Without relying on artificial light and clocks, does the new day start at sunset or sunrise?
The Banners we have been working on will be unveiled at an Easter Vigil this Friday. It will be held at 8.30 pm on the Saturday before Easter Sunday in St Johns. There is also a Dumfries Christian Network (DCN) dawn service at 8am on Easter Sunday. These times both celebrate the start of Easter Sunday.
The St Johns event will use ancient fire lighting techniques. Words which have been handed down for at least one and a half millennia will be spoken. It is a full immersion experience of the central mystery in Christianity.
However, some of it might seem strange, even to those who are Christians. Have you ever had the experience of watching a short video clip from a soap opera? Those two minutes draw on many episodes spent getting to know the characters. The short glimpse of time will kindle connections and character arcs that have built up while you watched the programme.
The liturgy in some churches works a bit like this. Each event has a pattern, which is in turn part of an annual pattern. The annual pattern repeats in a cycle of years. Themes and stories are repeated in a way which encourages people to find connections between verses in the Bible and events in the calendar. This is linked to the change in seasons as the days grow shorter and longer and plants grow and die back.
If you haven’t seen the series some episodes might look a bit strange. We’ve made this guide to help provide an insight. It is not a theological paper, but will hopefully help you get the most out of the experience if you join us.
All are welcome! Come as you are and experience an event with it’s roots in a time when the monks from Ireland and Scotland were taking the light abroad to help rebuild civilisation in continental Europe. You are invited to participate as an observer, or to go a deep as you conscience will carry you.
| Bit of the Service | As an observer | Going deeper |
| LITURGY OF THE LIGHT | This service is a vigil held either at dusk or dawn. Both these times are a liminal changing of light and dark used to mark the beginning of the next day. | What is light symbolic of, what does darkness represent? Control of fire is one of the earliest discoveries which shape human being |
| Address | Words to help focus the mind | |
| The Blessing of the Fire and Preparation of the Candle | In ancient times all the fires of the village were extinguished at Beltaine then lit from one common source. We will use a flint and steel to emphasise this link with antiquity. | The light kindled here lights a candle which will burn in the Church all year at every ceremony. Is it the light, or what we see with the light that is important? |
| The sign of the cross | Crosses have been used to represent the four solar events, solstice and equinox, in the wheel of the year. The four points of a compass X marks the spot | How is time measured? The Church measures time with Christ, the cross, at the centre. Time runs both to beginning and end. Creativity is at the centre, then and now. Light radiates outwards. |
| The Procession | The building is shaped to tell a story. We start at the door, then move to fill a space and make it special. One light becomes many lights Where are your eyes drawn to? | The light entered the world, those who recognise the light, become the light. This happened once, and can happen in every lifetime. We journey through the building, how does light journey through our being? |
| The Easter Proclamation | Exsultet – Rejoice A story and a song of Joy. The oldest records of this are 1500 years old. It tells a story about the significance of Easter to those gathered. This in turn draws on the Jewish story and celebration of Passover, Pascha. | Light transforms everything. As the light moves through the building and reveals the Banner what fears and worries can you let go of? |
| LITURGY OF THE WORD | This part of the event is an opportunity to reflect on the texts which have been handed down to us. Logos, word, refers to a rational form of discourse that relies on inductive and deductive reasoning. Aristotle described it complimenting pathos and ethos | There is a reality to feelings, and a reality to thoughts. When you have a belief which you are able to ken, understand and explain it is like a light coming on in a darkened room. It benefits both yourself, and all those around you. |
| LITURGY OF BAPTISM | Washing in water, driving cattle between fires, or waiting for the sun to rise at dawn are all used in transformation rituals. The old things are washed away, and a new start is marked. The Greek word Metanoia was used to describe this change in heart and mind. It is often translated into the English “repent” but what does that mean? Does the structure of this event encourage people toward “regret” or transformation in the light? | If the Gospel is reduced to a simple message of being saved from sin and death then baptism can be mistaken for the destination. If the good news is that the light lives with and within us, then in what ways can we be born new every morning? If baptism is a statement of intents and a turning to the light then what beginnings does it provide? |
| INTERCESSION | In a court, the advocate intercedes for their client. An intercessor pleads on the behalf of another. | What do you wish was different? What can you hope could be different? What will you give to the Holy Spirit to carry for you? |
| The Peace | Placed at the end of the event, this collects the whole into a moment. It is a preparation to help people carry the light out from this place and time. | When we meet in peace we make peace |
The words that will be used in the service can be downloaded from the Scottish Episcopal Church website.
(Don’t worry, we will have printed copies for you to hold when you come)