Mangaluru/Udupi : Bishop of Mangalore Dr Aloysius Paul D’Souza lit the Pascal candle before the mass and blessed the Holy water during the Easter Vigil Mass at Rosario Cathedral here on Sunday April 5.

Fr Alwyn Serrao delivered the homily with Fr J B Crasta, Fr Alwyn Serrao, Fr Rocky Fernandes and Fr Amith Rodriguess.

Jesus the son of God came and saved us from sins. He rose from the dead after three days and instilled the faith in us. I call upon the faithful to follow Jesus in true spirit, said Dr Aloysius D’Souza in his Easter message.

The feast to commemorate the Resurrection of Lord Jesus Christ, three days after the agonizing Crucifixion was celebrated with pomp and grandeur across the district by the members of the Christian community on Sunday.

The Udupi district geared up for the celebration on Saturday, following which the main celebration was held at Milagres Cathedral Kallianpur under the guidance Udupi Bishop of Dr Gerald Isaac Lobo. The liturgy of the Easter Vigil began at 7 pm at the outer surface of the church.

The lights were put off, when the fire was lit. With the blessing of the new fire, the Paschal Candle was lit and it was carried inside the church.

As the Paschal candle was placed on its stand in the sanctuary, the lights in the church were switched on.

Cathedral’s assistant parish priest Fr Mahesh D’Souza, chanted the Exsultet, also called the “Easter Proclamation”.

The celebrations for the Easter Vigil was the Liturgy of the Word, wherein four readings from the Old Testament were taken up, each followed by a responsorial hymn and prayer by the main celebrant. The Liturgy of the Word comprised of four readings from the Old Testament: The story of Creation from the Book of Genesis; Crossing of the Red Sea from the Exodus; a passage from Isiah and another from Ezekiel. This was followed by a reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Romans and the Gospel passage taken from St. Mark.

After singing ‘Gloria’ accompanied by ringing bells and the main church bell, two readings from the New Testament were read.

In his homily, Bishop Gerald Lobo emphasized the fact that the Resurrection of Jesus Christ on the third day after being crucified is the foundation of the Christian faith.
This faith is strong and resolute. The Apostles who were filled with fear after the crucifixion of Jesus, experienced the Risen Christ and became bold and vocal, and began to spread the good news, the Bishop said.

After the homily, the water was blessed following the recitation of the Litany of the Saints by Wyalan Machado. Once again, people lit their candles as they renewed the Baptismal Vows following which the Bishop and priests sprinkled newly blessed Holy Water on the congregation.

At the end of the solemn Easter Mass, Cathedral rector Fr Stany B Lobo extended the greetings of Easter to all and invoked the blessings of the Risen Christ on all the parishioners.

Pics : Jhon