La Vita Monastica

A beautiful photo project has been posted on the web. The photos were taken by Robert Falcetti. From his website:

La Vita Monastica (The Monastic Life) is my photographic study of the cloistered community of Benedictine nuns at the Abbey of Regina Laudis in Bethlehem, Connecticut. The roots of The Abbey of Regina Laudis, founded in 1947, have their origin in the ancient Abbey of Notre Dame de Jouarre, which was founded in the 7th century and is located northeast of Paris. This personal project started as a single assignment. Many of the images here are being shown for the first time.

The photo gallery is at http://www.photoshelter.com/c/falcetti/gallery/La-Vita-Monastica/G0000IQOa9HH3N3s/

For the website of the Abbey, go to: http://www.abbeyofreginalaudis.com/sitelive/index.htm

Thursday April 15 last day to submit name for Pastoral Council

The St. Landry Catholic Church Pastoral Council elections for 2010
Council members are coming in May. The pastoral council member term is a 3-year commitment with a monthly meeting held on the first Monday of each month.

The purpose of the church pastoral council is to advise our pastor on issues and events within the church parish. This year we have two positions to fill.

Parishioners interested in becoming a candidate are to submit your name and a brief paragraph of your call to church parish involvement to the Church Office.

The deadline for submitting candidates is Thursday. April 15, 2010. For more information, contact Yvonne L Normand, Church Trustee, and Election Chair at 337-308-3474.

Year for Priests

YEAR FOR PRIESTS

Faithfulness of Christ, faithfulness of priests

I think these things are essential [in the daily life of a priest]: the Eucharist, the Office of Readings, prayer and a conversation every day, even a brief one, with the Lord on his words, which I must proclaim. And never lose either your friendship with priests, listening to the voice of the living Church, or the availability to the people entrusted to me, because from these very people, with their suffering, their faith experiences, their doubts and difficulties, we too can learn, seek and find God, find our Lord Jesus Christ.

Pope Benedict XVI’s visit to the Roman Major Seminary on February 17, 2007.

Appreciations from Monsignor J. Robert Romero

Many thanks to all who helped care for the Church’s liturgical environment during Lent and the Easter Triduum. I thank all who worked on the Easter decorations. A great job!!

I also thank all the altar servers, lectors, extra ordinary ministers of communion, ushers, sacristans, and music ministers for their good work. The many demands of the Easter Triduum Liturgy were surpassed with trouble-free teamwork.

In addition, acknowledgement is due to all who participated in the washing of the feet on Holy Thursday. These are Shelby Boudreaux, Alice Cormier, Lloyd Cormier, Howard Fournier, Mark Fuselier, Frances Hargroder, Audra LeJeune, Lee LeJeune, Gloria Miller, Madisonne Ned, Tyler Smith, and Beau Stelly.

Thanks to one and all!
 
Monsignor J. Robert Romero

Vatican Information Services launches a blog

Vatican Information Services has launched a blog.

I would like to think they are following St. Landry Catholic Church's example ... ha ha!

To see the latest on the blog of the Vatican's news site, click below.

http://visnews-en.blogspot.com/

Greeting in the Lord

Descent to Hell by Duccio di Buoninsegna, 1308-11

Monsignor J. Robert Romero included a section of an Ancient Homily for Holy Saturday in the weekly bulletin as an example of "Greeting in the Lord". Jesus greets Adam after the crucifixion.

The painting above portrays the event. Christ in a robe trimmed with gold stands on a vanquished demon as he reaches out to help Adam up. Eve sits beside him. You can see the crushed doors of hell below as well. David appears with a crown. Other ancient forefathers surround them.

Below is the full homily as it read in the Liturgy of the Hours for Holy Saturday. The greeting is in the third paragraph.

The Lord's descent into hell

"What is happening? Today there is a great silence over the earth, a great silence, and stillness, a great silence because the King sleeps; the earth was in terror and was still, because God slept in the flesh and raised up those who were sleeping from the ages. God has died in the flesh, and the underworld has trembled.

