What Is the Great Vigil of Easter?

This once-a-year service — the first of Easter — tells the entire story of Christianity, from creation to now. And it all happens on Saturday night.

You think Easter, you think Sunday morning. But did you know Easter actually begins the night before? The Great Vigil, which happens after sundown on Saturday, is the first — and for many primary — celebration of Easter in The Episcopal Church. Its roots go back centuries, when early Christians gathered to read Scripture and pray as they anticipated the dawn. 

The third part of the series known as the Triduum, which also includes Maundy Thursday and Good Friday, the Great Vigil puts us squarely in the story of Holy Week: Jesus has been killed on a cross and his body lies in a tomb, sealed by a heavy stone. His friends and followers are grieving and keeping vigil (hence the name). They don’t know what’s coming.

Sharing the Light

“It’s a beautiful opportunity to sit in the darkness — the uncertainty of the world as it is now,” says the Rev. Matthew Welsch, priest and director, Children, Youth, and Family. That’s how the service begins: in the dark. “Then, as a community, we light a new fire together.” 

From that fire, which at Trinity is kindled in a large metal bowl at the back of the church, the priest lights a new Paschal candle, which symbolizes the risen Jesus. Members of the congregation hold their own candles, and as the flame is passed from person to person, we sing a hymn called the Exsultet (from the Latin “to rejoice”) — a declaration that the light of God’s love overcomes the darkness of the world.

Telling Our Shared Story

In the glow of the candlelight, we read the most powerful verses of the Old Testament, from creation to the prophets.

We begin in the formless void where God says, “Let there be light,” and speaks the universe into existence; we journey to freedom with the Israelites, who walk on dry land as God holds back the waters of the Red Sea and delivers them from slavery in Egypt; we hear the prophet Isaiah’s bold invitation to seek a God who can be found, whose promises we can rely on; and we experience the prophet Ezekiel’s visceral vision of dry bones breathed back to life. “I will put my spirit within you,” God says through Ezekiel, “and you shall live.”

The readings, led by parishioners of all ages, present an unbroken narrative of God continually bringing God’s people — that’s all of us — from death to life.

“It’s like a family around a campfire, telling these stories that have been passed down, generation after generation,” says the Rev. Kristin Kaulbach Miles, priest and director, Parish Life, “by which the people who came before us came to know God.”

Recommitting to Justice

After the readings, it’s time for baptisms, which welcome new members into the church and symbolize our own rebirth in God’s love. Everyone says the baptismal covenant together — making, or renewing, a commitment to live in community, serve God by serving others, and strive for justice for every person. 

“When we renew our vows, we remember who we are,” says the Rev. Yein Kim, priest and associate director, Sacramental Life and Membership.

Singing Alleluia

The long-awaited moment approaches: A bell rings quietly, then louder and louder. As the light in the church grows, alleluia is proclaimed by all, the first time that word has been spoken in the 40 days since Lent began. The tomb is empty; Christ is risen. Easter is officially here.

We move through the rest of the service — including Holy Eucharist, or communion, and the beloved closing hymn, “Jesus Christ is risen today” — in the joy of the resurrection.

“It’s the entire story of Christianity, all in one night,” says Mother Yein of this once-a-year celebration, “and we’re telling it in community.”

So while most are setting their alarms for Sunday morning, this year consider walking from darkness to light in this ancient service on Saturday night. It’s sweeping in scope and rich in meaning, symbolism, and feeling. And it’s much easier to find a seat.

Join us for the Great Vigil of Easter, April 19, 2025, from 8–10pm at Trinity Church or online at trinitychurchnyc.org.