Holy Saturday

Welcome, young history buffs and curious minds, to My Daily Saint, the podcast that digs deep into the incredible lives of the saints, those remarkable people who shaped history and continue to inspire us today. Forget dusty old portraits and boring stories. Today, imagine that you are standing in a pitch black room. I don't mean the kind of dark where you can still see the outline of your door, or the glow of a street lamp through the window. I mean total, heavy darkness.

The kind that feels like a weight on your shoulders. You are waiting. But you aren't just waiting for a bus or for a class to end. You are waiting for the world to change. You are standing in the space between death and life.

Today, our guest isn't a person. It is an event. It is a night so powerful, so dramatic, and so essential to our faith that the Roman Missal gives it a title that sounds like something out of a fantasy epic, the mother of all vigils. Today, we are talking about Holy Saturday and the Easter Vigil.

We have spent the last few days in the heaviness of Holy Week. We walked through the Last Supper, and we stood at the foot of the cross on Good Friday. Now, it is Holy Saturday, the day Jesus lay in the tomb. During the day, the church is quiet. It's a time of waiting.

The drama begins outside the church building. Remember that darkness? That is how the vigil begins. The church lights are off. The congregation stands in the dark. Then, there is fire. A bonfire is lit. In that crushing darkness, this single fire is terrifyingly beautiful. From this fire, the priest lights the paschal candle. This isn't just a normal candle. It is massive, marked with the year and the Greek letters alpha and omega. This candle is the only light brought in to the darkened church.

This single flame represents Christ as the light of the world. As that candle lights the way to the altar, the flame is spread to smaller candles held by you, your friends, and your family. Slowly, the darkness is pushed back, not by a floodlight, but by a single flame shared hundreds of times. Once the candle is in place, the storytelling begins. We hear a series of nine readings from both the Old and New Testaments, recounting the story of salvation history, from the moment God created the world, through the parting of the Red Sea, all the way to the empty tomb.

But the drama doesn't stop with the readings. This night is also unique because it is the moment when our family grows. This is the night when adults and older children who have been preparing all year finally enter the church or complete their sacraments of initiation.

Depending on your parish, you might watch people receive baptism, confirmation, and the Eucharist for the very first time. And they aren't the only ones speaking up. Everyone present in the congregation renews their baptismal promises. We stand up and reject Satan and all his empty promises. We claim our faith out loud. The Mass continues in what is described as joyful solemnity. The lights are fully on, the bells are ringing, and the Alleluia, which we haven't said all Lent, returns. We are celebrating that Christ indeed is risen.

Today, focus on the renewal of baptismal promises. Even if you were baptized as a baby and don't remember it, you have a voice now. When you go to Mass this Easter, whether it is the vigil or Sunday morning, listen closely when the priest asks you what you believe. Don't just mumble the response. When you say, I do, say it like you mean it. Make it your own. And just like that Paschal candle entering the darkened church. Try to be the light in your house this week.

If the mood is grumpy or dark, be the one who brings the spark of joy. Because Christ is risen, and the darkness has not overcome it. Thank you for joining us on My Daily Saint. We look forward to sharing another incredible story of faith and courage with you tomorrow.