Truly he goes to seek out our first parent like a lost sheep; he wishes to visit those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death. He goes to free the prisoner Adam and his fellow-prisoner Eve from their pains, he
who is God, and Adam's son.

The Lord goes in to them holding his victorious weapon, his cross. When Adam, the first created man, sees him, he strikes his breast in terror and calls out to all: 'My Lord be with you all.' And Christ in reply says to Adam: ‘And with your spirit.’ And grasping his hand he raises him up, saying: ‘Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give you light.

‘I am your God, who for your sake became your son, who for you and your descendants now speak and command with authority those in prison: Come forth, and those in darkness: Have light, and those who sleep: Rise.

‘I command you: Awake, sleeper, I have not made you to be held a prisoner in the underworld. Arise from the dead; I am the life of the dead. Arise, O man, work of my hands, arise, you who were fashioned in my image. Rise, let us go hence; for you in me and I in you, together we are one undivided person.

‘For you, I your God became your son; for you, I the Master took on your form; that of slave; for you, I who am above the heavens came on earth and under the earth; for you, man, I became as a man without help, free among the dead; for you, who left a garden, I was handed over to Jews from a garden and crucified in a garden.

‘Look at the spittle on my face, which I received because of you, in order to restore you to that first divine inbreathing at creation. See the blows on my cheeks, which I accepted in order to refashion your distorted form to my own image.

'See the scourging of my back, which I accepted in order to disperse the load of your sins which was laid upon your back. See my hands nailed to the tree for a good purpose, for you, who stretched out your hand to the tree for an evil one.

`I slept on the cross and a sword pierced my side, for you, who slept in paradise and brought forth Eve from your side. My side healed the pain of your side; my sleep will release you from your sleep in Hades; my sword has checked the sword which was turned against you.

‘But arise, let us go hence. The enemy brought you out of the land of paradise; I will reinstate you, no longer in paradise, but on the throne of heaven. I denied you the tree of life, which was a figure, but now I myself am united to you, I who am life. I posted the cherubim to guard you as they would slaves; now I make the cherubim worship you as they would God.

"The cherubim throne has been prepared, the bearers are ready and waiting, the bridal chamber is in order, the food is provided, the everlasting houses and rooms are in readiness; the treasures of good things have been opened; the kingdom of heaven has been prepared before the ages."
 
Source: Ancient Homily for Holy Saturday: PG 43, 440A, 452C; LH, Holy Saturday, OR

Divine Mercy Chaplet and Benediction this afternoon

At 3 PM this afternoon at Our Lady Queen of Angels in Opelousas, Louisiana, there will be a benediction as well as the praying of the Divine Mercy Chaplet.

We hope to see you there.

Divine Mercy Sunday and the Catechism of the Catholic Church

Today, during his homily on The Passion, Monsignor Romero referenced the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The Catechism is a wonderful reference to Catholic teaching.

The Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church is available by clicking here for the Vatican website.

And the Catechism of the Catholic Church is available by clicking here for the Vatican website.

During the homily, Monsignor Romero referenced paragraph 445 in the Catechism of the Catholic Church under the topic of "The Only Son of God".

445 After his Resurrection, Jesus' divine sonship becomes manifest in the power of his glorified humanity. He was "designated Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his Resurrection from the dead".57 The apostles can confess: "We have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth."

Homily for Divine Mercy Sunday

Homilies are now available to download and listen to!

As part of our answering the challenge of the Holy Father to go out and evangelize utilizing new technologies, we're now offering the homily each week for download. Clicking the link to the homily should download it and automatically start it playing in whatever music player your computer is set up with.

On the technical side, the file sizes are about 5 megs which means it may a minute or two to download on slower Internet connections. It is also an MP3 formatted file which means that these are essentially podcasts. Don't worry if all the technical words don't mean much to you. It means we're using the latest in technology in order to make sure our church parish can reach the most people.

