Armenian patriarch was intensely praying at that time, but descended on one of the outer columns of the temple, at which the Jerusalem patriarch prayed together with the believers - the column cracked in this place, and this crack can be see now.

After such a phenomenon, the Latins and Armenians were forced to come to an agreement with 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 fire to appear, there is one more condition - local Orthodox Arabs must appear in the Holy Sepulcher Church with songs and dances, offering prayers to the Mother of God and Christ in 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 crowned with success. Believers accept fire as God's highest grace, without questioning its divine nature in the slightest. 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 descent of the Holy Fire.

How to prepare for receiving the Holy Fire

It is not the first millennium that 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 several other conditions.

The first mentions of this phenomenon date back to the 4th century, they are found among church historians.

A vivid description, full of the depth of experienced feelings, is given in his book “I Saw the Holy Fire” by Archimandrite Savva Achilleos, who was the chief novice at the Holy Sepulcher for more than 50 years. 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 the dead silence, I heard some kind of tremulous, subtle rustling. It was like a subtle breath of wind. And immediately after that I saw a blue light that filled the entire internal space of the Life-Giving Tomb.

Oh, what an unforgettable sight it was! I saw how this light was spinning, like a strong whirlwind or storm. And in this Blessed light I clearly saw the face of the Patriarch. Large tears flowed down his cheeks...

... the blue light again came into a state of movement. Then it suddenly became white... Soon the light acquired a rounded shape and stood motionless in the form of a halo above the Patriarch’s head. 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 the Holy Fire, slowly extending his hands to the sky. He barely had time to raise them to the level of his head when suddenly all four bundles lit up in his hands, as if they were brought closer to a blazing furnace. At that same second, the halo of light above his head disappeared. From the joy that overwhelmed me, tears flowed from my eyes...”

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 the Fire begins almost a day before the start of Orthodox Easter. These days, not only Orthodox believers, but also other Christians, Muslims, and atheist tourists rush to visit the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, which can accommodate 10 thousand people. Representatives of the Jewish police are also present here, vigilantly monitoring not only order, but also ensuring that no one brings fire or devices that cause it into the temple.

Then an unlit lamp with oil 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 placed around the perimeter of the bed, and tape is attached to the edges. Everything is done under the strict supervision of the Jewish police and Muslim representatives.

It is important that the phenomenon of the descent of Fire is ensured by the obligatory presence in the temple three groups of participants:

Patriarch of the Orthodox Church of Jerusalem or, with his blessing, one of the bishops of the Jerusalem Patriarchate.
Hegumen and monks of the Lavra of St. Savva the Sanctified .
Local Orthodox Arabs, most often represented by Arab Orthodox youth, making themselves known by loud, unconventional performances of prayers in Arabic .

The festive procession is closed by the Orthodox Patriarch, accompanied by the Armenian Patriarch and clergy, who go around the holiest places of the temple, going around the Kuvuklia (chapel over the Holy Sepulcher) three times.

Then the Patriarch undresses from his vestments, demonstrating the absence of matches and other things that could cause fire, and enters the Edicule.

After which the chapel is closed, the entrance is sealed by a local Muslim key keeper.

From this moment those present are waiting for the Patriarch to emerge with Fire in his hands. Interestingly, the waiting time for convergence is different every year: from several minutes to several hours.

The moment of expectation is one of the most powerful in faith: believers know that if the Fire is not sent from above, the temple will be destroyed. Therefore, parishioners take communion and pray earnestly, asking to be granted the Holy Fire. Prayers and rituals continue until the appearance of the Holy Fire.

How the Holy Fire descends

This is roughly how the atmosphere of waiting for the Holy Fire is described by people present in the temple at different times. The phenomenon of convergence is accompanied by the appearance in the temple of small bright flashes, discharges, flashes here and there...

When filming with a slow-motion camera, the lights are especially clearly visible near the icon located above the Edicule, in the area of the Temple dome, near the windows.

A moment later, the entire temple is illuminated by glare, lightning, and then... the doors of the chapel swing open, the Patriarch appears in his hands with that same Fire sent down from Heaven. At these moments, candles in the hands of individual people spontaneously ignite.

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 doesn’t burn at all, people literally wash themselves with it, scoop it up with their palms, and pour it on themselves. There are no cases of clothing, hair or other items catching fire. The fire temperature is only 40ºС. There are cases and witnesses of healing of illnesses and diseases.

