Easter Vigil 2023, Westminster Cathedral
Cardinal Vincent Nichols has encouraged the faithful not to fear the struggle to get things right on our journey of faith to the Lord.
Describing our journey as ‘infrequently’ on the motorways of God’s plan, more often, he says, we make slow progress on the small, winding B-roads:
“Our faith is not a straight-jacket, imprisoning our freedom, removing spontaneity, demanding uniformity. The meandering of our lives, our struggles to get things right, may well be precisely the environment in which the waters of the Holy Spirit can flow most creatively. So, please, let us not be afraid of our untidiness.”
The main theme as we encounter the Risen Christ, is the drama of the journey from darkness to startling light. Cardinal Nichols explains how we are transformed from being uncertain and anxious to having a clarity of purpose:
“In this light we are invited to see clearly who we are and where we are going. Here we can journey from anxiety to a sure and certain hope; from a multitude of words, bombarding us every day, to a single noble word: Jesus, the eternal Word of God, clothed in our flesh and now triumphant over the ancient enemy. We can go from feeling separated, isolated, to knowing where we belong, in this family of God, this harbour of the Church.”
Tonight we have journeyed from darkness into startling light! It’s been quite dramatic. And its deeper meaning has been made clear in the account of Jesus’ rising from the dead: a violent earthquake, the guard of soldiers ‘like dead men’, the massive stone tossed away like a pebble, the majestic Angel declaring, ‘He is not here for he has risen as he said he would’ (Matthew 28:6).
Our journey from darkness into light depicts this wonder. We go from being unsure to a clarity of purpose and sight. In this light we are invited to see clearly who we are and where we are going. Here we can journey from anxiety to a sure and certain hope; from a multitude of words, bombarding us every day, to a single noble word: Jesus, the eternal Word of God, clothed in our flesh and now triumphant over the ancient enemy. We can go from feeling separated, isolated, to knowing where we belong, in this family of God, this harbour of the Church.
Another image is used powerfully this evening: that of water. Water gives life. Water washes clean. Here it has another quality: water becomes the bearer of God’s Holy Spirit.
Shortly I will bless ordinary water with these words: ‘May this water receive the Holy Spirit so that human nature, created in your image, may be washed clean in baptism and rise to new life.’ Then the water is used for the baptism of three people, three of many being baptised into the life of the risen Christ in churches across the diocese and around the world. They have heard the summons of faith and now enter its glorious light.
These waters of baptism run deep.
Remember the first reading, from the Book of Genesis, with its attempt to explain the world’s origins and design: ‘Now the earth was a formless void, there was darkness over the deep, and God’s spirit hovered over the water’ (Genesis 1:2). It is the Spirit of God, penetrating the water, that brings design to that first chaos, making our world a cosmos, an ordered reality, one that we explore endlessly. Our world, our human nature is God’s work of art and, in Christ, it is fully embraced and brought to its fulfilment.
Or the second reading, from the Book of Exodus. There water, in the powerful hands of the Holy Spirit, becomes the protector of God’s people. The enemy is overcome in the waters of the Red Sea: ‘not a single one of them was left’ (Exodus 14:28).
Or the reading from the Prophet Ezekiel, that promises the pouring of clean water, to give us a new heart and a new spirit.
This Holy Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, is given to each one of us through baptism and in the anointing we have all received. This evening we proclaim again the promises of that baptism and, we pray, the gift of the Holy Spirit will be renewed in each of us. St Paul proclaims its effects: united with Christ, he tells us, ‘you must consider yourselves to be dead to sin but alive for God in Christ Jesus’ (Romans 6:11).
Shortly – or not so shortly! – this ceremony will end. We shall return to our everyday lives, back to our homes and places of work, wherever that may be. We know that the clarity and brightness of this night will fade and that we will struggle to live up to all that we have grasped and cherished this evening. Then we must cling to the great command of the resurrection Angel: ‘There is no need for you to be afraid!’ (Matthew 28:5). No matter what happens, no matter the uncertainty or even darkness that may return, the Lord is still with us, his Spirit is at hand. The waters of baptism do not lose their power.
A lovely image came my way yesterday: an account of a river, in the Lake District, which, in Victorian times, was diverted by clever engineers into a straight, artificial river bed. The idea was to eradicate the twists and turns of the river in order to clear a greater area of arable land. It worked, except all the natural richness of the river was lost. The fish disappeared. It became a barren waterway. Recently the artificial river bed has been removed and the river returned to its meanderings. Now the salmon have returned to spawn there. The kingfishers are on their way back. New life is thriving.
So too in our lives, under the work of the Holy Spirit. Our faith is not a straight-jacket, imprisoning our freedom, removing spontaneity, demanding uniformity. The meandering of our lives, our struggles to get things right, may well be precisely the environment in which the waters of the Holy Spirit can flow most creatively. So, please, let us not be afraid of our untidiness. Our journey is only infrequently on the motorways of God’s plan. More often we travel on the B-roads, the small and winding roads, making progress slowly, at times unsure of the direction we seem to be taking, yet always having eyes for the wonder and abundance of God’s world around us. With our hearts open to the Lord, and our hands ready for his guidance, we can journey on with faithfulness and tranquility of heart. If we stay faithful, His light, so compelling this evening, will bring us home.
The Gospel tells us that from the side of the crucified Jesus, there poured forth blood and water. This is the source of the fountain of life, the flood of the Holy Spirit. Tonight we rejoice in this flow of grace. We acclaim our Risen Lord. We rejoice in this gift of faith. We celebrate this Easter Day. New life in Christ! New life in our world!
A happy Easter to you all!