The current week's homily is available on a link on the front page of the website next to the link for the current week's bulletin. On the page with the prior bulletins, the corresponding homily will be sitting side by side with its bulletin. We started on the anniversary of the start of the Catholic Church, Pentecost Sunday. This week, Divine Mercy Sunday, is our sixty first podcast to be posted. This week, the homily is given by Monsignor J. Robert Romero.

So, take a listen and let us know what you think. Click here to download the Divine Mercy Sunday homily from St. Landry Catholic Church, Opelousas, Louisiana.

Bulletin for the Week of April 11, 2010

The bulletin for the week of April 11, 2010 has been posted. Click here to see it.

The calendar on the website has been updated with all events for the coming week along with prayer intention information and information on the second collection for all of the masses. Take some time to look at our calendar here.

Updates are also being made to our St. Landry Catholic Church blog. You can get to the blog from the church home page under the Bulletins and News section or you can just click here to go to it.

Don't forget, we're also sending out live updates via Twitter. Our Twitter name is StLandryCath. You can see updates by clicking here.

And we're also on Facebook --- friend us! You can see our updates on our page StLandryCatholicChurch.

Readings and Themes for the Week of April 11, 2010

Readings for Faith Sharing
Week of April 11, 2010,
Divine Mercy Sunday

Reading Acts 5:12-16

Peter's faith in Jesus enables him to work signs and wonders.

Psalm 118

"Give thanks to the Lord for he is good, his love is everlasting."

Reading II Revelation 1:9-11a, 12-13, 17-19

He is the first and the last, the one who lives.

Gospel: John 20:19-31

How blessed are those who have not seen but have believed.

THEME:

Receive the Holy Spirit

Today’s scriptures invite us to gather around the risen Christ, whose words echo across the millennia to each person in this holy place: “Peace be with you.” This blessing is at the heart of the message of Easter. As the scriptures are proclaimed, let us pray for a continued outpouring of peace on a world grown weary by war and violence.

Questions of the week

Question for Children:

Jesus appeared to the disciples even though they were afraid and locked in the closed room.

How can you show Jesus to another person this week by the way you act?

Question for Youth:

Thomas didn't believe because he hadn't seen Jesus with his own eyes.

How hard is it for you to believe in God without being able to see God?

How do you see God in the words and actions of others?

Question for Adults:

Jesus said: "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe." Give one example of how you will show your belief in Jesus this week -- how you are being sent forth.

Stewardship
"Blessed are those who have not seen and believe."

John tells us that the disciples who abandoned Jesus when He was arrested and taken to the cross [John was one of them] were locked in a room a week after they had seen him risen from the dead and had appeared to them in that same room. Jesus had good reason to be disappointed with them, but He says to them, “Peace be with you!” He knew it was difficult for them to believe even though they had seen. And He knew how difficult it would be for us who had not seen to believe. That is why, at our Baptism, our parents, or we ourselves if we are old enough, promise to make our faith constantly grow stronger in our hearts and to bring that faith unstained into heaven. We renewed our Baptismal Promises on Easter Sunday. What have we done to make our faith grow stronger in our hearts? What are we doing? What will we do in the future? Are we being good stewards of our faith?

Stewardship Expressions

Stewardship starts with the personal experience of the Risen Christ in our midst and in our hearts. It is a vocation to discipleship. We have so much to consider as we progress through Easter and Spring.

Learn about Our Lord’s special grants of mercy and forgiveness to sinners on Divine Mercy Sunday (April 11th). Citizen stewardship is reflected on tax day (April 15thth). We celebrate and value God’s Creation in special ways on Earth Day (April 22nd). Throughout the month, let us strive to further develop our personal relationship with the Risen Christ and give witness to our discipleship through our stewardship expressions of daily living.

Al Soileau to speak to Imperial St. Landry Genealogical and Historical Society

Al Soileau will speak to the Imperial St. Landry Genealogical and Historical Society this Saturday, April 10th. He will discuss history and interesting facts about St. Landry Catholic Church.

