HOLY SATURDAY NIGHT – VIGIL OF EASTER . Year A - Saturday April 4th, 2026 (Longer Liturgy of the Easter VIGIL)​

HOLY SATURDAY NIGHT – VIGIL OF EASTER . Year A - Saturday April 4th, 2026 (Longer Liturgy of the Easter VIGIL)

HOLY SATURDAY NIGHT – VIGIL OF EASTER  . Year A - Saturday April 4th, 2026
(Longer Liturgy of the Easter VIGIL)

Readings for HOLY SATURDAY NIGHT – VIGIL OF EASTER. Year A - Saturday April 4th, 2026
(This is the whole vigil of Readings and Holy Saturday Mass – It is traditionally much longer than the usual Mass and filled with ancient beauty and profound symbolism)
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Please listen to the audio recordings of the Mass – (Readings, prayers, and homily) for HOLY SATURDAY NIGHT – VIGIL OF EASTER. Year A - Saturday April 4th, 2026, by clicking this link here: https://soundcloud.com/user-633212303/holy-saturday-vigil-of-1/s-lu9MykJfWth  

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The Easter Vigil in the Holy Night

I. The Solemn Beginning of the Vigil (also known as "Lucernarium"):  Blessing of the Fire, Procession, Exsultet

II. The Liturgy of Word:       Readings/psalms/prayers, Gloria, Homily

III. Renewal of baptism

IV. The Liturgy of Eucharist: Preface of Easter I, (Easter Communicantes, Hanc igitur in Euch. Prayer I)

V. The Concluding Rites:     Dismissal with Alleluia

Readings:      
I Gen 1:1 - 2:2: God saw all he had made, and indeed it was good.
Ps 103:1-2, 5-6, 10, 12-14, 24, 35: R. Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.

II Gen 22:1-18: Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac.
Ps 15:5, 8-11: R. Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.

III  Ex 14:15 - 15:1: Tell the children of Israel to march on, to walk through the sea on dry ground.
Ex 15:1-6, 17-18: R. Let us sing to the Lord; he has covered himself in glory.

IV  Is 54:5-14: But with everlasting love I have taken pity on you, says the Lord, your redeemer.
Ps 29:2, 4-6, 11-13: R. I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.

V   Is 55:1-11: Come to me and your soul will live. With you I will make an everlasting covenant.
Is 12:2-6: R. You will draw water joyfully from the springs of salvation.

VI  Baruch 3:9-15,32 - 4:4: Walk in the way of God and you will live in peace forever.
Ps 18:8-11: R. Lord, you have the words of everlasting life.

VII Ezek 36:16-28: I shall pour clean water over you and I shall give you a new heart.
Ps 41:3, 5; 42:3, 4: R. Like a deer that longs for running streams, my soul longs for you, my God.

Rom 6:3-11: Christ, having been raised from the dead, will never die again.
Ps 117:1-2, 16-17, 22-23: R. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia.

Mt 28:1-10: He has risen from the dead and now he is going before you to Galilee.

Image Credit: Shutterstock Licensed. Stock Illustration ID: 585677387 - Easter resurrection - abstract artistic religious digital illustration with the figure of the risen Jesus Christ and the cross of light rays - Illustration Formats. Illustration Contributor:
Thoom

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Christ is risen, as he said. His resurrection is the first fruit of the eternal life, promised to all who entrust themselves to him. 

A very special welcome to all our candidates and catechumens who, over this Holy Saturday, right throughout the world, are being baptised and fully received into the Christian faith, into the Catholic Church.

Thank you for your preparation, and thank you for your sponsors and the catechists who have assisted you. The Lord has been guiding you and being with you your whole life journey, and now he leads you to this moment, to fuller communion with him in the Church and in the faith. Your reception, your baptism, confirmation, and reception of First Holy Communion tonight is a beautiful source of renewal and strength for all of us too.

Whether we were baptised when we were babies or adults, tonight, by you renewing your faith and entering into the Church, our faith is renewed as well. We too this season renew our faith and commitment to Christ and his grace. Thank you to everyone who supported them, including the whole faith community that have been praying with you on this wonderful journey of faith.

Easter, more than any other feast, tells us that God has the last word in absolutely everything. That word is a profoundly positive and definitive yes. Sin and suffering and evil, it has a say in the world, and it's very, very damaging.

