Orthodox Christians Plunge Into Frigid Waters

Photo ~ Greek Orthodox men kiss the wooden cross after it was being retrieved from the water during an Epiphany ceremony to bless the water in the Golden Horn in Istanbul, Turkey, Friday, Jan. 6, 2012. (AP)

Orthodox Christians Plunge Into Frigid Waters to Retrieve Crucifixes in Celebration of Jesus’ Baptism

ISTANBUL (AP) — Orthodox Christian worshippers plunged into chilly waters across southern and eastern Europe on Friday to retrieve crucifixes in ceremonies commemorating the baptism of Jesus Christ.

Hundreds of members of Istanbul’s tiny Greek Orthodox community and tourists from neighboring Greece attended the Epiphany ceremony of the Blessing of the Waters. About 20 faithful leaped into the wintry waters of the Golden Horn inlet to retrieve a wooden cross thrown by the spiritual leader of the world’s Orthodox Christians, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I.

Catholics also mark Epiphany as a holy day on Jan. 6. Across Poland, believers celebrated with religious processions, including a large one in Warsaw attended by thousands.

The Communists banned Poles celebrating Epiphany and it was only reinstated as a religious holiday in 2011.

Led by Warsaw Archbishop Kazimierz Nycz, people walked through the city center, sometimes singing religious songs, in a procession that featured camels and people dressed up as magi or in medieval-style clothing.

Many wore paper crowns, a reference to the three kings who visited Jesus.

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