Society meetings continue to be held at 10:00 am on the second Saturday of each month (except December.) Doctor's Hospital is now referred to as the SOUTH CAMPUS of OGH (Opelousas General Hospital) and the Society continues to meet in the first floor Conference Room. Coffee and other refreshments will be served beginning at 9:30 am before each meeting. The public is always welcome.

Images from Holy Week in Rome

Images from Holy Week in Rome

From Rome Reports' YouTube channel, here's a video of the best images from Holy Week at the Vatican with the Holy Father.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9D3dl5zMgnc

Te Deum - You, God

Today, for those who pray the Liturgy of the Hours, the Te Deum is prayed. This hymn will be prayed every day during the octave of Easter as well as the Sundays of Easter. It's name, Te Deum, comes from the opening line, "Te Deum Laudamus --- You, God, we praise!"

Historically, it was said that the hymn was written and sung by St. Ambrose and St. Augustine on the night of St. Augustine's baptism around the year 387 A.D. More recent scholarship says it was written by Nicetas of Remesiana (modern day Romania) 100 years later. During the Jubilee Year of the Church in 2000, Pope John Paul II declared this hymn the Jubilee Hymn.

YOU ARE GOD (Te Deum)

You are God: we praise you;

You are the Lord: we acclaim you;

You are the eternal Father:

All creation worships you.

To you all the angels, all the powers of heaven,

Cherubim and Seraphim, sing in endless praise:

    Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,

    heaven and earth are full of your glory.

The glorious company of apostles praise you.

The noble fellowship of prophets praise you.

The white-robed army of martyrs praise you.

Throughout the world the holy Church acclaims you:

    Father, of majesty unbounded,

    your true and only Son, worthy of all worship,

    and the Holy Spirit, advocate and guide.

You, Christ, are the king of glory,

the eternal Son of the Father.

When you became man to set us free

you did not spurn the Virgin's womb.

You overcame the sting of death,

and opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers.

You are seated at God's right hand in glory.

We believe that you will come, and be our judge.

Come then, Lord, and help your people,

bought with the price of your own blood,

and bring us with your saints

to glory everlasting.

V. Save your people, Lord, and bless your inheritance.

R. Govern and uphold them now and always.

V. Day by day we bless you.

R. We praise your name for ever.

V. Keep us today, Lord, from all sin.

R. Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy.

V. Lord, show us your love and mercy;

R. for we put our trust in you.

V. In you, Lord, is our hope:

R. and we shall never hope in vain.

Photos from the Easter Vigil

Deacon John Miller lights the candles of altar servers from the Easter Candle.

We've got photos up from the Easter Vigil Mass. It's the full mass along with the lighting of the Easter Candle and confirmation.

See the photo gallery here ... http://www.stlandrycatholicchurch.org/gallery2/main.php/v/20100403EasterVigilMass/

We also have photographs of the practice before the mass here: http://www.stlandrycatholicchurch.org/gallery2/main.php/v/20100403EasterVigilPractice/. Our altar servers worked very hard during the Easter Triduum as well as throughout the year and we want to thank them.

Our bell started ringing again during the Gloria at Easter Vigil and we now celebrate the Easter season.

A little music from the Easter Triduum - Pange Lingua & Ye Sons and Daughters

Something a little different today ...

Two links to music from our choir at St. Landry Catholic Church, headed up by Curt Miller.

Click here for Pange Lingua from Holy Thursday Mass during the Reposition of the Blessed Sacrament, April 1, 2010.

Click here for Ye Sons and Daughters from Easter Vigil Mass during communion, April 3, 2010.

Lyrics of "Pange Lingua"

Pange, lingua, gloriosi

Corporis mysterium,

Sanguinisque pretiosi,

quem in mundi pretium

fructus ventris generosi

Rex effudit Gentium.

