Easter in August

1.

Christ died on Friday, the fourteenth of Nissan. On the evening of Great and Holy Friday, the Requiem of our Lord is sung in the Church, commemorating His repose.

On the evening of the fourteenth of August, the Requiem of our Lady is sung in the Church, commemorating her earthly departure.


2.
The two Requiems themselves are very close in style, structure, and content to one another, and share the same melodic line.



3.

Three days later, Christ's body wasn't found in the Tomb.

Three days later, Mary's body wasn't found in the Tomb.


4.
After His resurrection, Christ made Himself known to two of His Holy Apostles in the breaking of the bread while they were sitting together at the table having supper, and afterwards appeared in the midst of all Disciples saying to them: Peace be unto you! (Luke 24:30-43)

After her Ascension, Mary appeared in the midst of the Holy Apostles at the breaking of the bread while they were sitting together at the table having supper:

As the Apostles, the God-bearing heralds, after the departure of the Theotokos into the world above were sitting as usual at table to eat, and as they lifted up a piece of bread in the name of the Lord, they suddenly beheld the Theotokos coming from above, surrounded by radiant angels, and heard her imparting to them "Peace" from her Son and God; and so they exclaimed: Alleluia !

The Sixth Kontakion of the Akathist of the Dormition of the Theotokos

5.
The Holy Apostle Thomas was conspicuously absent from both of these miraculous events, and had to be personally convinced by having Christ appear to Him after His resurrection from the dead, asking Him to touch His wounds, and by entering into Mary's Tomb only to discover it empty, as the two other Holy Apostles, Peter and John, did with Christ's Tomb after His glorious resurrection.