EASTER VIGIL

Saturday, March 30, 2024 8 pm

**New location for the Vigil Service!**

Converse Hall, 88 Tremont St, Boston, MA 02108

**Weather Permitting**
 Meet at Brewer Fountain on the Boston Common at 8 PM , (Park Street T stop) where we will be led in procession to Converse Hall (6-minute walk)

UPDATE: The weather for the start of our Vigil service is looking clear - the service will begin at Brewer Fountain on the Common at 8pm, as previously planned.

service details

The service concludes close to midnight followed by a dessert Feast (bring your best to share!)
Bring a noisemaker for the Easter Acclamation!
Elevator access available
Childcare will not be provided
For **parking and T information** click **here**

The Easter Vigil, hosted annually by Church of the Cross since 2011 on Holy Saturday night, marks the apex of the Christian liturgical year, celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ. This profound service, a liturgical symphony of light, word, water, and Eucharist, embodies the Christian journey from death to life, darkness to light, encapsulating the victory of light over darkness through the Resurrection.

The service commences

with the Service of Light, highlighted by the lighting of the Paschal candle, symbolizing Christ as the Light of the World.

This act marks the beginning of the transition from the tomb's darkness into the radiant light of resurrection, setting the stage for a night when the Church encounters the living God, who calls her out of the tomb and into the splendor of the Resurrection. In this light, we joyously recount salvation history through a public reading of the Biblical narrative, from Creation to the Resurrection, with creative responses from a myriad of artists.

Like Immersive theatre

the narrative is not merely retold, we actively participate in it. Like baptism we are plunged into the sacred story with Scripture, song, liturgy, and art. As the night unfolds, the community participates in baptisms and reaffirms baptismal vows, symbolizing our new birth in Christ and unity with him in death and resurrection.

The culmination of the Vigil is the celebration of the Eucharist, an intimate sharing in the feast of the risen Lamb of God, where sorrow turns to joy, and despair gives way to hope. This ancient service, lasting three to four hours, not only commemorates Christ's resurrection but also invites Christians to renew their baptismal vows, and to praise God for how he has baptized them into this Paschal Mystery.

The vigil concludes with a dessert Feast, extending well past midnight, offering a time for fellowship and celebration after the solemnity and joy of the service. The Easter Vigil stands as a momentous occasion, not merely a prelude to Easter but a passage into the heart of the Paschal Mystery, where the Church joyfully proclaims Jesus Christ’s victory over death and his gift of eternal life.