They say that droplets of wax falling from candles, called the Holy Dew, will remain on human clothes forever, even after washing.

And subsequently, lamps throughout Jerusalem are lit from the Holy Fire, although there are cases in areas near the temple of their spontaneous combustion. Fire is delivered by air to Cyprus and Greece, and so on all over the world, including Russia. In areas of the city close to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, candles and lamps in churches light up on their own.

There were fears that the Fire would not go down this year 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 legend, 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 Holy Fire? No way! There is no scientifically proven evidence of this phenomenon. Just as there are no scientific interpretations of all things that happen according to the will of God. We must accept the fact of Fire as a divine essence.

Attempts to somehow explain the nature of this phenomenon are rather revealing in nature, as is usually the case, the desire to convict the Church of insincerity, deception, and concealment of the truth.

But in fact, why does the Fire descend only among Orthodox Christians? Well, there is only one God, are there only different faiths? And why does the day of celebrating Orthodox Easter fall on different dates on the calendar every year, and why does the fire descend 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.

The Holy Fire is a myth

What arguments do skeptics give when 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 Sepulchre:

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 those very flashes and spontaneous combustion of the candles.

But other candles were also lit, which passionate skeptics brought with them to the temple.

Some substances, for example, white phosphorus, have spontaneous combustion. Concentrated sulfuric acid, when combined with manganese, ignites spontaneously, but the flame does not burn. The fire does not burn for some time when ethers burn. But only the first moments.

Divine fire does not burn after a while.

Here's 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 balsam tree and devices made from it, and its property is that fire arises when combined with jasmine oil. Fire has a bright light and a 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 the Earth's magnetic field.

But why here and at this time? 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, the special state of the nervous system in anticipation of a miracle, are able to generate energy flows, which are already abundant in places of pilgrimage.
The Catholic Church does not recognize the miraculous nature of fire.
In 2008, Patriarch Theophilus III of Jerusalem’s interview with Russian journalists caused a lot of noise, in which he brought the phenomenon of the descent of the Holy Fire closer to an ordinary church ceremony, without placing any emphasis on the miracle of the descent.

Scientific experiment confirming the divine essence of Fire

Professor Pavel Florensky in 2008 carried out measurements and recorded three flash-discharges, akin to those that happen during a thunderstorm, and thereby confirmed the special atmosphere during the appearance of Fire, that is, simply its Divine origin.

Literally a year ago, in 2016, Russian physicist, employee of the Kurchatov Institute RRC Andrei Volkov managed to bring equipment with him to the temple for the ceremony of the descent of the Holy Fire and take measurements of the electromagnetic field inside the room. Here's what the physicist himself says:

– During 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, this inexplicable burst of energy can be called a message from God?

– Many believers think so. This is the materialization of a Divine miracle. You can't find another word.

I think there are other attempts to explain the mystery of the phenomenon of the descent of the Holy Fire. But whether God’s plan can be squeezed into mathematical formulas is a question.

Conclusion

After analyzing the facts listed above, everyone will decide for themselves: a miraculous 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.

However, just decades ago people did not believe in special properties , and water on the day of July 7th of Ivan Kupala. Today, the facts that water on these days (nights) changes its structure, becoming “holy water”, are no longer in doubt either among skeptics or science.

And, you see, is it really so important how and where the fire appears on the eve of Orthodox Easter? FAITH in its amazing power and FAITH in general is much more important. Do you remember?:

“All people believe. Some believe that there is a God, others believe that there is no God. Both are not provable!”

Are you drawn to the mysteries of the world? Take a look at the blog section of the same name, read about and other articles in the section.

P.S. After a long time, a reader left this comment. He sheds light on the mystery of the Holy Fire:

The descent of the Holy Fire is the result of the religious power of faith. This mental energy is plasma in nature. Directed at one (one year) time and place causes inflammation.
Directed towards time (2000 years), towards the symbol of the cross, through Jesus Christ, the Christian faith causes the birth of a new Sun.
Since 621, the Islamic faith gives birth to a new young Month with its faith. The symbol is the Kaaba stone.
This is how Universes, planets, comets, meteorites and other space objects are born, over millions and billions of years, to replace those that pass away.
Comets, meteorites and other small cosmic bodies are born by various religious sects, burning in the atmosphere they bring benefits in the form of its purification or replenishment of the mass of the Earth and other planets. This is the diagram. Read more in the books of the author V.G. Grozov. If you didn’t know this, if it’s not in the media, doesn’t mean it can’t happen. Therefore, as the Bible says: “Let cry, and anger, and rage be put away from you.”
Sincerely. Vladimir Bocharov. Sochi, Adler.

