Thank you to all who helped to prepare our churches, and our liturgies for our beautiful celebrations of Easter. On Easter Sunday, the New York Times featured an article about the religious celebrations of Easter with a special focus on the Easter Vigil. The article, written by a non-Catholic, served as a beautiful reminder of our rituals and their significance to our faith and our spirituality.
Therefore, on this Octave of Easter, it is opportune to reflect on the beautiful events of a week ago, as we trust and hope in our eventual Resurrection.
The Easter Vigil begins with a celebration of light overcoming the darkness. The Paschal Candle is illuminated, and it leads a procession of light into the darkened Church. The Easter Proclamation, a treasury of salvation history that signifies the importance of “this night” is sung.
A handful of Church lights are lit as the Old Testament readings are proclaimed. These readings, at least three or as many as seven, are each accompanied by a responsorial psalm. The Gloria is sung signifying the movement from the Old Testament to the New. At this point all the lights in the Church are illuminated and the candles in the sanctuary are lit.
This year, after the homily, we were privileged to receive five individuals into the Faith of the Roman Catholic Church. These five were welcomed as they prepared to receive the Sacraments of Initiation. We as a congregational community joined our voices in welcome as we too renewed our Baptismal promises and were sprinkled with Holy Water. Those entering the Catholic Faith received their First Eucharist uniting them with a community sustained by the Bread of Life. Afterwards, throughout the Easter season, they will continue to be enlightened and instructed about the Faith.
Thank you once again for your participation and thank you so very much for your generosity to our collections for Holy Week and Easter. Peace and abundant blessings!
Readings and Reflection questions for the Octave of Easter (Divine Mercy) – Cycle A / 12 April 2026
Acts 2:42-47 – To what aspects of your faith are you devoted? What aspects need some re-commitment? / With whom do you meet on a regular basis? What activities do you do? Who would you like to meet with more regularly? What do you need to do to make that happen? How frequently do you meet with the Lord? / What is sincerity of heart? How sincere is your heart?
Responsorial Psalm 118:2-4, 13-15, 22-24 – R. Give thanks to the LORD for he is good, his love is everlasting. – How frequently do you give thanks to the Lord? For what are you thankful? / What is mercy? Why is today called “Divine Mercy Sunday?” How long does your mercy endure? / What is the purpose of a cornerstone? Who is the cornerstone of your family? Why that person? / “This is the day the Lord has made.” Do you tend to accept the day as the Lord has made it, or do you tend to reshape the day as you would prefer it to be?
1st Peter 1:3-9 – How do you live your life knowing that your inheritance is imperishable, undefiled, unfading, and kept in heaven for you? How does faith safeguard this inheritance? How well is your faith safeguarding it? / What are the Works of Mercy? Pope Francis added care for the environment as an eighth corporal Work of Mercy in 2016. By doing this he was commemorating a significant 1891 papal document on its 125th anniversary. What was the document, and what is its significance? How does caring for the environment fit in with the spirit of that document? / What goals have you set for your faith? What goals has your faith set for you?
John 20:19-31 – What are your fears? How does Jesus calm them for you? / Why did Jesus offer peace to the disciples? Why do we offer peace to each other at Mass? Why does this occur immediately before the Eucharist? / Why did Jesus appear with the marks of his Crucifixion? Are these marks evident in the other Resurrection accounts? / How frequently do you receive the Holy Spirit? / Think about what was going through the mind of St. Thomas during that week. What questions did he ask of the others? What questions would you have asked? / Compare and contrast this account of belief with St. Peter’s description of belief in today’s Epistle. / Do you provide a lot of details when telling a story or do you leave things to the imagination of others? How do you decide what to include and what to exclude?