The Great Easter Vigil 2025: From Darkness to Light

As we gather on the evening of April 19, 2025, at 7:30 p.m. for the Great Easter Vigil 2025, we begin the most significant celebration in the Christian calendar. This sacred liturgy represents the shift from the sorrow of Good Friday to the joy of Easter Sunday, capturing the journey from death to resurrection and from darkness to light.

Join us for the Great Easter Vigil 2025

We understand that you may not always be able to join us in person or even watch the live stream, but we still want you to participate. You can join us via our live stream, which will also be available as a replay video. Additionally, we will have a podcast available later so you can worship with us while on the go.

Live stream/Replay

Podcast

We will host the podcast here, but you can also find us on your favorite podcast player. Why not give us a like or follow?

The Structure of the Great Easter Vigil 2025

The Great Vigil of Easter unfolds in four distinct parts:

• The Service of Light: We begin in darkness, symbolizing the state of the world before Christ. A new fire is kindled, and the Paschal Candle is lit, representing the glory of Christ’s rising light.
• The Liturgy of the Word: We recount the history of God’s saving actions, tracing the narrative of salvation through a series of readings. These readings serve as reminders of God’s faithfulness and the unfolding of divine redemption.
• The Liturgy of Baptism: We renew our baptismal vows, recommitting ourselves to Christ and celebrating our new life in Him.
• The Liturgy of the Eucharist: With joyful hearts, we celebrate the first Eucharist of Easter, partaking in the body and blood of the risen Christ.

The Readings for the Great Easter Vigil 2025: A Journey Through Salvation History.

The Vigil’s readings take us on a journey through pivotal moments in the biblical narrative. Here is a list of the optional readings:

• Genesis 1:1- 2:4a: The story of creation, where God brings order and life out of chaos.
• Genesis 22:1-18: Abraham’s test of faith, highlighting obedience and trust in God’s promises.
• Exodus 14:10-31; 15:20-21: The Israelites’ deliverance through the Red Sea, symbolizing liberation from bondage.
• Isaiah 55:1-11: An invitation to abundant life and a reminder of God’s enduring covenant.
• Ezekiel 37:1-14: The vision of dry bones brought to life, signifying hope and restoration.

First Lesson: Romans 6:3-11

Paul speaks of dying and rising with Christ, emphasizing our new life in Him.

³Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? ⁴Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. ⁵For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. ⁶We know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be destroyed, and we might no longer be enslaved to sin. ⁷For whoever has died is freed from sin. ⁸But if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. ⁹We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. ¹⁰The death he died, he died to sin, once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. ¹¹So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Psalm: Psalm 114

¹ Hallelujah!
  When Israel came out of Egypt, *
       the house of Jacob from a people of strange speech,
² Judah became God’s sanctuary *
       and Israel his dominion.
³ The sea beheld it and fled; *
       Jordan turned and went back.
⁴ The mountains skipped like rams, *
       and the little hills like young sheep.
⁵ What ailed you, O sea, that you fled? *
       O Jordan, that you turned back?
⁶ You mountains, that you skipped like rams? *
       you little hills like young sheep?
⁷ Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord, *
       at the presence of the God of Jacob,
⁸ Who turned the hard rock into a pool of water *
      and flint-stone into a flowing spring.

Gospel: Luke 24:1-12

The discovery of the empty tomb confirms that Jesus has risen, just as He said.

¹But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb, taking the spices that they had prepared. ²They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, ³but when they went in, they did not find the body. ⁴While they were perplexed about this, suddenly two men in dazzling clothes stood beside them. ⁵The women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen.⁶Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, ⁷that the Son of Man must be handed over to sinners, and be crucified, and on the third day rise again.” ⁸Then they remembered his words, ⁹and returning from the tomb, they told all this to the eleven and to all the rest. ¹⁰Now it was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them who told this to the apostles. ¹¹But these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. ¹²But Peter got up and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; then he went home, amazed at what had happened.

Embracing the Resurrection

The Great Vigil of Easter is not just a liturgical tradition; it invites us to experience the transformative power of the Resurrection. As we transition from the darkness of the tomb to the light of new life, we are reminded that in Christ, death does not have the final say. Hope, renewal, and joy triumph over despair.

Join Us in Celebration of the Great Easter Vigil 2025

We warmly invite you to St. John the Divine Episcopal Church for the Great Vigil of Easter. Together, let’s celebrate the triumph of life over death and the dawn of a new creation in Christ.

“Alleluia! Christ is risen! The Lord is risen, indeed! Alleluia!”