Sing, my tongue, the Savior's glory,

of His flesh the mystery sing;

of the Blood, all price exceeding,

shed by our immortal King,

destined, for the world's redemption,

from a noble womb to spring.

Of a pure and spotless Virgin

born for us on earth below,

He, as Man, with man conversing,

stayed, the seeds of truth to sow;

then He closed in solemn order

wondrously His life of woe.

On the night of that Last Supper,

seated with His chosen band,

He the Pascal victim eating,

first fulfills the Law's command;

then as Food to His Apostles

gives Himself with His own hand.

Word-made-Flesh, the bread of nature

by His word to Flesh He turns;

wine into His Blood He changes;

what though sense no change discerns?

Only be the heart in earnest,

faith her lesson quickly learns.

Down in adoration falling,

This great Sacrament we hail,

Over ancient forms of worship

Newer rites of grace prevail;

Faith will tell us Christ is present,

When our human senses fail.

To the everlasting Father,

And the Son who made us free

And the Spirit, God proceeding

From them Each eternally,

Be salvation, honor, blessing,

Might and endless majesty.

Amen. Alleluia.

Lyrics of "Ye Sons and Daughters"

[Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!]

Ye sons and daughters of the King,

whom heavenly hosts in glory sing,

today the grave bath lost its sting. Alleluia!

On that first morning of the week,

before the day began to break,

the Marys went their Lord to seek. Alleluia!

An Angel bade their sorrow flee,

for thus he spake unto the three:

'Your Lord is gone to Galilee.' Alleluia!

That night the Apostles met in fear,

amidst them came their Lord most dear,

and said: 'Peace be unto you here!' Alleluia!

When Thomas afterwards had heard

that Jesus had fulfilled hiœ word,

he doubted if it were the Lord. Alleluia!

'Thomas, behold my side,' saith he,

'my hands, my feet, my body see;

'and doubt not, but believe in me.' Alleluia!

No longer Thomas then denied;

he saw the feet, the hands, the side;

'Thou art my Lord and God,' he cried. Alleluia!

Blessed are they that have not seen,

and yet whose faith bath constant been,

in life eternal they shall reign. Alleluia!

On this most holy day of days,

to God your hearts and voices raise

in laud, and jubilee, and praise. Alleluia!

And we with holy Church unite,

as evermore is just and right,

in glory to the King of Light. Alleluia!

St. Landry Catholic Church in the Opelousas Daily World

Take a look at the Daily World newspaper, page 2A at the top left. There's a photo from our Holy Thursday mass featuring Monsignor J. Robert Romero and Mr. Howard Fournier!

Thanks Daily World!

He is risen, Alleluia Alleluia!

The Resurrection Window, over the altar

St. Landry Catholic Church, Opelousas, Louisiana

Easter is here --- and we celebrate the Resurrection of Our Lord. The Resurrection Window at our church is a powerful image. One of the Roman soldiers has been knocked down. Christ stands on an opened sepulchre with a staff bearing his standard. Below him is a casted off cloak and the crown of thorns. He's clothed now in fine clothes and raises his right hand in a blessing. A flower next to the sepulchre blooms.

Today is also the 1st anniversary of our new look website and our blog. It's been a wonderful year, sharing all of the things going on in and around our parish as well as all things Catholic around the world. We've received kind comments and questions from around the world, have had some of our artwork featured in diocesan magazines as far as Spain, and have had some of our information featured in other blogs on the internet. We've started a presence on Twitter and Facebook, set up a YouTube channel, and have started a new presence for the St. Landry Bell on those social sites as well.

Thanks to everyone for all of the positive feedback and we hope to be an even better resource into the future.

Homily for Easter Vigil

Homilies are now available to download and listen to!

As part of our answering the challenge of the Holy Father to go out and evangelize utilizing new technologies, we're now offering the homily each week for download. Clicking the link to the homily should download it and automatically start it playing in whatever music player your computer is set up with.