The miracle of the descent of the Holy Fire occurs annually in the Jerusalem Church of the Holy Sepulcher on the eve of Orthodox Easter, which in 2018 is celebrated on April 8.

On this significant day, tens of thousands of pilgrims from all over the world flock to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem to wash themselves with the Holy Fire and receive God's blessing.

Not only Orthodox Christians, but also representatives of various faiths are anxiously awaiting the miracle of the descent of the Holy Fire.

The question of where the Holy Fire comes from, whether it is true or fiction - people have been trying to understand for many hundreds of years.

Believers are convinced that the descent of the Holy Fire is a real miracle, a gift from God to people. Scientists do not agree with this statement and are trying to explain this phenomenon from a scientific point of view.

Miracle of the Holy Fire

The miracle of the descent of the Holy Fire on the Holy Sepulcher, which has the unique property of not burning in the first minutes, has been known since ancient times.

The appearance of the Holy Light, according to both ancient and modern evidence, in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher can be observed throughout the year, but the miraculous descent of the Holy Fire on the eve of the Holy Resurrection of Christ - on Holy Saturday - is the most famous and impressive.

This miraculous phenomenon has been observed annually throughout almost the entire existence of Christianity by both Orthodox Christians and representatives of other Christian faiths (Catholics, Armenians, Copts and others), as well as representatives of other non-Christian religions.

The Apostle Peter was the first witness to the miracle of the descent of fire - having learned about the Resurrection of the Savior, he hurried to the tomb and saw an amazing light where the body had previously lay. This light has been descending every year for two thousand years as the Holy Fire on the Holy Sepulcher.

The temple was erected by Emperor Constantine and his mother Queen Helena in the 4th century, and it was from this time that the earliest written mentions of the miracle of the descent of the Holy Fire on the eve of the Resurrection of Christ date back.

With its huge roof, the Temple covers Golgotha, the cave in which the Lord was laid down, taken down from the cross, as well as the garden where Mary Magdalene was the first of the people to meet His resurrection.

Descent of the Holy Fire

The procession led by the Patriarch leaves the courtyard of the Jerusalem Patriarchate at approximately noon. The procession enters the Church of the Resurrection, heads to the chapel erected over the Holy Sepulcher, and, having walked around it three times, stops in front of its gates.

In the temple, all the lights are extinguished - tens of thousands of pilgrims from all over the world, of different nationalities, are watching the Patriarch in tense silence.

The Patriarch takes off his clothes, and in one long flowing tunic he goes inside, after a thorough search by the police, who are looking for at least something that can produce fire.

The Primate of the Church, on his knees before the Tomb, prays to the Lord to send down the Holy Fire. Prayer sometimes lasts a long time, but sooner or later the Holy Fire inevitably descends and only through the prayers of the Orthodox Patriarch.

And lo and behold, a fiery dew suddenly appears on the marble slab of the Tomb in the form of bluish balls. The Patriarch touches them with cotton wool, and it ignites. With this cool fire, His Holiness lights a lamp and candles, which he then takes into the temple and hands over to the Armenian Patriarch, and then to the people. At the same moment, tens and hundreds of bluish lights flash in the air under the dome of the temple.

A crowd of thousands is filled with jubilation - people sing, shout, fire is transferred from one bunch of candles to another, and a minute later the entire Temple is on fire.

Fact or Fiction

At different times, this wonderful phenomenon had many critics - they are trying to prove the artificial origin of fire. The Catholic Church was among the dissenters - Pope Gregory IX spoke out in 1238 with a disagreement about the miraculousness of the Holy Fire.

Some Arabs, who did not even witness the miracle of the descent of the Holy Fire, not understanding its true origin, tried to prove that the fire was produced using any means, substances and devices, but they had no direct evidence.

Modern researchers have also tried to study the nature of this phenomenon - in their opinion, it is possible to produce fire artificially. Spontaneous combustion of chemicals and mixtures is also possible.

