Greek Folk Festival

From Greek Folk Festival Website:

The festival is hosted by the St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church of Baltimore, Maryland, and is the largest Hellenic festival in the Baltimore-metropolitan region.

The St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church Greek Folk Festival, or St. Nicholas Greek Folk Festival or Greek Folk Festival for short, is one of the Mid-Atlantic region's largest and longest running annual Hellenic events and is the most attended Greek-American community event in Maryland. For more than thirty years, the Greek Folk Festival has played a key role in providing a forum for showcasing a multitude of Greek cultural expressions by featuring the finest Greek talent alongside some of the most acclaimed Greek musicians in United States today. In addition, the Festival has pleased thousands of palates with homemade (and thus authentic) Greek cuisine that harkens back to simpler days and brings the flavor of Greece to Maryland.

The Greek Folk Festival celebrates the rich cultural, musical, and culinary heritage of Hellenic Culture; however, its appeal is a much broader reflection of the rich and diverse multicultural nature of Baltimore, Maryland, and the United States and it has evolved into a premier event featured in Baltimore's Showcase of Nations Ethnic Festivals.

The Festival, a four day, weekend celebration, is open to the general public and all events, with the exception of After-Hours events, offer free admission.

The Greek Folk Festival was established in the mid-1970s by the St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, then and now, the second largest Greek Orthodox Church community in Maryland. It arose out of the Greek community's need to express and to maintain cultural practices and traditions, and to fund an ever growing operational budget and greater philanthropic efforts. The aim of the festival was (and remains) to promote Greek culture, not just within the Greek community but also within the broader context of Mid-Atlantic America's community.

With the emergence of second and third generation Greek-Americans, the need has come to maintain and grow the Greek Folk Festival, and to also create hybrid cultural expressions, which draw their inspiration not only from the shared migrant experience of previous generations but also from a sense of identity which incorporates Greek roots with contemporary American experiences. Increasingly, Greek-Americans are looking outward rather than inward - confidently, if self-consciously acknowledging that they are part of the Diaspora while attempting to distill the essence of their Greekness in an American context.

The Festival is funded by the St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church of Baltimore, Maryland. The Church is named in honor of Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker, Archbishop of Myra. St. Nicholas lived during the reign of Saint Constantine the Great, and reposed in 330. As a young man, he desired to espouse the solitary life. He made a pilgrimage to the holy city Jerusalem, where he found a place to withdraw to devote himself to prayer. It was made known to him, however, that this was not the will of God for him, but that he should return to his homeland to be a cause of salvation for many. He returned to Myra, and was ordained bishop. He became known for his abundant mercy, providing for the poor and needy, and delivering those who had been unjustly accused. No less was he known for his zeal for the truth. He was present at the First Ecumenical Council of the 318 Fathers at Nicaea in 325; upon hearing the blasphemies that Arius brazenly uttered against the Son of God, St. Nicholas struck him on the face. Since the canons of the Church forbid the clergy to strike any man at all, his fellow bishops were in perplexity what disciplinary action was to be taken against this hierarch whom all revered. In the night our Lord Jesus Christ and our Lady Theotokos appeared to certain of the bishops, informing them that no action was to be taken against him, since he had acted not out of passion, but extreme love and piety. The Dismissal Hymn for holy hierarchs, The truth of things hath revealed thee to thy flock ... was written originally for St. Nicholas. He is the patron of all travelers, and of sea-farers in particular; he is one of the best known and best loved Saints of all time.

The St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church is a member church of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of North America. The mission of the Archdiocese is to proclaim the Gospel of Christ, to teach and spread the Orthodox Christian Faith, to energize, cultivate, and guide the life of the Church in the United States of America according to the Orthodox Christian Faith and Tradition. In addition, the Archdiocese aims to not only meet its members' cultural aspirations but to showcase the very best of Greek culture and offer the very best of Greek humanity and service to a wide population of those in need.

The long-term aim of the Festival and the St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church is to establish a permanent cultural center to ensure continuity in the artistic life of future generations of Greek-Americans and their fellow citizens. Many realities for migrant communities have started as dreams. Let us hope this is no exception!