Theophania at Piraeus
Theophania at Piraeus is the principal Greek Blessing of the Waters ceremony, held on 6 January at the Church of Saint Spyridon, Piraeus, where the cross is cast into the harbour and swimmers dive to retrieve it.
Theophania — the Greek Orthodox Feast of the Epiphany, observed on 6 January — marks the baptism of Christ in the Jordan. At Piraeus, the Blessing of the Waters takes the form of the Great Agiasmos: after the Divine Liturgy at the cathedral, the presiding hierarch leads a procession to the pier opposite the Church of Saint Spyridon and casts the cross into the harbour. Young swimmers dive to retrieve it; the one who surfaces with it is understood to carry the year’s blessing. At a working port the cross is cast more than once to give all divers a turn.
The 2025 ceremony at Piraeus was attended by the President of the Republic, Konstantinos Tasoulas, the Minister of Shipping, Vassilis Kikilias, and the Mayor of Piraeus, Yiannis Moralis. Piraeus holds the principal ceremony in Greece by reason of being the country’s largest port and the seat of the Holy Metropolis of Piraeus.