The Vigil and Being Made Christians

Easter Vigil     C  April 20, 2019

Ex.14:10 Canticle 8, Ez  36:24-28 Psalm 42:1-7
Rom.6:3-11         Luke 24:1-12

Lectionary Link

Probably the liturgy which could be called the marathon of all Christian liturgies, is the Easter Vigil.  A proper Vigil includes 11 biblical readings from Hebrew Scriptures, the Epistles and Gospel.  It also include 11 Psalms.  It also includes the option for sermons to be preached for each of the biblical readings.  And this is after the long sung prayer at the Paschal Candle.  Then there is Holy Baptism and the first Communion of Easter.  A full blown Vigil can last hours; it can begin at 9 in the evening and end after midnight into Easter morning.  During my seminary years, I did participate in three Easter Vigils which lasted three hours or so.

In our day of sound bytes and text messaging, we find it almost impossible to survive even a one hour liturgy, though we will watch a three hour football game.  Today, we assume general literacy and continual access to all modes of Christian knowledge and the omni-presence of word access means that the gathered occasions for inculcating Christian knowledge is truncated and done in more virtual ways.

You perhaps are relieved to know that we aren't doing a three hour Vigil tonight; we are doing but a remnant of the Great Vigil of Easter.  Why?  It is worth keeping the most important liturgy alive and observed even if it does not fit our modern lifestyles and time schedules.

The values of the Vigil are important for us.  The Vigil is the great event of transmission of salvation history in the life of the church.

Historically, the people who were preparing for various lengths of time to be baptized, intensified their preparation during the season of Lent.  And then in the Vigil, the catechumens were present to hear the important readings of our salvation history from creation to Christ and the church.  They were present to sing the psalms.  And baptism, the event of Christian initiation was held, and the newly baptized were received into the church and for the first time they stayed in the church after the liturgy of the word and they received their first communion, in the Easter Communion.  The Easter Vigil was the highlight event of Christian initiation.  It was a climax event, a graduation event for the catechumen who became marked as Christ own forever and was received at the family meal, the Eucharist for the very first time.

The Easter Vigil expresses the fullest expression of the meaning of being in Christ and being in the family of Christ.

It is good for us to continue this Vigil tonight to remember that we are responsible for passing on the tradition of Christ to the next generation of Christians.

Tonight is a night to be thankful for our heritage.  To be thankful for the mentors of our lives of faith who exemplified for us the very best of the love of God in Christ.

Why have we been initiated into the tradition of Jesus Christ?  Why are we still in the process of being made Christians?  Because the life of Christ is alive in us, in our world.  The life of Christ is a transhistorical personal experience.  The life of Christ has been transmitted through human history for 2000 years.  Why?

Allelulia! Christ is Risen!  The Lord is Risen Indeed.  Alleluia!