The Easter Vigil is a special liturgy that celebrates Jesus’ triumph over death and his resurrection.
It also is a time when new Catholics are welcomed into the Catholic Church or come into full communion with the Church.
That was the case for three people on April 8 in the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist. One adult and one child were baptized, confirmed and made their first Communion. Another man, baptized previously, was confirmed and made his first Communion.
(See photo gallery above.)
Bishop Edward Malesic, the celebrant, began the liturgy in the dark at the back of the cathedral. A small fire was built, the new paschal candle was blessed and lit. The fire was used to light small candles which then were passed around the cathedral as the light spread throughout.
Bishop Malesic, the concelebrants, deacon, altar servers, catechumens and candidate processed to the front of the cathedral where the paschal candle was placed in its holder and the lights in the church were turned on.
After a series of readings beginning with Genesis and the story of creation, the Gloria was sung for the first time since Holy Thursday and the Gospel told the story of Jesus’ resurrection.
Looking over the congregation, the bishop shared a story from one of his seminary homiletics classes. “The professor said to us, ‘Gentlemen, on Easter Sunday, when you look out over the people gathered in the pews, if you don’t see Christ rising up in them, you are not ready to preach to them.’”
However, he told the faithful gathered in the cathedral “I see Christ rising in you – and I know he is rising in me – he is pouring out his divine life into us, just as he has from the moment we were baptized. Just as he is about to give his life to Laura and Kiera, who will be baptized tonight. His divine life gives light to replace the dark spots in our lives, mercy to replace sin where it exists in us, and he gives his divine life to us in baptism and the other sacraments in such abundance that tit even conquers death itself.”
Jesus lifts us up to heaven and promises that we will rise from the dead, just as he did, the bishop said. And as St. Paul said, “We have been burned with him through baptism … so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead … we, too, might live in newness of life.”
He talked about how the Palm Sunday Gospel ended with Jesus being placed in the tomb, which was sealed and under guard. Using the analogy of a jar with a lid that’s difficult to open, the bishop said death was like the lid on a jar that wouldn’t budge.
“And God is the one who opened it. With God, nothing is too heavy; mothing is too big; nothing is impossible. And when the time was right, early in the morning of that first day of the week, an angel of God made child’s play of that rock in front of the tomb of Jesus. When he was ready, Jesus opened his eyes, removed the burial cloth, stood up and walked out. And the rest is history. He will never go back into that grave again,” the bishop said.
“And we should know by now that there is no stone so large in our lives that it will keep him from us, unless we fail to ask for mercy. Tonight, we can rise up with him feeling a bit lighter because we have been made new in the baptism we are about to receive or already have received and will recall as we renew our baptismal promises,” he added.
We have encountered the living Christ, the bishop said, reminding the congregation that he comes to us in the sacraments and feeds us in the Eucharist with his glorified flesh and blood under the signs of bread and wine.
Soon, the newly baptized – Laura and Kiera – along with Javier (who previously was baptized) will receive the Eucharist. “And we will be made one with each other – and one with Jesus himself – in his one, holy, Catholic and apostolic Church,” he said.
“We have seen him. Now, we are sent and go to tell others. We rise up on Easter to receive the good news and then we have the task to share it with our friends and families, live it in our communities and proclaim it to those who have yet to hear of it. Jesus lives and so shall we and all who believe I him, live for eternity – someday, even as saints,” the bishop said.
“This liturgy is the work of God and the work of many people,” Bishop Malesic said after Mass. In addition to those who helped catechize the catechumens and candidate, their sponsors/godparents, he thanked Father Sean Ralph, cathedral rector, and the concelebrants.
The Mass, which took about 2½ hours, is the greatest liturgy of the year, he said. “It begins in darkness and ends in great light.”