‘The mother of all holy vigils’: Jerusalem basilica is first place to announce Easter

[Michie]

With the incense burned from the newly blessed fire, cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, incenses the "Stone of Anointing," located at the entrance of the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre, where, according to tradition, the body of Jesus was anointed and prepared with aromatic oils for burial. March 30, 2024. | Credit: Marinella Bandini

Jerusalem, Mar 31, 2024 / 09:45 am

In the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher, the church of the Lord’s Resurrection, due to reasons related to the Status Quo, the Easter Vigil is held on Saturday morning instead of at night. For this reason, it is also considered “the mother of all holy vigils.”

The solemn celebration was presided over by the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, in front of the edicule of the Holy Sepulcher, which encloses the tomb of Jesus.

One of the masters of ceremonies lights the lamps in front of the edicule of the Holy Sepulcher during the Easter Vigil, which was held on the morning of Saturday, March 30, 2024, in the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher, in Jerusalem, in the very place were the Resurrection occurred. Credit: Marinella Bandini

“The liturgy of Jerusalem is built around this place, as is the liturgy of the whole Church. It is from here that we draw the light that enlightens the entirety of Christian life. We the Church of Jerusalem must be and want to be the first to announce the arrival of this light and to bring it to the world,” the patriarch said in his homily.

The celebration began in darkness at the entrance of the basilica, where the “lucernarium” rite took place. The patriarch blessed the new fire, which was used to burn incense in the incense burner, with which he incensed the basilica as he proceeded toward the edicule of the Holy Sepulcher.

Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, places the embers of the newly blessed fire inside the incense burner, during the Easter Vigil, on the morning of Saturday, March 30, 2024. Credit: Marinella Bandini

Continued below.

Jerusalem basilica is first place to announce Easter

In the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher, the church of the Lord’s resurrection, the Easter Vigil is held on Saturday morning instead of at night.

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