01:00Russia: Moscow’s pious brave icy pools in Epiphany celebrations
Hundreds of believers came to central Moscow, Sunday to take part in the traditional Epiphany bathing ritual marking the day of Jesus’ baptism in the Orthodox Church.
The ceremony was led by Orthodox priests, who blessed the ice-cold waters before bathers jumped in. Special wooden pools were installed near the walls of the Kremlin on Revolution Square specifically for the ceremony, as believers dunked and crossed themselves three times in the icy water.
The Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations reportedly examined 3,000 places for safe bathing, around 70 of them located in Moscow. Some 300,000 people in the region plan to participate in the Epiphany bathing ceremony, celebrated annually between January 18 and 19.
01:00Hundreds of believers came to central Moscow, Sunday to take part in the traditional Epiphany bathing ritual marking the day of Jesus’ baptism in the Orthodox Church.
The ceremony was led by Orthodox priests, who blessed the ice-cold waters before bathers jumped in. Special wooden pools were installed near the walls of the Kremlin on Revolution Square specifically for the ceremony, as believers dunked and crossed themselves three times in the icy water.
The Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations reportedly examined 3,000 places for safe bathing, around 70 of them located in Moscow. Some 300,000 people in the region plan to participate in the Epiphany bathing ceremony, celebrated annually between January 18 and 19.