Clean Monday (Kathara Deftera), a public holiday in Greece, is the first day of Great Lent in the Greek Orthodox Church.
This first day of Great Lent is called “Clean Monday” because Christians should begin the holy season with „clean hearts and good intentions.”
Clean Monday is a day where families and friends celebrate with outdoor excursions, delicious fasting foods, as well as the widespread custom of flying kites.
By sending a kite up, man tries to communicate with God. And the higher the kite goes, the closer the person comes to God.
The kite carries the human spirit and brings it closer to the Creator.
Clean Monday was declared a national holiday in 1955.
Photo credit: Public Domain
