Easter vigil 2022 Back

Easter Vigil 2022

Easter is one of the most significant events in the Christian Liturgical Calendar. It celebrates the Resurrection of Jesus Christ on the third day after his crucifixion. 

The parishioners of Most Holy Redeemer Church Derebail turned out in great strength for the Easter Vigil Mass on Holy Saturday on April 16th, 2022 at 7PM.

The main celebrant Rev.Fr. Austin Peter Peres along with Rev.Fr.Gerald Pinto began the ceremony with the Blessing of the Paschal Candle. The Service of the Light began in silence outside the church where a new fire was kindled and each member of the congregation lights candle from the main Paschal Candle. This ceremony signifies the victory of light over darkness. During this celebratory mass , the choristers sang "Gloria" signifying the end of the Lenten season.

Fr. Austin delivered a powerful homily , that highlighted the significance of Easter. The opening lines of the homily sent out an inspirational message to every listener. He began by stating , " You can bury the truth but the truth will always come back to life. The biggest example of this is the first Easter that showed us that Life never ends and love never dies." He further elaborated on the significance of Easter by calling it an important event that lays firm foundation to our faith and gives meaning to our prayers. His words of assurance at the end of the sermon stating, " Every Good Friday is followed by an Easter" affirmed that every struggle that human beings under go is followed by God's grace.

After the conclusion of the Liturgy of the Word, the water of the baptismal font is blessed. As an important part of the Easter Vigil mass and as a powerful experience the faithful then renewed their Baptismal vows. The consecrated water or the Holy Water was then sprinkled over the gathering.  This was followed by Prayers of the Faithful. This was followed by the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

The melodious choir added to the solemnity of the celebration. 

At the end of the ceremony the Parish Priest placed on record his gratitude to all those who rendered their services to the church in various capacities during the Lenten season. 

Another significant yet unique part of this year's Easter Vigil Mass was the felicitation of Jeswin and Lavisha and Kelvin and Amulya. These young couples from Derebail chose to give up their promising careers at MNCs and serve the Lord. Fr.Austin along with Fr.Gerald, Mrs.Sheela and Mr.Gaulbert congratulated and wished them the best on their journey ahead as missionaries in West Bengal and Malawi respectively. It was indeed a heart-touching moment for all the parishioners. 

Mr. Mark Serra of Dakshina Kannada's Home Guard Department was felicitated for receiving the Chief Ministers Gold Medal for the year 2021-22.

Parishioners who had contributed for the mass were honoured with a candle. Meanwhile, volunteers distributed refreshments to the parishioners.

Report by: Lynsha Lobo
Pictures: Simon Pereira