But none of them are similar to the appearance of the Holy Fire, especially with its amazing property - not to burn in the first minutes of its appearance.

Scientists and theologians from various faiths, including the Orthodox Church, have stated more than once that the burning of candles and lamps in the Temple from the supposed “sacred fire” is a falsification.

So, for example, in the middle of the last century, professor of the Leningrad Theological Academy Nikolai Uspensky stated that the fire is lit in the Edicule from a secret hidden lamp, the light of which does not penetrate into the open space of the Temple, where at this time all candles and lamps are extinguished.

Uspensky at the same time argued that “the fire lit on the Holy Sepulcher from a hidden lamp is still a sacred fire received from a sacred place.”

And Russian physicist Andrei Volkov, allegedly, several years ago was able to carry out some measurements at the ceremony of the descent of the Holy Fire. Volkov said that a few minutes before the removal of the Holy Fire from the Edicule, a device that recorded the spectrum of electromagnetic radiation detected a strange long-wave pulse in the temple, which no longer appeared. Volkov believes that an electrical discharge occurred.

And while scientists are trying to find scientific confirmation for this phenomenon, the miracle of the descent of the Holy Fire is an observable fact every year, in contrast to the complete lack of evidence of the skeptics’ statements.

The miracle of the descent of the Holy Fire is available to everyone - not only pilgrims and tourists can see it - it happens in front of the whole world and is broadcast regularly on television and the Internet, as well as on the website of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem.

Several thousand people present in the Temple annually see how the Patriarch enters the Edicule, checked and sealed, with a bunch of candles, after a special personal search, and emerges from it with a burning torch of 33 candles - this is an indisputable fact.

Therefore, today there can be only one answer to the question of where the Holy Fire comes from - it is a miracle, and everything else is just unconfirmed speculation.

The Holy Fire is a gift from God, confirming the promise that the Savior gave to the apostles after the Resurrection: “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

There is an opinion 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 based on open sources

“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 argued: 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. Conveniently, 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 few 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 containers - 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 would definitely not 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 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.

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Holy Fire- one of the most powerful and significant symbols of faith among Orthodox Christians and the manifestation by higher powers of its truth to all believers. Once again he will descend from heaven on Saturday, on the eve of Holy Easter in Jerusalem, in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, where the earthly journey of Jesus Christ was completed. We will talk to you today about the natural essence of the phenomenon, about how the blessed one descends, how science is trying to explain it.

The Descent of the Holy Fire is proof of the truth of the Orthodox Faith.

Then the Lord revealed His will to the people: the fire did not descend into Kulukvia, in which the Armenian patriarch was intensely praying at that time, but descended on one of the outer columns of the temple, at which the Jerusalem patriarch prayed together with the believers - the column cracked in this place, and this crack can be seen even now.

Holy Fire: mystery and essence of the phenomenon

Scientists and atheists have been trying to explain the nature of the Holy Fire for a long time, but so far to no avail. True believers do not need to explain anything; they accept Fire as God’s grace. Skeptics, atheists, scientists with available data, scientific methods through experiments also want to reveal the nature of the phenomenon from a scientific point of view, perhaps they will one day succeed... But for now it’s just a mystery, hidden from explanation.

On the eve of Orthodox Easter, we will also touch on this phenomenon.

Where and when does the Holy Fire descend?

The Holy Fire descends in one place, only in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, in Israel, in Jerusalem, and only on the eve of Orthodox Easter.

This phenomenon has been observed year after year for more than a millennium. The first mentions date back to church historians in the 4th century.

I will give a description full of the feelings experienced by Archimandrite Savva Achilleos in the book “I Saw the Holy Fire.” For more than 50 years he was the chief novice at the Holy Sepulcher. Here are his impressions:

“….the patriarch bowed low to approach the Life-Giving Tomb. And suddenly, in the midst of the dead silence, I heard some kind of tremulous, subtle rustling. It was like a subtle breath of wind. And immediately after that I saw a blue light that filled the entire internal space of the Life-Giving Tomb.

Oh, what an unforgettable sight it was! I saw how this light was spinning, like a strong whirlwind or storm. And in this Blessed light I clearly saw the face of the Patriarch. Large tears flowed down his cheeks...

