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Paper short abstract

This paper investigates the symbolism, beliefs and practices connected to plants used in various religious rituals of the Romanian Orthodox Church, and performed during specific holidays, as well as with flowers brought to church by faithful, particularly during pilgrimages and saints’ celebrations.

Paper long abstract

Plants are omnipresent in Orthodox ecclesiastical spaces and the religious rituals which are performed. Religious paintings and sculptures, the vestments of the clergy, liturgical objects and vessels are all adorned with floral patterns. Among the gifts the faithful bring to church are fresh flowers. Offering flowers is considered a beautiful and generous gesture, meant to please God and the saints. Flowers are brought by pilgrims, when visiting the relics of saints. Some are left behind to adorn the canopy that shelters the relics; others are taken home after being touched to the relics. Many religious events involve specific plants in the rituals: basil is used during the Epiphany, willow branches during Palm Sunday, walnut branches during Pentecost. Their symbolic value add meaning to the rituals performed by the clergy, which in return confer them with protective and healing properties. The fresh flowers and plants brought back from church service, feast or pilgrimage are often placed next to icons or home altars; some are kept all year around. If touched to the relics, flowers are infused with healing properties; they are made into tea and drank, or even burned, the smoke being considered curative. Touched by the holy, they are not to be blended with ordinary garbage, but given back to nature. This investigation is mainly, but not exclusively, based on fieldwork carried out in Bucharest since 2010, combined with data drown from various studies and ethnographic collections.