April 16, 2022 - The Vigil of Easter
The Vigil of Easter stands as the summit of our Lenten journey and the high point of the church’s year. On Good Friday we heard the passion of Christ according to John, the narrative of Jesus as a king crucified and reigning from the cross. That Good Friday service does not “end” but instead continues to the Easter Vigil—the night, the very night, the Passover of Christ from death to life. This is the night the church welcomes new Christians by baptism and lights the first of the resurrection candles. The whole corporate life of the church is built around the theme of this night: The risen Christ has conquered sin and death, once for all, and, as Paul reminds us, by our baptism into Christ’s death, we too will walk with him in newness of life. At Christmas, John’s gospel proclaimed that “the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it” (John 1:5). Tonight, John reminds us that even “while it was still dark” (John 20:1) Jesus rose from the tomb.