But it is Easter that reminds us that God has the final say on everything, and it is a life-giving word. First and foremost, this word is a yes to his beloved son Jesus, who is God the Son, and it's a yes to everything he did and taught in his ministry. His resurrection is a profound and absolute yes to life, and to us as his eternally cherished daughters and sons.

God today gives a yes to forgiveness of sin for all who are bowed down by the past. God gives a profound yes to us, of his faithfulness to us, no matter what our trials and tragedies that befall us in this life. That is extremely assuring.

Easter and the message of resurrection is about life, hope, love and forgiveness. The irony of the cross and the message of today's wonderful Feast of the Resurrection, the only things we truly possess, that is, things that have abiding and eternal value, are the things that we gain by giving them away. The only things worth possessing are the things that only make sense when given, which achieves very little if stored up.

We're talking about things like love, given freely without expectation, kindness and forgiveness without expecting return, acts of charity, not for recognition or approval, but rather random acts of kindness that no one will ever know we're responsible for. They're done just because they're loving and good, not for any recognition. The more love you give away, the more love you have.

The more love you try to store away, the less love you have. It defies all other economic principles. And that's the logic of Christ and his cross and resurrection.

Our Lord Jesus in his life, his suffering and his death and his resurrection, which we celebrate today, is the perfect example of all these wonderful qualities. And even more wonderfully, he invites us all to share in his way of living. This Easter is a special time for giving thanks.

And for remembering and hopefully getting an opportunity to share time with family and friends and hopefully a bit of rest time for ourselves as well. Easter also reminds us that God is the God of new starts, new beginnings. So we can draw a line behind the past and walk with Christ to renew all things and go forward in his ways.

We also remember prayerfully all who've gone before us because the Easter resurrection gives us peace and assurance in the belief that the Lord of the resurrection is faithful to all his children. And just as he was raised from the dead, he will one day raise us up to new and eternal life in heaven, where one day we'll all be reunited in joy at the heavenly banquet feast. There'll be no more tears, no sadness, no illness, but the fullness of God's kingdom of joy and love.

At Easter, we think of people too who are struggling, those who feel hopeless, those who feel they'll never be good enough or worthy enough, those who fear they could never be forgiven for their sins. Today's feast says to them, yes, God is with you. God will never abandon you.

God truly does want to renew you, to forgive you and give you new hope, new starts, new life, indescribable mercy. Christ says to all of this, yes, and we thank God for this, this day and every day. Jesus is an unequivocal yes to self-sacrifice, service and love, a yes, a profound yes to compassion, mercy and generosity of spirit.

Anyone who says nice people finish last, God says no to that and a profound yes to those who continue to trust that goodness is its own reward, thinking more of others and less of ourselves. May God bless and renew us in his astounding love and may God bless us with his ever-abiding faithfulness and eternal care and may our lives be more and more marked each and every day by these wonderful qualities of Christ, new life and the resurrection.

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References:

Fr Paul W. Kelly

Image Credit: Shutterstock Licensed. Stock Illustration ID: 585677387 - Easter resurrection - abstract artistic religious digital illustration with the figure of the risen Jesus Christ and the cross of light rays - Illustration Formats. Illustration Contributor:
Thoom

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HOLY SATURDAY NIGHT – VIGIL OF EASTER . Year A - SATURDAY, 2026 (Longer Liturgy of the Easter VIGIL)

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PREFACE: Preface I of Easter
Euch prayer I

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Archive of homilies and reflections:  http://homilycatholic.blogspot.com.au
To contact Fr. Paul, please email:  paulwkelly68@gmail.com

To listen to the weekly homily audio podcast, please click this link here:  https://soundcloud.com/user-633212303/tracks


Further information relating to the audio productions linked to this Blog:
"Faith, Hope and Love - Christian worship and reflection"  - Led by Rev Paul Kelly

Prayers and chants  — Roman Missal, 3rd edition, © 2010, The International Commission on English in the liturgy. (ICEL)

Scriptures - New Revised Standard Version: © 1989,  and 2009 by the NCC-USA. (National Council of Churches of Christ - USA)

"The Psalms" ©1963, 2009,  The Grail - Collins publishers.

Prayers of the Faithful -   " Together we pray" by Robert Borg'.   E.J. Dwyer, Publishers, (1993) . (Sydney Australia).

