2021 Easter Vigil At Home

This culmination of the sacred celebration of Holy Week and the beginning of the celebration of the Lord’s Resurrection is the climax of the Christian Year. The Great Vigil of Easter presents in scripture, sacrament, and liturgy the entire story of our redemption. It is the Christian Passover, for it celebrates the passing from death to life, from darkness to light, and from sin to grace.

It begins in the dark hours between sundown and sunrise in the lighting of the Holy Paschal Fire, and recounts the history of God’s saving act as the sky lightens, ringing in the joyful celebration of Easter resurrection at sunrise. Of all the celebrations of the Church Year, the Great Vigil of Easter is pre-eminent, for it alone vividly and dramatically portrays all that was, that is, and ever shall be in the drama of our redemption. It’s worth getting up early to celebrate!

For this celebration you will want a candle (preferably one for each person present) and matches and a bible. We have included links to a video recording of the sung Exultet, by Duane Erwin, and also to four presentations of the stories of our salvation history, including some videos by youth of St. Paul’s.

1- The Lighting of the Paschal Candle

Dear friends in Christ: On this most holy night, in which our
Lord Jesus passed over from death to life, the Church invites
her members, dispersed throughout the world, to gather in
vigil and prayer. For this is the Passover of the Lord, in which,
by hearing his Word and celebrating his Sacraments, we share
in his victory over death.

The Leader says the following prayer

Let us pray.

O God, through your Son you have bestowed upon your
people the brightness of your light: Sanctify this new fire, and
grant that in this Paschal feast we may so burn with heavenly
desires, that with pure minds we may attain to the festival of
everlasting light; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A candle is lit and any other candles are lit from it

Leader The light of Christ.
All Thanks be to God.

2 - The Exultet

3 - The Liturgy of the Word

The Leader introduces the sharing of the salvation history stories

Let us hear the record of God's saving deeds in history, how
he saved his people in ages past; and let us pray that our God
will bring each of us to the fullness of redemption.

4 - The Story of Creation, Genesis 1:1-2:2
presented by Samantha Coleman

5 - Psalm 33:1-11, Read together

Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous.
    Praise befits the upright.
Praise the Lord with the lyre;
    make melody to him with the harp of ten strings.
Sing to him a new song;
    play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.

For the word of the Lord is upright,
    and all his work is done in faithfulness.
He loves righteousness and justice;
    the earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord.

By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
    and all their host by the breath of his mouth.
 He gathered the waters of the sea as in a bottle;
    he put the deeps in storehouses.

Let all the earth fear the Lord;
    let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.
For he spoke, and it came to be;
    he commanded, and it stood firm.

The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;
    he frustrates the plans of the peoples.
The counsel of the Lord stands forever,
    the thoughts of his heart to all generations.

Leader:          Let us pray.     (Silence)

O God, who wonderfully created, and yet more wonderfully
restored, the dignity of human nature: Grant that we may
share the divine life of him who humbled himself to share our
humanity, your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

6 - Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac, Genesis 22:1-18
presented by Ava & Wyatt Dillhyon

7 - Psalm 33:12-22, Read together

Happy is the nation whose God is the Lord,
    the people whom he has chosen as his heritage.

The Lord looks down from heaven;
    he sees all humankind.
From where he sits enthroned he watches
    all the inhabitants of the earth—
he who fashions the hearts of them all,
    and observes all their deeds.
A king is not saved by his great army;
    a warrior is not delivered by his great strength.
The war horse is a vain hope for victory,
    and by its great might it cannot save.

Truly the eye of the Lord is on those who fear him,
    on those who hope in his steadfast love,
to deliver their soul from death,
    and to keep them alive in famine.

Our soul waits for the Lord;
    he is our help and shield.
Our heart is glad in him,
    because we trust in his holy name.
Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us,
    even as we hope in you.

Leader:          Let us pray.     (Silence)

God and Father of all believers, for the glory of your Name
multiply, by the grace of the Paschal sacrament, the number
of your children; that your Church may rejoice to see fulfilled
your promise to our father Abraham; through Jesus Christ
our Lord.

8 - Israel's Deliverance at the Red Sea, Exodus 14:10-15:1

9 - Canticle 8, The Song of Moses, Read Together

I will sing to the Lord, for he is lofty and uplifted; *
the horse and its rider has he hurled into the sea.

The Lord is my strength and my refuge; *
the Lord has become my Savior.

This is my God and I will praise him, *
the God of my people and I will exalt him.

The Lord is a mighty warrior; *
Yahweh is his Name.

The chariots of Pharaoh and his army has he hurled into the sea
the finest of those who bear armor have been drowned in the Red Sea.

The fathomless deep has overwhelmed them; *
they sank into the depths like a stone.

Your right hand, O Lord, is glorious in might; *
your right hand, O Lord, has overthrown the enemy.

Who can be compared with you, O Lord, among the gods? *
who is like you, glorious in holiness,
awesome in renown, and worker of wonders?

You stretched forth your right hand; *
the earth swallowed them up.

With your constant love you led the people you redeemed; *
with your might you brought them in safety to your holy dwelling.

You will bring them in and plant them *
on the mount of your possession,

The resting-place you have made for yourself, O Lord, *
the sanctuary, O Lord, that your hand has established.

The Lord shall reign *
for ever and for ever.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. 

Leader:          Let us pray.     (Silence)

O God, whose wonderful deeds of old shine forth even to
our own day, you once delivered by the power of your mighty
arm your chosen people from slavery under Pharaoh, to be a
sign for us of the salvation of all nations by the water of
Baptism: Grant that all the peoples of the earth may be
numbered among the offspring of Abraham, and rejoice in
the inheritance of Israel; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

10 - The Valley of Dry Bones, Ezekiel 37:1-14

11 - Psalm 30, Read together

I will extol you, O Lord, for you have drawn me up,
    and did not let my foes rejoice over me.
O Lord my God, I cried to you for help,
    and you have healed me.
O Lord, you brought up my soul from Sheol,
    restored me to life from among those gone down to the Pit

Sing praises to the Lord, O you his faithful ones,
    and give thanks to his holy name.
For his anger is but for a moment;
    his favor is for a lifetime.
Weeping may linger for the night,
    but joy comes with the morning.

As for me, I said in my prosperity,
    “I shall never be moved.”
By your favor, O Lord,
    you had established me as a strong mountain;
you hid your face;
    I was dismayed.

To you, O Lord, I cried,
    and to the Lord I made supplication:
“What profit is there in my death,
    if I go down to the Pit?
Will the dust praise you?
    Will it tell of your faithfulness?
Hear, O Lord, and be gracious to me!
    O Lord, be my helper!”

You have turned my mourning into dancing;
    you have taken off my sackcloth
    and clothed me with joy,
so that my soul may praise you and not be silent.
    O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever.

Leader:          Let us pray.     (Silence)

Almighty God, by the Passover of your Son you have brought
us out of sin into righteousness and out of death into life:
Grant to those who are sealed by your Holy Spirit the will
and the power to proclaim you to all the world; through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Leader continues:

Through the Paschal mystery, dear friends, we are buried
with Christ by Baptism into his death, and raised with him to
newness of life. I call upon you, therefore, now that our
Lenten observance is ended, to renew the solemn promises
and vows of Holy Baptism, by which we once renounced
Satan and all his works, and promised to serve God faithfully
in his holy Catholic Church.

12 - Renewal of Baptismal Vows

The Leader concludes the Renewal of Vows as follows

May Almighty God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who
has given us a new birth by water and the Holy Spirit, and
bestowed upon us the forgiveness of sins, keep us in eternal
life by his grace, in Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.