On the technical side, the file sizes are about 5 megs which means it may a minute or two to download on slower Internet connections. It is also an MP3 formatted file which means that these are essentially podcasts. Don't worry if all the technical words don't mean much to you. It means we're using the latest in technology in order to make sure our church parish can reach the most people.

The current week's homily is available on a link on the front page of the website next to the link for the current week's bulletin. On the page with the prior bulletins, the corresponding homily will be sitting side by side with its bulletin. We started on the anniversary of the start of the Catholic Church, Pentecost Sunday. This week, Easter Vigil, is our fifty eighth podcast to be posted. This week, the homily is given by Monsignor J. Robert Romero.

So, take a listen and let us know what you think. Click here to download The Easter Vigil homily from St. Landry Catholic Church, Opelousas, Louisiana.

Homily of Pope Benedict XVI for the Easter Vigil at St. Peter's, April 3, 2010

What follows is the Homily of Pope Benedict XVI for the Easter Vigil at St. Peter's, April 3, 2010

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

An ancient Jewish legend from the apocryphal book “The life of Adam and Eve” recounts that, in his final illness, Adam sent his son Seth together with Eve into the region of Paradise to fetch the oil of mercy, so that he could be anointed with it and healed. The two of them went in search of the tree of life, and after much praying and weeping on their part, the Archangel Michael appeared to them, and told them they would not obtain the oil of the tree of mercy and that Adam would have to die. Subsequently, Christian readers added a word of consolation to the Archangel’s message, to the effect that after 5,500 years the loving King, Christ, would come, the Son of God who would anoint all those who believe in him with the oil of his mercy. “The oil of mercy from eternity to eternity will be given to those who are reborn of water and the Holy Spirit. Then the Son of God, Christ, abounding in love, will descend into the depths of the earth and will lead your father into Paradise, to the tree of mercy.” This legend lays bare the whole of humanity’s anguish at the destiny of illness, pain and death that has been imposed upon us. Man’s resistance to death becomes evident: somewhere – people have constantly thought – there must be some cure for death. Sooner or later it should be possible to find the remedy not only for this or that illness, but for our ultimate destiny – for death itself. Surely the medicine of immortality must exist. Today too, the search for a source of healing continues. Modern medical science strives, if not exactly to exclude death, at least to eliminate as many as possible of its causes, to postpone it further and further, to prolong life more and more. But let us reflect for a moment: what would it really be like if we were to succeed, perhaps not in excluding death totally, but in postponing it indefinitely, in reaching an age of several hundred years? Would that be a good thing? Humanity would become extraordinarily old, there would be no more room for youth. Capacity for innovation would die, and endless life would be no paradise, if anything a condemnation. The true cure for death must be different. It cannot lead simply to an indefinite prolongation of this current life. It would have to transform our lives from within. It would need to create a new life within us, truly fit for eternity: it would need to transform us in such a way as not to come to an end with death, but only then to begin in fullness. What is new and exciting in the Christian message, in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, was and is that we are told: yes indeed, this cure for death, this true medicine of immortality, does exist. It has been found. It is within our reach. In baptism, this medicine is given to us. A new life begins in us, a life that matures in faith and is not extinguished by the death of the old life, but is only then fully revealed.

To this some, perhaps many, will respond: I certainly hear the message, but I lack faith. And even those who want to believe will ask: but is it really so? How are we to picture it to ourselves? How does this transformation of the old life come about, so as to give birth to the new life that knows no death? Once again, an ancient Jewish text can help us form an idea of the mysterious process that begins in us at baptism. There it is recounted how the patriarch Enoch was taken up to the throne of God. But he was filled with fear in the presence of the glorious angelic powers, and in his human weakness he could not contemplate the face of God. “Then God said to Michael,” to quote from the book of Enoch, “‘Take Enoch and remove his earthly clothing. Anoint him with sweet oil and vest him in the robes of glory!’ And Michael took off my garments, anointed me with sweet oil, and this oil was more than a radiant light … its splendour was like the rays of the sun. When I looked at myself, I saw that I was like one of the glorious beings” (Ph. Rech, Inbild des Kosmos, II 524).

