[Propertalk] Great Vigil

Wed Apr 4 13:45:54 EDT 2012

Here's the draft for the Great Vigil.

Bob

THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH OF ST. ALBAN, ALBANY  	     		THE GREAT VIGIL OF 
EASTER - B
9 OLD TESTAMENT READINGS, PSALMS & CANTICLES 
7th APRIL, 2012
ROMANS 6:3-11		                                                	 
PSALM 114
  MARK16:1-8

	The opening of “Night Prayer” in “A New Zealand Prayer Book” begins,
  	“The angels of God guard us through the night
	And quieten the powers of darkness.
	The Spirit of God be our guide
	To lead us to peace and glory.” 1

	We’ve been through a dark week. Familiarity doesn’t necessarily make 
things any easier. Indeed, knowing some of the details, even knowing 
about this evening’s celebration, can add to the tension. The pain, the 
brutality, the loneliness – all of that can take their toll on us. One 
of the things that affects me so much is isolation – not being able to 
talk, especially talk openly with those who’re important to me.

We know that darkness, that uncertainty about what may happen, can still 
grip us and make us anxious. Maybe that’s why the opening words of Night 
Prayer struck me so forcibly as I read and prayed them these past weeks, 
both for myself and for those going through difficult struggles. We need 
reassurance.

	That’s why this evening’s celebration is such a relief. Light is now 
burning – light that cannot be put out; light that will throw shadows 
into proper perspective. The Spirit of God is indeed here to lead us to 
peace and glory.

No matter how often we hear the story, indeed, ALL the stories recited 
tonight, from the overwhelmingly happy depiction of creation and the 
arrival of human beings to the reassembling of humanity from bare bones, 
to Zephaniah’s hope-filled prophecy; ALL the stories tonight talk about 
how we can trust God’s intent to draw us through danger and anxiety. 
But, being human, we need reassuring so that we can get through doubt.

	“We stumble (still) in the darkness” so we pray, daily, in one way or 
another that the “Light of the world transfigure us.” 2 It’s into this 
situation that God once again brings “a light to the world in its 
darkness”. Nevermore shall the world be completely dark – on this we can 
depend.

	The British composer, Gavin Bryars writes in a variety of musical 
styles and has a fairly wide range of compositions to his credit. Of one 
of his best known compositions he wrote, “In 1971, when I lived in 
London, I was working with a friend, Alan Power, on a film about people 
living rough in the area around (the districts of) Elephant and Castle 
and Waterloo Station. In the course of being filmed, some people broke 
into drunken song – sometimes bits of opera, sometimes sentimental 
ballads – and one, who in fact did not drink, sang a religious song 
‘Jesus' Blood Never Failed Me Yet’. This was not ultimately used in the 
film and I was given all the unused sections of tape, including this 
one.

	“When I played it at home, I found that his singing was in tune with my 
piano, and I improvised a simple accompaniment. I noticed, too, that the 
first section of the song - 13 bars in length - formed an effective loop 
which repeated in a slightly unpredictable way. I took the tape loop … 
and copied (it) onto a continuous reel of tape, thinking about perhaps 
adding an orchestrated accompaniment to this. The door of the recording 
room (where I was working) opened on to one of the large painting 
studios and I left the tape copying, with the door open, while I went to 
have a cup of coffee. When I came back I found the normally lively room 
unnaturally subdued. People were moving about much more slowly than 
usual and a few were sitting alone, quietly weeping.

	“I was puzzled until I realised that the tape was still playing and 
that they had been overcome by the old man's singing. This convinced me 
of the emotional power of the music and of … the tramp's nobility and 
simple faith. Although he died before he could hear what I had done with 
his singing, the piece remains as an eloquent, but understated testimony 
to his spirit and optimism.” 3

	It is this optimism, this wonderful spirit, to which we bear witness 
tonight.

	This doesn’t come easily. Firstly, most obviously, this wonderful 
Christian hope comes at an enormous price – the sacrificial love of 
Jesus. And, secondly, it can be difficult for us to comprehend it. We 
talk about the salvation God offers us as a gift which we receive in 
faith.

	Even those eye-witnesses had a hard time piecing things together. It 
took quite a while before the full impact of what Jesus accomplished 
became firmly established in people’s minds. But Jesus’ disciples kept 
working at it. Even before that happened, and a group of powerful church 
folk decided what was right and what was wrong, that small group of 
Jesus’ disciples began to put the pieces together.

	What began last Sunday as a noisy, triumphant celebration quickly 
became subdued, then filled with confusion and terror until it descended 
into silence, in which people may have felt too afraid to speak. But 
just as darkness is the workplace of God, so is silence.

	Talking about silence in the lives of God’s people, one of the 
twentieth-century’s great theologians, Hans Urs Von Balthasar, wrote 
that silence isn’t something to be feared. “The silence required of the 
Christian is not found fundamentally and primarily of human making. 
Rather, believers must realize that they already possess within 
themselves and at the same time in God the quiet, hidden ‘chamber’ into 
which they are to enter and in which they are with [God].” 4

	A reviewer of von Balthasar’s book from which that quote came put it, 
“Balthasar writes that the silence of God is always meaningful and that 
our speech to and about God ultimately culminates in silence - not 
because it is meaningless, but because it is surpassed. Silence is not 
absence but is, instead, a real recognition of presence and 
participation.” 5

	While the disciples were silent, God was creating. While we are silent 
– when we become silent – God’s Love continues to create for us, 
bringing us hope, bringing us reassurance of eternal life. Now, and 
always, we are invited to see, to live in the Light of Christ. Thanks be 
to God.

NOTES:

1 	“A New Zealand Prayer Book, page 167

2	“Night Prayer”, Op cit.

3	“Jesus' Blood Never Failed Me Yet” at www.GavinBryars.com found at 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesus'_Blood_Never_Failed_Me_Yet

5	“Benjamin”, found at 
http://www.amazon.com/gp/pdp/profile/AAKIMS08BPBLZ/ref=cm_cr_dp

Robert P Morrison
Interim Vicar
The Episcopal Church of St Alban
PO Box 1556
Albany OR  97321   541-921-1076 (cell)