The Patriarch of Romania pointed to the Paschal vigil as an icon of the Universal Resurrection at the end of time and explained why this ceremony begins outside at night and why the Cross is displayed and not hidden since it was the object that caused Christ’s death.

“The Resurrection of the Lord, or the feast of Holy Pascha, is the spiritual core of Orthodoxy,” Patriarch Daniel recalled on Holy Saturday night on the steps of the Patriarchal Residence after the distributing the Holy Fire.

“All the days of the week begin with Sunday, called in the Gospel the first day of the week. This shows us that for us Christians, all the days of life are directed towards the resurrection, that is, the Universal Resurrection. But the preparation for the resurrection of the whole world at the end of time is done every day and every week of earthly life,” the Patriarch stressed.

His Beatitude explained that “the Resurrection service in Orthodoxy begins outside the place of worship because the Resurrection is not only about Christians. It is not only they who will rise, but all people of all times and ages will rise at the Universal Resurrection at the end of time.”

“The Easter midnight office is an icon of the Universal Resurrection at the end of time, an icon of all humanity that will rise again, as the Apostle Paul says: ‘For as in Adam all die, so in Christ, all will be made alive’.”

At the Judgment, each man’s freedom will be evaluated

Patriarch Daniel went on to detail what the Last Judgement would be like:

“All the people of the world who have lived throughout the ages will rise from the dead, then will follow the Judgment of all people of all nations, of all generations. In this Judgment, the freedom of every man and every people throughout history will be evaluated. What each has done with his freedom, how he has lived, how he has responded to God’s love and how much each has loved his neighbour. The ultimate criterion of the Last Judgement is humble and merciful love for our fellow human beings.”

“Those who have responded to God’s love and have shown merciful love to their fellows will rejoice in the communion of the love of the Most Holy Trinity, of the Holy Angels and of all the Saints who had lived on earth and had fulfilled God’s will in their lives. Those who have refused God’s love and have not shown merciful, helpful, generous love to their neighbours will remain forever sad. Not because they are punished, but because they freely decided to be selfish and indifferent.”

“This is why a Christian thinker said that heaven or hell begins in the human heart from the time of earthly life.”

“If we have humble and merciful love in our hearts, we prepare ourselves to enter heaven, into the communion of the Father’s merciful love, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. If we have had wickedness, selfishness, self-sufficiency and isolation, then we have begun to build in our souls the provision of hell; for hell is loneliness, isolation, darkness, meaninglessness,” His Beatitude insisted.

Patriarch Daniel added that the Saviour, through his Resurrection, “conquered not only death, but also hell, as a lonely and isolated existence, and with the radiance of His deified soul brought love in place of loneliness and light in place of darkness.”

“This is why, in the Orthodox Church, the icon of the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ from the dead does not show Him rising from the tomb – as in Western religious paintings – but shows Christ descending through the Cross into hell. This means that Christ’s resurrection does not begin on the third day, but the power of the Resurrection is shown on the very same Good Friday, when through the Cross He descended into hell, conquered the powers of hell, broke the bonds of souls that were enslaved by the fear of death.”

We do not hide the Cross on Easter night

“The Mystery of Holy Pascha is the Mystery of the Cross and Resurrection. Through the Cross came joy to all the world, because in the sacrificial love of Christ shown on the Cross, the seed of the Resurrection was mystically hidden.”

“Orthodoxy does not separate the Cross from the Resurrection, but sees in the Cross the beginning of the Resurrection, through the humble and sacrificial love of Christ; and the Resurrection shows the glory of the Cross. That is why we, on Easter night, do not hide the Cross, but place the candle beside it and proclaim the truth that Christ is risen.”

“The Resurrection service is held at night, after midnight, to show that ‘Pascha’ means passing from darkness to light, from death to life and from earth to heaven. In the Old Testament, Passover signified the people’s liberation from the bondage of Egypt by crossing the Red Sea as land. Now, however, the Christian Passover means passing through Christ’s bloody, sacrificial death to conquer death and give us people eternal life.”

Finally, Patriarch Daniel urged that during these days, we should “continue to show goodwill and help those who, because of the war, have left their country and taken refuge in various neighbouring countries including Romania, and who wish to return home as soon as possible.”

Photography courtesy of Basilica.ro / Raluca Ene