Holy Trinity Church in Xiantao, China. Photo: Fr Dan Troy SSC
Several hours before the Easter Vigil began in the parish of Xiantao, an easy bus ride from the large city of Wuhan in China, the sound of firecrackers filled the air. The onslaught of sound continued throughout the day, seemingly determined to make its presence felt.
However, the cacophony was not connected with the Easter preparations of the parishioners, who continued to work quietly on preparations for the evening liturgy, but rather the annual Chinese remembrance of deceased relatives, which happens each year on the fourth day of April and, last year, coincided with Easter Sunday.
The traditional day to remember deceased relatives is known as Tomb Sweeping Day, a national holiday in China. Millions of people return home to clean the burial places of their ancestors, as well as to set off firecrackers. The possibility of an early fulfilling of the family duty of caring for the graves resulted in what initially seemed like a gradual build up to the Easter Vigil.
Two of the priests living at the parish were trying to balance their various commitments for the weekend, as they obliged a few Catholic families by going to nearby cemeteries to bless graves, while also keeping an eye on the clock in preparation for the Easter Vigil.
As Saturday evening approached and the heavy rain of the previous two days thankfully ceased, it was also timely that the sound of the firecrackers dissolved with the fading light of day. The focus could then move to the area in the church compound where the Easter Vigil was due to begin.
In union with Church communities throughout China that were unable to celebrate the Easter Vigil the previous year, a great fire was lit to announce the resurrection. Light broke the darkness. The message was initially communicated in a visual way, and then proclaimed in word and song. The harsh reality of the suffering and death of Jesus, reminders of all the suffering and sinfulness in our world, were now being overtaken by the light of the Paschal fire, the hope that God brings to our world, the great emergence of life out of death.
The Paschal candle was lit from the bright fire and its light was then shared among the congregation, a time of silence linking each of us with the hope that is symbolised in this solemn ceremony. Then we formed the slow procession to the nearby church. As the big church filled to capacity, the wonderful sea of candlelight raised the possibility in my mind that this could be the most scenic setting that many of these people had experienced in the past year. The simplicity of their homes at the intersection between rural and urban life is far below the minimum level of comfort considered normal in other countries.
The well-prepared liturgy had a full complement of scripture readings, the baptism of four adults and lots of good singing. Immediately after people began receiving communion, my attention was drawn to a buzz of activity developing on one side of the church. People began to gather near the large vessels of water that had been blessed an hour earlier.
Here, they filled bottles and larger containers they had brought to the church. In a scene that seemed to be borrowed from pilgrimages to Lourdes, where people gather large quantities of water to bring home to their own countries, the Xiantao parishioners were engaged in a long-established tradition that sees them trusting in the spiritual benefits of the water blessed at the Easter Vigil.
A little short of three hours from the time the Paschal candle had been lit outdoors, the final hymn of the evening was sung. People gradually moved outdoors and gathered in groups to wish each other well. Aware of how a year ago the COVID-19 restrictions all over China had prevented most Catholics from attending Easter liturgies, this celebration was one of great joy that hopefully showed Catholics around the world that time can eventually bring change, a reflection of the unbounded hope that is central to the meaning of Easter.
On the following Monday afternoon as I returned to Wuhan by bus, I noticed a number of graves at the edges of many fields, the grass neatly trimmed and bright floral displays newly erected. One year after the shock of China being hit by the pandemic, the coincidental overlap of Tomb Sweeping and Easter Sunday seemed to carry its own meaning.
People of various traditions were celebrating on the same weekend in China, a remembering of special people and important events of previous times, all combined with the celebration of how such remembering leads to new life in our own time.
Columban Fr Dan Troy lives and works in China.
Listen to "Easter Vigil in Wuhan"
Related links
- Read more from The Far East - March/April 2022
