Easter Vigil

The Easter Vigil, also known as the Paschal Vigil, the Great Vigil of Easter, or Holy Saturday at the Easter Vigil on the Holy Night of Easter, is a liturgy held in traditional Christian churches as the first official celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus. Historically, it is during this liturgy that people are baptized and that adult catechumens are received into full communion with the Church. It is held in the hours of darkness between sunset on Holy Saturday and sunrise on Easter Day – most commonly in the evening of Holy Saturday or midnight – and is the first celebration of Easter, days traditionally being considered to begin at sunset.

Among liturgical Western Christian churches including the Roman Catholic Church, the Lutheran Churches and the Anglican Communion, the Easter Vigil is the most important liturgy of public worship and Mass of the liturgical year, marked by the first use since the beginning of Lent of the exclamatory "Alleluia", a distinctive feature of the Easter season.

In the Moravian Church, the sunrise service starts before dawn on Easter Sunday. Congregations of the Reformed tradition and the Methodist tradition may observe the Easter Vigil or hold a sunrise service. In Eastern Orthodox churches, Oriental Orthodox churches, and other traditions of Eastern Christianity, the extremely festive ceremonies and Divine Liturgy which are celebrated during the Easter Vigil are unique to that night and are the most elaborate and important of the liturgical year.

The original twelve Old Testament readings for the Easter Vigil survive in an ancient manuscript belonging to the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem. The Armenian Easter Vigil also preserves what is believed to be the original length of the traditional gospel reading of the Easter Vigil, i.e., from the Last Supper account to the end of the Gospel according to Matthew. In the earliest Jerusalem usage the vigil began with Psalm 117 [118] sung with the response, "This is the day which the Lord has made." Then followed twelve Old Testament readings, all but the last being followed by a prayer with kneeling.

(1) Genesis 1:1–3:24 (the story of creation); (2) Genesis 22:1–18 (the binding of Isaac); (3) Exodus 12:1–24 (the Passover charter narrative); (4) Jonah 1:1–4:11 (the story of Jonah); (5) Exodus 14:24–15:21 (crossing of the Red Sea); (6) Isaiah 60:1–13 (the promise to Jerusalem); (7) Job 38:2–28 (the Lord's answer to Job); (8) 2 Kings 2:1–22 (the assumption of Elijah); (9) Jeremiah 31:31–34 (the New Covenant); (10) Joshua 1:1–9 (entry into the Promised Land); (11) Ezekiel 37:1–14 (the valley of dry bones); (12) Daniel 3:1–29 (the story of the three youths).

The twelfth reading leads into the Song of the Three Children and is not followed by a prayer with kneeling, but is immediately followed by the prokeimenon of the Eucharistic liturgy. Thomas Talley stresses the importance of this series of reading as representing the oldest known series and the one evidently having the very greatest influence on the development of all subsequent series of readings.

According to Byzantine historian Andrew Ekonomou, the Easter Vespers was unknown in Rome prior to its introduction in the mid-7th century, and solemnization by Pope Vitalian during the period when Rome was part of the Byzantine Empire. The Paschal vespers was long celebrated in Constantinople prior to this and the liturgy itself has details that appear eastern in origin.

The Roman Missal states: "Of this night’s Vigil, which is the greatest and most noble of all solemnities, there is to be only one celebration in each church. It is arranged, moreover, in such a way that after the Lucernarium and the "Exsultet", The Easter Proclamation (which constitutes the first part of this Vigil), Holy Church meditates on the wonders the Lord God has done for his people from the beginning, trusting in his word and promise (the second part, that is, the Liturgy of the Word) until, as day approaches, with new members reborn in Baptism (the third part), the Church is called to the table the Lord has prepared for his people, the memorial of his Death and Resurrection until he comes again (the fourth part)."