Sung "Mass In Honour of St. Ralph Sherwin" -  By Jeffrey M. Ostrowski. The Gloria,  Copyright © 2011 ccwatershed.org.

- "Today I Arise" - For Trisha J Kelly.  Original words and music by Paul W. Kelly. Inspired by St Patrick's Prayer.  Arranged and sung, with additional lyrics by Stefan Kelk. 2019.

"Quiet Time."  Instrumental Reflection music. Written by Paul W Kelly. 1988, 2007. & This arrangement: Stefan Kelk, 2020.

Sound Engineering and editing -  P.W. Kelly.

Microphones: -  Shure MV5 Digital Condenser (USB)

Editing equipment: NCH software - MixPad Multitrack Studio Recording Software
NCH – WavePad Audio Editing Software. Masters Edition v 12.44

Sound Processing:  iZotope RX 6 Audio Editor

[Production -  KER -  2026]
May God bless and keep you.
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Good Friday of the Passion of the Lord – 3 pm Ceremony (For you at Home). 2026.​

Good Friday of the Passion of the Lord – 3 pm Ceremony 

(For you at Home). 2026.

Good Friday of the Passion of the Lord

 

LITURGY OF THE WORD

First Reading: Isaiah 52:13 - 53:12
Psalm: Ps 30:2. 6. 12-13. 15-17. 25. "Father, I put my life in your hands"
Second Reading: Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9
Gospel Acclamation: Philippians 2:8-9
Passion: John 18:1 - 19:42
Homily

Solemn Intercessions

Spiritual Veneration of the Cross

Communion

Departure in Silence

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Please listen to the audio recordings of the readings, prayers, and reflections for Good Friday Passion -  by clicking this link here: https://soundcloud.com/user-633212303/good-friday-master-passion-of/s-YNTIOvQeXBq

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THE LORD'S PASSION - Good Friday Message.

With so much suffering, violence and hatred in the world, we can clearly see Christ crucified and suffering in the faces of all who hold out for good, for the building blocks of the kingdom.

People who keep acting to heal, to build and to foster understanding, dignity and peace, often at the ultimate cost of their own lives or own livelihood. The cross of Christ is God's wordless declaration of this. I give you my whole heart.

I give you my very self. I have held nothing back from you. Christ invites us to join him in doing the same, by the words we use, in our actions, in our priorities, in our attitudes.

Christ gives of himself for us. He gives every last drop. As we remember our Lord's suffering and death, we see that Jesus is the visible expression of God's love, which is deeper and more heartfelt than anyone could ever fathom.

Christ is the visible expression of God's mercy, God's compassion and kindness, and the visible expression of God's values. God's values are beautifully different from what the world often considers the highest of values. Christ shows us that God is love, complete, self-sacrificing love and mercy, especially in the form of service.

Christ is utter self-emptying love and service for all. Our Lord gave the very last drop of his blood, literally, out of love and service for all others. 

There's a huge irony in the revelation of Christ's cross.

Here, in the cross, is true victory, true power and glory. That is, because he stood up in faithfulness for all that was essential, all that was life-giving. Even in the face of the threat and the actual realisation of suffering and death, he never gave up, he never sold out on what mattered, no matter what the cost, and the cost was huge.

And also, true defeat would be actually avoiding hardship, letting go of what matters to protect one's own personal welfare. True failure is lashing out in hatred and anger because others are giving us that in kind, and trying to dominate others or obtain fleeting results. 

Through Christ's suffering and death, we are saved, we are freed, we are forgiven, and we're given hope to endure all the many "little deaths" and trials and suffering of this world.

For God has the final say in everything, and it's a word of hope, a word of love and faithfulness. In just a short while in this same ceremony, we'll have a time of adoration of the wood of Holy Cross, as we individually come forward and show our own personal and varied signs of reverence and veneration of this cross of Christ. Whether it's a profound and reverent bow, a gentle touch, a momentary pause in stillness and silence, it's always a deeply moving, personal and beautiful part of this Liturgy of Good Friday.

