The Californer - The Story of the LUCKY GOLD COIN in the Cake

Orthodox Christians celebrate New Year's day with the cutting of the Vasilopita Cake (St. Basil's bread) containing the Lucky Golden Coin inside, perpetuating a centuries-old tradition.

PALM COAST, Fla. - Californer -- The Story of the lucky coin in the Vasilopita Cake originates from the time the Governor of Cappadocia; a true tyrant, demanded all the treasures of the city of Caesarea be delivered to him, otherwise he would besiege the city to conquer and loot it.

The Bishop replied that the people of his city had nothing to give to the Governor. Upon hearing those words, the tyrant was infuriated and threatened to oust the Bishop from his homeland or even kill him and surrounded the city with his army.

The Christians of Caesarea loved their Bishop and wanted to help, so they gathered all their combined wealth inside a chest and offered it to Basil so that he would give to the ruthless Governor.

The tyrant was impatient though, and upon Basil's first reply, ordered his army to attack. Basil the Great, in his turn, offered the Governor the treasure chest in order to save the city, but when the tyrant opened the chest and put his greedy hands on its contents, a miracle happened.

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A brilliant glow came out of the chest, and a horseman followed by an army of angels, wiped out the army of the Governor, and the city was saved. The Bishop was now faced with the dilemma of how to return the valuables and gold given to him by all the city residents. He wanted the sharing of the gold to be fair, a rather difficult task, so Basil prayed to God for advice and was enlightened.

The Bishop called his assistants and told them to knead bread and to put a piece of gold in each one. When all the loaves were ready, Basil the Great distributed the bread to all inhabitants of the city of Caesarea.

In the beginning, everyone was surprised, but when every family that cut the bread found a piece of gold inside, they were even elated. It was a special piece of bread, one that brought people joy and blessings together.

Since then, the Vasilopita has become a Christian tradition, where on the first day of the New Year, Saint Basil's Day, the faithful cut the bread hoping to find the coin that is said to bring them blessings and good fortune throughout the whole year.

Official Golden Vasilopita Coins are available at https://patmospress.com/shop/vasilopita-coins/