Pass from the old to the new, from the figure to the reality. There Moses was sent by God to Egypt; here Christ is sent from the Father into the world. Moses' mission was to lead a persecuted people out of Egypt; Christ's to rescue all the people of the world who were under the tyranny of sin. There the blood of the lamb was the charm against the destroyer; here, the blood of the unspotted Lamb, Jesus Christ, is appointed your inviolable sanctuary against demons.

Every time there is a Divine Liturgy, the priest invites the faithful to take part in the Table of Life "with fear of God and faith and love." With his invitation, the priest points out how well prepared our soul and body must be in order to sit at Christ's Supper.

The word "mysteries" (Greek: mysteria) is the term used in the Orthodox East; "sacraments" (Latin: sacramenta, the term used in the Latin West [Roman Catholicism]). Since the latter term was used in the West before the schism of the Roman patriarchate, there is nothing wrong with its usage by Orthodox Christians of the West. However, Orthodox Christians often prefer to use the Orthodox term. The adjectival form "mystical," used in the Orthodox East, has of course a rather different and more inward connotation than the Latin Western adjective "sacramental," which refers specifically to the outward rites of the Mysteries.

Baptism by water is called in the Apostolic Scripture likewise "a new birth, adoption, sanctification. But ye are washed, ye are sanctified, ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus" (1 Corinthians 6:11). "As many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ" (Galatians 3:27).

From 1453 with the fall of Constantinople until the revolution in 1821 Greece was under the rule of the Ottoman Turks. This day is the black day in Greek history. By the end of the 15th century, Greece was under Turkish rule. Over the next 400 years, the Greeks were slaves to the Turks, deprived of their human rights, considered as second class citizens (rayas means beast in Turkish language), worked and lived only for their rulers. Harems of Pashas were full of Christian girls while the body guards of Sultan (Jenitsars) were Christian boys who were taken by force from their parents. The passion for freedom is best described in the ward song written by Regas Velestinlis (Ferreos) in 1797:

Apolytikion (Dismissal) Hymn. Tone Four

Today is the beginning of our salvation, The revelation of the eternal mystery! The Son of God becomes the Son of the Virgin As Gabriel announces the coming of Grace. Together with him let us cry to the Theotokos: Rejoice, O Full of Grace, The Lord is with You!