TARPON SPRINGS, Fla. (WFLA) — A Tarpon Springs teenager retrieved the cross in the Greek Orthodox Church’s 120th annual Epiphany celebration on Tuesday.
18-year-old Athos Karistinos was hoisted into the air and carried to the nearby church following the ceremony, in which over 70 boys ages 16 to 18 dove into the chilly waters of Spring Bayou.
Services began at Saint Nicholas Cathedral that morning, and then the boys walked from the church to Spring Bayou.
The gospel of the day was read before a dove was released over the water. The Archbishop then cast the cross into the bayou, and the young men dove into the blessed waters…