Holy Saturday-Easter Vigil April 11, 2020

There is no night as solemn as this night. There is no Mass as majestic as the liturgy we celebrate this evening. To show our joy at the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, we usually pull out all the stops. We normally sing special songs. We read generous portions of the story of our salvation from the Bible. We light a fire, fill the church with smoke, ring bells, hold up candles, and sprinkle water. All these things we normally do except in this extraordinary year.

All of it is meant to capture something of the grandeur, the might, and the glory of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

Remember for a minute how we usually begin this wondrous evening. Night has just fallen and we gathered in a darkened church. This darkness symbolizes the hopelessness of a world without God held captive in the slavery of sin. The deacon processes into the darkened church with the Easter candle and would sing, “Christ our light!” to which we respond, “Thanks be to God.” That candle represents the hope that faith in Jesus Christ brings into the world.

Then those who would be received into the Church would light their individual candles from that one candle. Little by little the church was filled with light. The Resurrection of Jesus Christ has cast out the darkness of ignorance, fear, and sin. We no longer have to grope around in the darkness not knowing where to find truth, goodness, or meaning. In the light of the Resurrection, we have found ultimate meaning, truth and goodness in Jesus Christ.

The resurrection is not just an amazing event from the past. Rather, it is an ongoing reality, something that continues to transform lives to this day. Through Jesus’ victory over sin and death, new life is offered to us through faith.

So, how do we tap into the power of Jesus’ resurrection so that His new life can be real and active in our own lives? Through baptism.

The sacrament of baptism communicates Jesus’ risen life to us. In so doing, it makes us children of God and members of God’s family, the Church. Baptism seals us with the Holy Spirit and gives us the gift of faith. Those who live out their baptism put the Risen Lord at the center of their lives. They put aside their own plans and dreams to do the will of their Heavenly Father. In so doing, they have a lively sense of God’s presence and action in their lives. They are able to do things they otherwise couldn’t by

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Holy Saturday-Easter Vigil April 11, 2020 their own strength. In other words, they live by faith. For such people, the resurrection of Jesus Christ is a daily event supporting them and lifting them up.

Most of us were babies when we were baptized. Our parents and godparents made a profession of faith on our behalf and committed themselves to raising us to know and love Jesus. On this Easter Vigil, we have an opportunity to renew the promises of our baptism, whether it is on the television, Facebook, Instagram or some other type of media. We will reject sin and embrace the new life that is ours through the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Inspired by the beauty and majesty of this liturgy, let us renew the promises our parents made for us so many years ago and make them our own. Let us respond “I do” with confidence that the Holy Spirit we received in our baptism will give us the power to live by faith, hope, and love. Then the Resurrection of Jesus Christ will not be a myth or an interesting story, but a reality that gives us power to live by faith every day.

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