Exultet: The Easter Proclamation
The Easter Proclamation is a very challenging thing for the one who has to sing it, unless you are a musician. It is long, and you sing alone. Quite often in the concentration of the accuracy of the singing you can miss the meaning and beauty of the song. Similarly, for us who listen, the meaning can be lost in the music. Or our attention can be lost because of the length of the song. Yet it summarizes the meaning of this night, and of the whole Easter season. It can be summarized in a three-letter word: Joy. That is why it is called “Exultet” which is the Latin word for Exult or Rejoice.
First of all, it invites all heaven to rejoice. This day was, (and since in heaven there is no past, but an eternal “now”) is a day of great joy in heaven. The Father rejoices, because he took a great risk to offer his Son with the possibility of failure. The Son rejoices after undergoing all the challenges of life and emerging totally obedient to the smallest detail. The Spirit rejoices with the Father and the Son. All the saints rejoice in gratitude for their redemption. The angels of God rejoice out of their perfect love, that God’s plan has been fulfilled. Then the whole earth is invited to rejoice, including those who do not know Christ. All who will attain salvation will one day know, that it was through Christ’s redemptive sacrifice. He has sheep that do not belong to this fold. The Church is invited to rejoice for our redemption. We have reason to rejoice and to bear witness. We know the story of our salvation.
The song goes on to mention some of the reasons for rejoicing this night. This is the night in which the blood of the true Lamb is smeared on the doorposts of believers. The lamb of Exodus we heard of was only the symbol. Now the angel of death passes angrily and helplessly passes over those who are marked with the sign of faith in Jesus. We have been redeemed in Baptism and in Penance. This is the night when we are freed from true slavery. The Jews were saved from physical slavery; we are saved from the slavery to sin, and we match through the sea dry-shod. That is how we match out of the confessional, totally forgiven.
The sin of Adam and Eve is called a “happy fault”, because it earned us a Savior. Without that sin God would have remained God, and we, human now we have God who is one of us, and forever, and we await to become like him forever. Heaven is married to earth.
Finally, the hymn offers to the Father this Easter candle, made in the wax of bees by human hand. Something trivial but symbolic of someone great: Christ the eternal Light. We shall blow out the Easter Candle, but his light will never be blown out.
We are going to renew our Baptism and light our candles from the Easter candle. Let this be symbolic also of our life. Our little lights are constantly threatened by repeated failure. But as often as we fail, let us come again and light it again on the Eternal Light, in forgiveness, in listening to his Word, in renewed commitment to live the gospel.
