Celebrating the new life that the risen Christ brings to the world and to people’s hearts, Washington Cardinal Robert W. McElroy emphasized that the power of Jesus’s resurrection lives on.
During his homily at the Easter Vigil on April 4 at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle, the cardinal said, “The joy of the resurrection, the power of the resurrection, the reality of the resurrection lives on, and lives on in the grace that has touched each one of us in very different ways. and has allowed us to see what our lives are about, where we are heading, and how God can lead us forward in the life of the Church.”
Washington’s archbishop noted a phenomenon happening at this year’s Easter Vigil in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington and in dioceses across the country – “More men and women are entering the Church on this night than have entered the Easter sacraments before.”
That evening, 46 people became full members of the Catholic Church during the vigil at the cathedral, including 18 who received the three Sacraments of Initiation, Baptism, Confirmation and the Eucharist; 18 people who had already been baptized in Christian denominations who entered into full communion with the Catholic Church, receiving the sacraments of Confirmation and Eucharist; and 10 Catholics who completed their Sacraments of Initiation.
And across the Archdiocese of Washington during this year’s Easter Vigil, 1,755 people from more than 100 parishes in the District of Columbia and the five surrounding Maryland counties and from six campus ministry programs at area universities became full members of the Catholic Church, which is believed to be the most ever for the archdiocese.
Cardinal McElroy said when a reporter asked him what was causing that trend, he said, “We believe it’s the Holy Spirit.”
But he added that after meeting the 46 people individually earlier that evening who would be receiving the Easter sacraments at the cathedral, he had another answer to that question.
“Because it is in very different ways you have encountered the grace of God, the risen Christ, in the life of the Church, often through family members, through people you work with, through spouses, through fiancées, through those who spoke to you in their own lives of witnessing the faith, (and) often through obstacles you were seeing in your life, you know, of depression, or anxiety, or hardships, things you were struggling with,” he said.
Cardinal McElroy said the Gospel reading at the Easter Vigil from Matthew 28:1-10 recounted the story of Mary Magdalene’s grace-filled encounter with the risen Christ, as she became the first witness to the resurrection of Jesus Christ and shared that news with the other disciples.
“And so it is in your lives, in our lives, and all of us gathered here in this church, as we have had our encounter with God in our lives in very different ways,” the cardinal said, adding, “We have encountered the risen Christ, and know the beauty of Easter, which is the beauty of the overpowering love of God, the beauty of knowing that we are here in this world with a mission and a purpose that leads beyond this world to the next.”
With that mission in life, those who follow Jesus are called to ennoble the world by lives of sacrifice, care, and compassion, mercy and understanding, justice and courage, and integrity of heart, he said.
“This is the beauty of the resurrection. It's the whole centerpiece of our faith. And as Mary encounters that, she knows it instantly. And she's filled with joy,” the cardinal said, emphasizing “we are filled with joy tonight” as people would be coming into full life in the Church at the cathedral and at Catholic parishes throughout the archdiocese.
As the dramatic vigil began, Cardinal McElroy blessed the Easter fire blazing outside the cathedral, from which the Paschal Candle was lit.
Then people inside the darkened cathedral held small candles that were lit one-by-one from that initial flame, symbolizing their call to bring the light of Christ to others. In Spanish and English, the words “Luz de Cristo, the Light of Christ,” were chanted, and people sang in response, “Thanks be to God.”
A cantor in the cathedral’s high pulpit sang the soaring Easter Proclamation, the Exsultet, which was followed by six Scripture readings in Spanish and English which traced the salvation story, beginning with the creation account in Genesis and concluding with the account in the Gospel of Matthew where Mary Magdalene and the other Mary discover the empty tomb and encounter the risen Christ.
For the second reading, members of the cathedral’s Schola Cantorum choir sang the dramatic Exodus account of the Israelites escaping as the Red Sea parted and then engulfed the pursuing Egyptian charioteers, showing how God brings true freedom to His people. The third reading from Isaiah 55 highlighted the importance of prayer in the passage, “Seek the Lord while he may be found, call him while he is near,” and the next reading from Ezekiel 36 highlighted God’s promise that “I will give you a new heart and place a new spirit within you… you will be my people, and I will be your God.”
Then a joyful Gloria was sung, accompanied by an organ fanfare and the ringing of bells, as the cathedral lights were turned on again to full brightness. The epistle reading from Paul’s Letter to the Romans, chapter 6, included the phrase, “just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live in newness of life.”
After the homily, the candidates for Baptism were called forward by name, and the Litany of Saints was sung. The cardinal blessed the baptismal waters, and the elect about to be baptized made a renunciation of sin and profession of faith. As he baptized each of them, the cardinal said, “I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” Then the people in the congregation, again holding lit candles, renewed their own baptismal promises, and they were sprinkled with baptismal water.
The newly baptized returned to the front of the sanctuary, wearing their white Baptismal garments and holding candles lit by their godparents. The cardinal prayed, “You have become a new creation and have clothed yourself in Christ… Walk always as children of light.”
Then the 18 people to be received into full communion with the Catholic Church were called forward by name, standing with the elect who had just been baptized. They too made a profession of faith. The 10 Catholics completing their Sacraments of Initiation were also called by name and stepped forward to be confirmed.
As he administered the sacrament of Confirmation to them, Cardinal McElroy said, “Be sealed with the gift of the Holy Spirit,” while he made the sign of the cross on each person’s forehead, anointing them with chrism and announcing their Confirmation name from their chosen patron saint.
After they were all confirmed, Cardinal McElroy asked the newly initiated to stand, and said, “Today our hearts are filled with joy… Your ‘yes’ today renews all of us. Your faith strengthens our communion. And your presence reminds us that the Spirit is ever at work, calling, healing and making all things new. With great joy, we welcome you.”
Then the cardinal and the congregation in the cathedral applauded the men and women who had become full members of the Catholic Church.
Later in the vigil, the newly-initiated received their First Eucharist from the cardinal.
Before offering his final blessing at the Easter Vigil, Cardinal McElroy offered a special message to the 46 men and women who had become full members of the Catholic Church there that evening and were sitting in the front section of the cathedral. “Particularly, it is with joy in my heart that I see all of you there today, and I give thanks to God that God has come into your lives, that God will walk with you,” the cardinal said, adding, “and I pray the Lord will be deep in your hearts and souls, and that you might know the Lord never abandons you, but will walk always side-by-side with you, especially when you need God most.”
The Easter Vigil concluded with the Schola Cantorum choir leading the congregation in singing the joyful hymn, “Jesus Christ is Risen Today.”
On Easter Sunday, April 5, the cardinal will celebrate a noon Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception that will be televised on the Eternal Word Television Network and livestreamed at https://www.youtube.com/live/lo5RJPH4rlA?si=1KgBXHvnwijk_nHu
(Nicole Olea, a reporter for the Catholic Standard, contributed to this article.)
