For the majority of Christians this is the only vigil they celebrate during the year. It is perhaps best to start with the dictionary meaning of the word "vigil" itself: "a purposeful or watchul staying awake during the ordinary hours of sleep." We wait and watch. We wait with the catechumens... As the light of day fades away, we turn our attention to the light of Christ. The Easter Vigil begins with a very special service of light. We gather around a fire and we think of Christ, the light of God's glory. As the light of this paschal candle enters the church, its light spreads to the candles held by each member of the worshiping community. In this light we keep watch. We tell our story: Creation, Abraham's sacrifice, our passing rhrough the Red Sea. Our joy and anticipation grow and we sing "Glory to God in the highest" (a hymn we have not used since Lent began). Each Easter, after the elect are baptized and confirmed, the Church turns to you and asks you again: Do you reject sin? Do you believe? Do you wish to renew your Baptism? The answers to these questions are two simple words: "I do." Simple words - but for a bride and groom on their wedding day, the "I do" contains years of history and even more years of promise. Indeed the "I do" of our Baptism, which we renew this holy night and seal in the Eucharist with the newly baptized, shapes every moment of our future, in this life and in the next. No other moment of the church year is as rich in powerful and early symbolism as the Easter Vigil. It is the night of all nights. It is the heart of Christianity. It is Easter!
[Source: Supplement to the Sunday Bulletin of February 3, 2008; St. Paul Parish, Saskatoon, SK, Canada.]