Ask a Priest: Should I attend the Easter Vigil?

I love Easter! It’s my favorite time of the Church year. I love that from Holy Thursday to Easter Sunday we get to walk with Jesus “in real time” as he presides at his Last Supper, experiences his agony in the garden, carries his cross, dies, is buried, and finally rises from the dead.

Easter Sunday is the celebration of Christ’s Resurrection. Interestingly none of the four Gospels report any actual witnesses to the Resurrection itself. Rather, they only see the empty tomb. The night between Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday morning is “worthy alone to know the time and hour when Christ rose from the underworld!” (Easter Proclamation, Exsultet, from the Easter Vigil). It is on this mysterious night that we celebrate the Easter Vigil.

Is the Easter Vigil obligatory? Yes and no. The obligation for Easter is either the Easter Vigil or Easter Sunday Mass, which is similar to our regular Sunday obligation. So why should you go to the Easter Vigil when you could just go the Mass on Easter Sunday? There are many reasons, but let me give you four.

First, the Lucernarium or “the candle lighting.” The Easter Vigil begins after sunset when it’s dark. The church lights are extinguished, and the first light is the Easter fire. From that fire the Easter Candle is lit which is then brought into the dark church. But soon “The Light of Christ” is shared with all of us as we light our individual candles from Christ’s Easter Candle. The once dark church becomes filled with the light of everyone’s candles. The symbolism is beautiful. The darkness of doubt and grief that comes from Christ’s death and burial on Good Friday is illuminated by the light of Christ’s Resurrection. It’s an experience unlike any of the other celebrations throughout the year.

A second reason is the Liturgy of the Word. A hallmark of any Catholic vigil is scripture readings, and the Easter Vigil does not disappoint. It has more scripture readings than any other liturgy in the Church’s rites. The readings of the Easter Vigil highlight the entire history of the Old Testament leading up to Jesus’ Resurrection. It can seem like a lot, and mercifully many pastors take the option to reduce the readings to a more manageable amount. However, I want to highlight one of the readings, the one from Exodus. This reading recalls when God split the Red Sea and allowed Moses and the Israelites to cross on dry land. This was the central event in all of Jewish history. It is what defined them as the people of God. But for us Catholics, the defining event is Jesus’ Resurrection where we are rescued not from slavery in Egypt but from slavery to sin and death. Including the Exodus story in the Easter Vigil is a signal to us that this night is the most important night of Christian history!

A third reason to go to the Easter Vigil is to support our newest members of the Church. Following ancient traditions, the Easter Vigil is the time when adult converts to our faith are baptized. Just as Christ received new life in his body at his Resurrection, so too do these converts receive new life from Christ in baptism. These people are the newest members both of the Church as well as our parishes. They reveal to us the newness and youthfulness of the Church (even if they are older). Our faith is still growing! And it is good of us to support our newest brothers and sisters in Christ.

My last reason is that Easter Vigil is the best transition from Lent into Easter. As human beings, we need transitions. We celebrate graduations, we proclaim the New Year, we start and end summer with Memorial Day and Labor Day. The Christian life too needs its transitions; without them it loses its dynamism and fades into the background. Just as Ash Wednesday was a great kickoff for Lent, so the Easter Vigil brings Lent to its close and initiates the season of Easter. Whether it’s the transition of darkness to light or the first triumphal singing of the Gloria and Alleluia or the return of Jesus to the tabernacle (which has been empty since Holy Thursday), the Easter Vigil displays in the most unique way the change of seasons and the switch from the solemn observances of Christ’s death to the joyous celebration of his Resurrection.
 
So no, the Easter Vigil is not obligatory. However, it is a most beautiful celebration that marks our holiest night, reveals the light of Christ, presents the new birth of Baptism, and transitions us into Easter joy. I encourage you to attend the Easter Vigil at your parish and experience this holy night.