... the blue light again came into a state of movement. Then it suddenly became white... Soon the light acquired a rounded shape and stood motionless in the form of a halo above the Patriarch’s head. 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 the Holy Fire, slowly extending his hands to the sky. He barely had time to raise them to the level of his head when suddenly all four bundles lit up in his hands, as if they were brought closer to a blazing furnace. At that same second, the halo of light above his head disappeared. From the joy that overwhelmed me, tears flowed from my eyes...”

Information taken from the site http://www.rusvera.mrezha.ru/633/9.htm

Preparing for the Descent of the Holy Fire

Almost a day before the descent of the Fire, the ceremony of preparation for the procedure begins in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. It can accommodate 10 thousand people, and is preparing to receive not only Orthodox believers, but also representatives of other faiths and tourists. The Israeli police strictly maintain order.

An unlit lamp with oil is placed in the center of the Holy Sepulcher, 33 candles in a bunch - according to the number of years of the life of Jesus Christ, pieces of cotton wool, and a ribbon is attached to the edges of the coffin. To be fully prepared for the procedure, it is important that three groups of representatives be present in the temple; this is the only way to expect a miracle:

Patriarch of the Orthodox Church of Jerusalem or, with his blessing, one of the bishops of the Jerusalem Patriarchate.
Hegumen and monks of the Lavra of St. Savva the Sanctified .
Local Orthodox Arabs, most often represented by Arab Orthodox youth.

The preparation is completed by a walk around the most holy places of the temple by the patriarchs of the Orthodox and Armenian churches, their clergy, who then walk around the Kuvuklia (the chapel over the Holy Sepulcher) three times.

Then the Patriarch undresses from his vestments, showing the absence of matches and other things that could cause fire, and enters the Edicule.

At this moment the chapel is closed, the entrance is sealed by a local Muslim key keeper.

Everyone in the temple is waiting with trepidation for the Patriarch to emerge with the Holy Fire in his hands. Each time the time is different: from several minutes to several hours.

This is one of the most powerful moments: believers believe that if the Fire is not sent down from above, the temple will be destroyed. Therefore, everyone here, in anticipation of the miracle of the descent of Fire, carefully takes communion, prays fervently, imbuing the space with incredible energy.

How the Holy Fire descends

The moment of the descent of Fire is accompanied by the appearance in the temple of small bright flashes, discharges, flashes here and there... everywhere, rapidly...

How the fire spreads in small flashes from icon to icon throughout the temple is clearly visible when shooting with a slow-motion camera.

And at the same moment, the doors of the chapel open, the Patriarch, holding the Holy Fire sent from Heaven, appears in the doorway. Candles spontaneously ignite in the hands of individuals.

An atmosphere of incredible joy, delight, deep happiness covers people, fills the entire space, the temple becomes an energetically unique place, truly holy!

The fire is unique - it does not burn, people wash their hands with it, scoop their faces with it, and pour it on themselves. There have never been any cases of burns, clothes or hair catching fire. The fire temperature is only 40ºС.

Even droplets of wax falling from candles onto clothes, called Graceful Dew, remain on it forever, even after washing.

From the Fire, lamps are lit throughout Jerusalem in all churches; it is delivered by air to Cyprus, Greece, all over the world, including to us in Russia.

Descent of the Holy Fire 2018 in Jerusalem.

Scientific explanation of the Holy Fire

How does science explain the nature of Holy Fire? So far she cannot come up with any theory. Just as he cannot give an answer to things that happen according to the will of God.

In 2008, a Russian physics professor, Academician of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences, Pavel Florensky, carried out measurements of flashes in the temple and recorded three flash-discharges, similar to those that occur during a thunderstorm. This confirms the presence of an electromagnetic field in the atmosphere during the appearance of Fire. What caused it? There is only one answer - God!

In 2016, Russian physicist, employee of the Kurchatov Institute RRC Andrei Volkov confirmed the scientific conclusions of his colleague:

In fact, this inexplicable burst of energy can be called a message from God? Many believers think so. This is materialization God natural miracle. You can't find another word.

A longer procedure for the descent of the Holy Fire:

And, you see, is it really so important how and where the fire appears on the eve of Orthodox Easter? FAITH in its amazing power and FAITH in general is much more important. Do you remember?:

“All people believe. Some believe that there is a God, others believe that there is no God. Both are not provable!”

Honor the commentary from Vladimir from Sochi, explaining the nature of the Holy Fire.