As we come forward and reverence the cross of our Lord, we join our lives and our struggles to Christ's suffering, and he joins himself to us. We nail to the cross of Christ, as it were, spiritually, all our sins, all our trials, our temptations, our failings, our doubts, our pride, our selfishness, our lack of compassion, our failure to love, our illness, our worries, all our thwarted priorities and desires. Christ calling out, "my God, my God, why have you abandoned me," gives voice to God's presence for everyone throughout history who has ever suffered hardship and rejection and violence or illness or injustice, war, disaster, and so much more.

Just as any person throughout history has called out to the Father in heaven, where are you, Lord, in this time of terrible suffering? Jesus takes that call upon his own lips in solidarity with us. Christ has entered into all of this, and he assures us that God is right there with us. The Lord really cares, and more than cares, he suffers along with us, and he lifts us all up.

We are always united deeply in God's love and faithfulness. Even when things are at their worst and seeming at their most hopeless, Christ is with us. 

Our Lord offers us a radically different definition of power, victory, dominion, and success. It stands in direct contrast with the wider world's standard definition of such words. 

We do wonder often, when will the wider world realise this beautiful message of Christ, the things that make for true and lasting peace, the things that last beyond this life into the kingdom of God: Peace, service, love. 

Christ's definition of victory, glory, and power evoked scorn and derision from those who opposed him.

And this is just the same today. Just try to tell the superpowers that true power is revealed in weakness and vulnerability. If we weren't laughed at, it would be at least a cause of reaction or fear. The truth is we are all vulnerable. We're all limited. We all have weaknesses deep down.

This is at the heart of Jesus' message. He's only saying what is profoundly true, that all who try to deal with their vulnerability by using force and domination, fear, oppression, hatred, or violence, they're seeming to act somewhat effectively or forcefully for a time. They may even go through their whole lives appearing to show that no one is stronger than they are, and that they're in charge of everything to do with themselves and their environment. But underneath, they're still vulnerable, still flawed, still ever vigilant against surprise assailants, because they're not and cannot be inherently secure, because they base their lives and their values on things that ultimately do not last, things that are not fundamentally true. 

Jesus warned us that power and oppressive tactics are very seductive options. He faced the temptation to use force to do good and rejected it utterly, knowing that in the end, force is a lie that must be resisted.

He shows us that if people see through this lie of force, violence, and threat, it loses all its power to make anyone do anything out of fear. 

Many people throughout history, after the example of Christ, have peacefully resisted and have learned and shown this message, not without the shadow of the cross, although they've experienced the cross very deeply and suffering that goes with it, but they show the weakness of violence and hatred. Jesus stood entirely unarmed and without armor.

Our Lord stood before the world with the truth of his relationship with his Father. He stood there alone on the validity of his good news message, confirming the absolute power of love, of graciousness and forgiveness, of inclusion and peace. He stood by that right to the end and beyond, and it proved to be utterly authentic and it saves us all.

Jesus showed that power is always actually a relationship, that true leadership is about service and sacrifice, not self-interest, and that the true community must be about including all others, not segregating or separating, not scapegoating or silencing minority voices out of fear. 

When it comes time to venerate the cross, each of us is invited to pray quietly to God (God who is in that secret place of our heart). 

Let us ponder upon what we're nailing to the cross as we come forward today.

For Christ died to save us, to include us individually and as a group, to show us God's mercy and that God is always faithful, even in our darkest hour. 

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References:

Fr Paul W. Kelly.

Mark link sj. "Vision – Praying Scripture in a Contemporary Way. Year A."

Image: Shutterstock Licensed Item ID: 1049715632 - Biblical vector illustration series. Way of the Cross or Stations of the Cross, twelfth station, Jesus Dies On The Cross. Contributor: rudall30

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Archive of homilies and reflections:  http://homilycatholic.blogspot.com.au
To contact Fr. Paul, please email:  paulwkelly68@gmail.com

To listen to the weekly homily audio podcast, please click this link:  https://soundcloud.com/user-633212303/tracks

Further information relating to the audio productions linked to this Blog:
"Faith, Hope and Love - Christian worship and reflection"  - Led by Rev Paul Kelly
Prayers and chants  — Roman Missal, 3rd edition, © 2010, The International Commission on English in the Liturgy. (ICEL)
Scriptures - New Revised Standard Version: © 1989,  and 2009 by the NCC-USA. (National Council of Churches of Christ - USA)
"The Psalms" ©1963, 2009,  The Grail - Collins Publishers.
May God bless and keep you.  

KER 2026

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