Holy Saturday--The Vigil at the Tomb

Lent Day 40—The Great Three Days: Vigil of Easter, Saturday April 3

Theme for the Week: The Passion of Christ according to Saint Luke

Passage for the Day: Luke 23:50-55

⁵⁰ Now there was a good and righteous man named Joseph, who, though a member of the council, ⁵¹ had not agreed to their plan and action. He came from the Jewish town of Arimathea, and he was waiting expectantly for the kingdom of God. ⁵² This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. ⁵³ Then he took it down, wrapped it in a linen cloth, and laid it in a rock-hewn tomb where no one had ever been laid. ⁵⁴ It was the day of Preparation, and the sabbath was beginning. ⁵⁵ The women who had come with him from Galilee followed, and they saw the tomb and how his body was laid. ⁵⁶ Then they returned, and prepared spices and ointments. On the sabbath they rested according to the commandment.

Reflection:

Today is the last day of Lent—the last day of the Great Three Days. On this Saturday of Holy Week, with the women who saw the tomb, we, too, stand at the tomb. We are in a kind of state of limbo—Jesus is dead, but God has not yet raised him from the dead. Like the women, we are in a kind of state of resting and making preparations, awaiting what will happen.

The women do not yet know that Jesus will be raised. Because we have their witness, we have access to a hope that they did not have. We have the hope of the resurrection to sustain us through this time of waiting.

Tonight we will gather at a fire. We will light a candle, the Pascal or Christ candle and we will wait. To keep our spirits up, we will tell many of the great stories of the Hebrew Scriptures, reminding ourselves of how God has continually saved God’s people. We will sing and pray together. We will remember and remind ourselves that we have been baptized in the name of the one whom God will raise from the dead.

And finally with Mary Magdalene, we will find the stone rolled from the tomb. We will see the two angels in the empty tomb, and we will finally hear the risen Jesus call Mary by name. We will celebrate by sharing a blessed Holy Communion meal together. We will leave, ending our Lenten time and our Vigil, spreading the Good News that Jesus has been raised. Alleluia, He is risen indeed, Alleluia.

Prayer Themes:

Thank God for the witness of the faithful women, who spread the word that Jesus had been raised. Thank God for the hope of the resurrection. Pray that my Lenten journey might make the joy of the resurrection even sweeter. Pray that those who have not heard that Christ has been raised from the dead might have an opportunity to experience it.