Orthodox Easter midnight mass in Bethlehem

(23 Apr 2006) SHOTLIST
1. Exterior shot Nativity church
2. Interior ''Holy Fire'' ceremony starts, priest makes blessings
3. Priest walking to chair
4. Altar boys come in carrying candles
5. Priest chanting
6. Wide shot of church
7. Procession with icons
8. Various pilgrims walking in with candles
9. Head of the Greek Orthodox church in Bethlehem, Bishop Theofilactos, conducts the ''Holy Fire'' ceremony
10. ''Holy Fire'' ceremony by candlight
11. Pull out Bishop Theofilactos, as electricity is restored
12. Various pilgrims praying
STORYLINE:
The age-old ''Holy Fire'' ceremony of Orthodox Christianity, in which a miracle flame is said to appear in the the tomb where Jesus Christ was buried and from which he rose again to life, was held on Saturday night, the eve of Orthodox Easter.
The holy fire allegedly appears every Easter at Jesus''s tomb in the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem''s Old City, and then travels to the Bethlehem, the traditional site of Jesus''s birth.
There a special ''Holy Fire'' service was held at the Nativity Church.
The ''Holy Fire'' is described as a blue, shiny light emanating from the tomb after some prayers have been said by the patriarch.
Thousands of joyous pilgrims attend the occasion and the light is passed among the congregation, candle to candle.
It then travels from the Holy Sepulchre to the traditional site of Jesus'' birth, Bethlehem, a few kilometres south of Jerusalem.
Hundreds of Orthodox pilgrims took part in the Easter Saturday midnight mass at the Church of Nativity.
The pilgrims walked through the Church compound with candles and prayed, celebrating the Orthodox Easter ''Holy Fire''.
A specially arranged flight is due to take the fire to Athens, and on to churches across Greece and beyond.
Believers see the passage of the flame among worshippers as connecting many of the 200 million Orthodox Christians worldwide to their spiritual roots.
The ritual dates back at least 1,200 years.
The precise details of the flame''s source are a closely guarded secret, but some believe it appears spontaneously from the burial area at the Holy Sepulchre church in Jerusalem, as a message from Jesus on the eve of the Orthodox Easter that he has not forgotten his followers.
Orthodox churches use a different calendar from Roman Catholics and Protestants, who celebrated Easter last week.
Keyword-religion

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