An Easter Vigil? What’s That All About?
Rich and poor together, hold high festival.
Diligent and heedless, honor this day.
Both you who have fasted, and you who did not fast,
rejoice together today.
The table is full; all of you, feast sumptuously.
The calf is fatted; let no one go way hungry.
Enjoy the feast of faith; receive the riches of God’s mercy.
John Chrysostom, “Easter Homily,” 4th century.
It begins outside as the sun is setting, a small fire in the cold evening air. Words of joy and promise in the settling darkness: The light of Christ. We light the Christ candle (you know, the big one with all the symbols on the sides) and light individual candles from it, letting the glow spread and brighten our faces.
Okay, so pastors are supposed to get excited about worship services–I know that. But really, the Easter Vigil is worth getting excited about. It’s an ancient service of worship that Christians have used for centuries and centuries to celebrate the central event of the Christian faith: the light of Christ shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
Why come to worship on Saturday night, of all times? There are a number of reasons, really. In the Jewish calendar, a new day begins at sundown, as the light of the last day fades. By this count, Easter begins at sundown on Saturday, and we will be there to sing praises as it does. And there’s also just something right about telling the story of Easter in the dark. While the flowers and sunshine of Sunday morning are lovely, Easter is first and foremost about a light shining in the darkness, about a life that persists in the face of death, a fire that warms us and all creation in the cold.
As the first worship service of the resurrection, the Easter Vigil is also the traditional time for baptisms to take place. While baptism can take place at any time, what better time than as we are welcoming the light of Christ emerging out of the darkness of Good Friday? We will have a baptism to celebrate this year at the Vigil, and I encourage you all to come and take part.
Be warned: this is not a short service. It takes a little while to tell the great story of faith through scripture and song, to remember our baptism into Christ’s death and resurrection, and to baptize a new member of the body of Christ, but that’s as it should be. I encourage you to make time for it this year: set aside your Saturday evening for this great “feast of faith”: I pray that it will awaken the joy of the resurrection in us all.
Peace,
Pastor Andy