Canberra Catholics celebrate Easter Sunday

Church bells rang out over Manuka as Canberra’s Catholic community came together for Easter Mass at St. Christopher’s Cathedral on the morning of Sunday 16th of April.

The annual ceremony is the most well-known part of an important period in the Catholic Church, which celebrates the sacrifice, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ as described in the New Testament. Easter is the culmination of the 40-day period of fasting, prayer and penance, Lent.

Conducting the Mass was Catholic Archbishop of Canberra and Goulburn, Christopher Prowse, who used the day to stress the need for the congregation to use their prayers and faith to good in a world that has been recently gripped by fear.

“Conversion of hearts from hatred to peace is the ultimate prayer of intercession of us in these precious times,” he said.

“It is the beginning point of our shared hope that the future will bring forth the practical harvest of joy and mutual respect in society.”

The service used readings from the Bible’s Books of Acts and Colossians, as well as the Gospel of John to address the importance of faith within the community. Each reading highlighted that belief in the resurrection of Jesus was at the heart of leading a good life through God.

A highlight of the hour-long event was the stunning performances by the St. Christopher’s Cathedral Choir, who lifted their voices on nine occasions throughout the mass. Particularly impressive was the rendition of Handel’s “Hallelujah Chorus” from his Messiah oratorio, which filtered through the cathedral after the Mass had ended.

The service drew a large crowd to the cathedral, with every pew filled in the nave and transepts, and people spilling out into the entry of the church. The Australian Governor-General, Sir Peter Cosgrove, was a notable participant in Sunday’s events.

While weekly attendances at Catholic ceremonies in recent years have been dwindling, the Easter Sunday mass showed that crowds were still willing to attend the major feasts of the Church.

The next major event in the Catholic calendar is Pentecost, which celebrates the Holy Spirit, and will occur in 2017 on the 4th of June.