“New Fire, New Life”
The Great Vigil of Easter
3 April 2021 7:00 p.m. Sung Eucharist with Holy Baptism
Parish Church of Trinity, Ashland (Oregon)
The Rev. Fr. Tony Hutchinson, SCP, Ph.D.
May the light of Christ, rising in glory,
banish all darkness from our hearts and minds.
Amen.
Easter Sunday, as in all days in most ancient calendars, begins at sundown the evening before. As we read in the creation story tonight, the evening was, the morning was, the first day. Easter Sunday begins just as the sun sets on Holy Saturday.
The Great Vigil of Easter, the heart of the Christian year, and mother of all our celebrations, begins with the lighting of the New Fire to drive away the dark. The Paschal Candle is blessed and lit. It celebrates that glorious act of God described by St. John in these words, "”The light shines in the darkness and the darkness cannot overcome it.”
The Great Easter Proclamation, the ancient hymn the Exsultet we sang tonight, says it best:
“This is the night, when you brought our parents… out of bondage in Egypt, and led them through the Red Sea on dry land. This is the night, when all who believe in Christ are delivered from the gloom of sin, and are restored to grace and holiness of life. This is the night, when Christ broke the bonds of death and hell, and rose victorious from the grave… when wickedness is put to flight, and sin is washed away. It restores innocence to the fallen, and joy to those who mourn. It casts out pride and hatred, and brings peace and concord. How blessed is this night, when earth and heaven are joined and we are reconciled to God.”
The Paschal Candle, which will light our little Church throughout the Great Fifty Days and then come out for all baptisms and funerals throughout the year, is a symbol of this great light, Christ, a pillar of fire in our desert, light in our darkness. As the Exsutlet continues,
“May it shine continually to drive away all darkness. May Christ, the Morning Star who knows no setting, find it ever burning …”
The New Fire and the Paschal Candle’s flame are used to light the candle given to people baptized at the vigil, a candle representing also “the Light of Christ.”
Baptism, the Rite of Christian Initiation, marks and indeed brings about new life: from the New Fire, we gain New Life.
Easter begins in darkness but ends in glory: sunset followed by night, followed by morning. Death followed by resurrection.
Christ betrayed, Christ tortured, Christ killed. And then light dawns with the unexpected and startlingly unique act of God, God’s triumph over the powers of darkness: Christ is risen, the Lord is risen indeed. And the risen Lord is not a ghost or a zombie, alive, but somehow less alive than we are. The risen Lord is more alive, more vital that he had ever been before, so much so that his disciples on occasion fail to recognize him right off.
In a few minutes, Christiana will be baptized. We celebrate the sacrament of Holy Baptism on this night because its waters symbolize for us a death of sorts—death to our old ways—and new life in the spirit. The water of baptism is consecrated in part by dipping in it the paschal candle. But how can baptism make us holy? What about the fact that we seem afterwards to be very much the same people as before?
In all the sacraments, the common is made holy, yet retains its appearance of the common. In Eucharist, common bread and wine become the body of Christ, even as they remain to all appearances bread and wine. In reconciliation, we face our guilt and God drives it away, but we remain inclined to sin afterwards all the same. In matrimony, God blesses our relationship, but we still have to work on it to keep it alive and growing. In ordination, a person is set aside for special ministry, even as they seem to remain no different from the laity.
This is because the sacraments take place in time, even as they exist in eternity, or timelessness.
We most often can’t see ourselves as changed people. Baptism or no, we wonder if there is any possibility of change in our lives. But that is exactly where the great mystery of Easter intersects with our lives. In the baptismal creed, we say we believe in the forgiveness of sins and life everlasting.
In sacraments, we get a glimpse of what’s really going on. And just as Jesus at his baptism heard the voice of God, so we each hear in our baptism, “You are my child. I love you. You make me happy.”
Our faith, our life, and our hope grow from such mystery: We start as common, and end in holiness. We start in silence, but end in song. We start in darkness, but end in light. We start in death, but end in life.
Christ is risen. The Lord is risen indeed.
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