Holy Saturday 19 April 2025 – Easter Vigil (Year C)
Key Verse to Meditate: "Why do you seek the living among the dead? (Lk 24:5).
My Dear Brothers and Sisters in the Risen Lord,
Christ is Risen! Alleluia!
A Blessed Easter to you all in the Name of our Risen Saviour!
After forty days of intense prayer, fasting, and penance, we now joyfully celebrate the greatest and most glorious feast in the Church's liturgical calendar—the Solemnity of Easter. The Easter Vigil liturgy, rich with the symbols of light, word, water, bread, and wine, tells the magnificent story of God’s love and salvation. Through a tapestry of scriptural readings—ranging from three to seven from the Old Testament and two from the New—we journey through the history of salvation, culminating in the radiant proclamation of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
This night is the Mother of all Vigils, as St. Augustine beautifully describes. It is holy because in it we celebrate the Resurrection of Christ—His definitive victory over sin and death. The tomb is empty. The stone is rolled away. Life has triumphed over death. Hope has vanquished despair. Light has shattered the darkness. Christ our Saviour, once crucified, is now risen and lives forevermore.
The Light That Shatters the Darkness
The Easter fire, which we bless at the beginning of this Vigil, symbolizes the light of Christ that dispels every form of darkness—especially the darkness of sin, fear, and death. The Paschal Candle represents Christ, the Light of the World, who shines in the darkness and whom the darkness cannot overcome (cf. Jn 1:5). This light is not merely symbolic. It is real. It is the radiant life of the Risen Lord that now shines in our hearts, in the Church, and in the world.
The Gospel of the Resurrection
Tonight’s Gospel from Luke recounts the Resurrection event through the eyes of the faithful women—Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James—who come to the tomb at dawn. They are the first to discover the empty tomb and receive the angelic proclamation:
"Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here; He has
risen!" (Lk 24:5-6).
These words still echo through time and stir our hearts. The tomb is not the end. Death does not have the final word. Jesus is alive—and because He lives, we too shall live.
Luke highlights the role of women as the first heralds of the Resurrection—a revolutionary message in a time when women's testimonies were often dismissed. Yet it is they who become the apostles to the apostles, proclaiming the Good News to the Eleven. Sadly, their words are at first dismissed as an “idle tale” (Lk 24:11), reminding us that faith in the Resurrection is a gift that must be received in humility and openness of heart.
The Risen Life: A Call to Transformation
In the Second Reading from Romans 6, St. Paul explains the theological heart of Easter: that through Baptism, we are united to Christ's death and resurrection.
“We were buried therefore with Him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life” (Rom 6:4).
To celebrate Easter is to live the risen life—a life transformed by grace, no longer enslaved by sin. As St. Paul reminds us,
“Consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus” (Rom 6:11).
This is the core of the Christian life: to die to self, to sin, to selfishness—and to rise with Christ into a new life of holiness, joy, and mission. We are no longer bound by the old self. We are made new in the Risen Christ.
Victory Over Sin and Death
The Resurrection is not merely an event in the past—it is a present and living reality. In Christ’s rising, we find the answer to suffering, the hope in our struggles, and the assurance of eternal life. The Risen Lord invites us not just to admire the empty tomb, but to enter into the power of His Resurrection, to be partakers in His victory.
St. Paul affirms in his First Letter to the Corinthians:
“Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, was buried, and was raised on the third day” (1 Cor 15:3–4).
And, “If Christ has not been raised, our faith is in vain” (1 Cor
15:17).
But Christ has been raised. And because He lives, we are no longer captives of fear, failure, or death. The stone has been rolled away not just from Christ’s tomb—but from our hearts, from our doubts, and from our despair.
Recognizing the Risen Christ in Our Lives
The Risen Jesus continues to reveal Himself to us—just as He did to Mary Magdalene in the garden, to the disciples on the road to Emmaus, and to the apostles in the Upper Room. He is present in the Word proclaimed, in the breaking of the Bread, in the community of believers, and in the sacraments of the Church.
To truly celebrate Easter means to recognize Him in our daily lives—in the midst of our fears, struggles, and even failures. It means allowing His light to guide our decisions, His peace to calm our hearts, and His Spirit to empower our mission.
Living the Easter Joy
The Easter season is a time to rejoice, to be renewed, and to go forth with confidence. The Resurrection calls us not only to personal transformation, but to mission. Like the women at the tomb, we are called to go quickly and proclaim: “The Lord is risen indeed!”
Let us not keep this joy to ourselves. Let us share it with a world that longs for hope. Let us be witnesses of the Resurrection—by our lives, by our joy, and by our love.
Points for Personal Reflection
My dear friends, Easter reminds us that no night is too dark and no tomb too sealed for the power of God. Jesus is Risen, and He walks with us even now, leading us from death to life, from fear to faith, from sorrow to joy.
“By dying, He destroyed our death. By rising, He restored our life.”
May we walk as Easter people—full of hope, peace, and unshakable faith in the Risen Lord.
May the Risen Christ bless you and your families with His peace, joy, and
abiding presence.
Happy Easter to all of you!
Alleluia! Alleluia!
