The Great Vigil of Easter
“The Easter Vigil - ACT III of the Triduum” by Michael Monnikendam
Here we find ourselves at the end of the Triduum, or is it the beginning? The liturgy of the Easter Vigil is intended as the first (and arguably, the primary) celebration of Easter in the Book of Common Prayer (BCP). It is also known as the Great Vigil.
The service begins in darkness, sometime between sunset on Holy Saturday and sunrise on Easter; tonight it will be at 8:00 p.m.
The liturgy consists of four parts:
The Service of Light (kindling of new fire, lighting the Paschal candle, the Exsultet);
The Service of Lessons (readings from the Hebrew Scriptures interspersed with psalms, canticles, and prayers);
Christian Initiation (Holy Baptism) or the Renewal of Baptismal Vows; and
The Eucharist.
Through this liturgy, the BCP recovers an ancient practice of keeping the Easter feast. Believers would gather in the hours of darkness ending at dawn on Easter to hear scripture and offer prayer. This night-long service of prayerful watching anticipated the baptisms that would come at first light and the Easter Eucharist. Easter was the primary baptismal occasion for the early church to the practical exclusion of all others. This practice linked the meanings of Christ’s dying and rising to the understanding of baptism. The New Fire is lit, and the Paschal Candle is lit from that fire. The Exsultet is chanted. The Exsultet (Rejoice) is an ancient hymn of praise that dates back to the 4th or 5th century. After the Exsultet, we hear the stories of God working through his people. Next, we renew our baptismal vows with God followed by the First Eucharist of Easter. And our liturgical party begins. This is an ancient liturgy and a very spiritual, mystical, and beautiful way to begin the season of Easter.
Read how other members of the parish have experienced this holy liturgy.
"It was Holy Week of 1975. I was sitting in the dark sanctuary, lit only by one small candle at the pulpit, and listening to a rehearsal of the upcoming Easter Vigil “Exsultet.” “This is the night…”, came the haunting and engulfing words, and I knew my conservative, fundamentalist worship practices had just been relegated to the past. It felt like I was in an ancient monastery with the monks. At the actual service, all the assigned Vigil texts telling of God’s salvation history were read without any cuts, something I still appreciate, though it’s seldom done. Then the congregation remained gathered to eat, drink, and celebrate on into the morning.
Jump ahead to 1981. The Vigil began in the pitch black of early morning at 5:00 a.m. The service in darkness lasted an hour until the sun came up at 6:00 when the church was then redecorated and, in bright daylight, the congregation burst forth with 'Christ the Lord is Risen Today.' On that morning, our 6-month-old firstborn daughter was baptized into that resurrection." Sharon Grabner
"My most vivid memory of Easter was in the early 2000s. At that time, I was living in the San Francisco Bay area and my daughters and I were attending a large Methodist church. The youth program was very large, and the high school choir, of which my older daughter was a member, sang every Sunday in one of the three services.
On Easter Day, a fourth, Sunrise, service was added. The high school choir always sang at this service, and the Minister for Youth gave the sermon. The service started at 7:00 a.m. Rehearsal for the choir was at 6:00 a.m. Daughter was just shy of driving age, so I had to get her there. This meant getting up at 5:00 a.m. The night before, the clocks had changed for Daylight Savings Time, so it felt like 4:00 a.m.
My clock went off at five. I padded down the hall and made sure that Daughter had heeded her alarm and was stirring. We got dressed, had a very quick snack in the kitchen, and headed out.
Silicon Valley was still asleep. Our neighborhood streets were empty, and the houses were all dark. I turned onto the arterial and there were streetlights, and stop lights, but no other cars. The road crossed over a freeway, and there were just a few cars and trucks passing below us. The gas station at the end of the off-ramp was closed.
Suddenly into my brain popped the verse from John 20:1: "Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb..."
The rest of the drive felt like a holy pilgrimage. Two women were up before dawn, sleep deprived, somewhat hungry, but headed out to do what they could for a beloved Friend. When they reached their destination, there would be a surprise. The stone had been rolled away. The tomb was empty. The Lord is risen! The Lord is risen indeed! Laura Neff