Precisely this – being reclothed in the new garment of God – is what happens in baptism, so the Christian faith tells us. To be sure, this changing of garments is something that continues for the whole of life. What happens in baptism is the beginning of a process that embraces the whole of our life – it makes us fit for eternity, in such a way that, robed in the garment of light of Jesus Christ, we can appear before the face of God and live with him for ever.

In the rite of baptism there are two elements in which this event is
expressed and made visible in a way that demands commitment for the rest of our lives. There is first of all the rite of renunciation and the promises. In the early Church, the one to be baptized turned towards the west, the symbol of darkness, sunset, death and hence the dominion of sin. The one to be baptized turned in that direction and pronounced a threefold “no”: to the devil, to his pomp and to sin. The strange word “pomp”, that is to say the devil’s glamour, referred to the splendour of the ancient cult of the gods and of the ancient theatre, in which it was considered entertaining to watch people being torn limb from limb by wild beasts. What was being renounced was a type of culture that ensnared man in the adoration of power, in the world of greed, in lies, in cruelty. It was an act of liberation from the imposition of a form of life that was presented as pleasure and yet hastened the destruction of all that was best in man. This renunciation – albeit in less dramatic form – remains an essential part of baptism today. We remove the “old garments”, which we cannot wear in God’s presence. Or better put: we begin to remove them. This renunciation is actually a promise in which we hold out our hand to Christ, so that he may guide us and reclothe us. What these “garments” are that we take off, what the promise is that we make, becomes clear when we see in the fifth chapter of the Letter to the Galatians what Paul calls “works of the flesh” – a term that refers precisely to the old garments that we remove. Paul designates them thus: “fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, anger, selfishness, dissension, party spirit, envy, drunkenness, carousing and the like” (Gal 5:19ff.). These are the garments that we remove: the garments of death.

Then, in the practice of the early Church, the one to be baptized turned towards the east – the symbol of light, the symbol of the newly rising sun of history, the symbol of Christ. The candidate for baptism determines the new direction of his life: faith in the Trinitarian God to whom he entrusts himself. Thus it is God who clothes us in the garment of light, the garment of life. Paul calls these new “garments” “fruits of the spirit”, and he describes them as follows: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Gal 5:22).

In the early Church, the candidate for baptism was then truly stripped of his garments. He descended into the baptismal font and was immersed three times – a symbol of death that expresses all the radicality of this removal and change of garments. His former death-bound life the candidate consigns to death with Christ, and he lets himself be drawn up by and with Christ into the new life that transforms him for eternity. Then, emerging from the waters of baptism the neophytes were clothed in the white garment, the garment of God’s light, and they received the lighted candle as a sign of the new life in the light that God himself had lit within them. They knew that they had received the medicine of immortality, which was fully realized at the moment of receiving holy communion. In this sacrament we receive the body of the risen Lord and we ourselves are drawn into this body, firmly held by the One who has conquered death and who carries us through death.

In the course of the centuries, the symbols were simplified, but the
essential content of baptism has remained the same. It is no mere cleansing, still less is it a somewhat complicated initiation into a new association. It is death and resurrection, rebirth to new life.

Indeed, the cure for death does exist. Christ is the tree of life, once more within our reach. If we remain close to him, then we have life. Hence, during this night of resurrection, with all our hearts we shall sing the alleluia, the song of joy that has no need of words. Hence, Paul can say to the Philippians: “Rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say, rejoice!” (Phil 4:4). Joy cannot be commanded. It can only be given. The risen Lord gives us joy: true life. We are already held for ever in the love of the One to whom all power in heaven and on earth has been given (cf. Mt 28:18). In this way, confident of being heard, we make our own the Church’s Prayer over the Gifts from the liturgy of this night: Accept the prayers and offerings of your people. With your help may this Easter mystery of our redemption bring to perfection the saving work you have begun in us. Amen.