LEWISTON – The Greeks call it “Philoxania.”

It’s greater than pleasantness or hospitality. It’s more like belonging, safely encircled by friends.

That’s the feeling organizers of the Lewiston-Auburn Greek Festival want to give visitors on Saturday.

They have planned Greek music, crafts and food in an all-day celebration of Greek culture, bathed in olive oil and sprinkled in feta cheese.

Organizers from the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church hope to draw 1,000 people to dance, sing and eat.

Booths will be set up with Greek food, all of it homemade. There will be pastries, including baklava, shortbreads and a kind of Greek fried dough. There wil be gyros, spanikopita and kabobs.

“We have had people going to all the area stores,” said John Stass, a longtime church member who is lending a hand on the festival. “We have probably bought all the feta cheese in Lewiston-Auburn.”

Besides food, booths will sell Greek crafts. There will be dancing lessons and games. And there will be tours of the church, though the day is not meant to be a religious event, said the Rev. Ted Toppses, the church’s pastor.

It’s meant to be a sharing of culture. People who are interested in the church will have an opportunity to learn more, that’s all, Toppses said.

This Saturday marks a rebirth of the festival, which had been a regular part of the fall season but ended eight years ago. The church membership had leveled off at about 100 families.

However, in the past two years the numbers have risen to about 140 families. That’s when Toppses arrived and decided to perform some services in English, opening the church up even more.

The always diverse congregation, which has been dominated by Greeks and Franco-Americans, became even more diverse. Immigrants from eastern Europe began to join.

So, it seemed natural to restart the festival, said Stass.

It’s a multicultural congregation, but a force within the church continues to be the Greeks. For Saturday, the motto has become: “On this day, everybody is Greek.”

If it goes well, organizers already plan to do it again, every year on September’s second or third weekend.

“We’d like people to be able to count on us every year,” Toppses said.

dhartill@sunjournal.com

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