Vigils
Vigils
• 7:30 p.m. to midnight the first Friday of
every month
At St. Bernard, the first Friday of every month is
an opportunity to venerate the Blessed Sacrament, which is exposed
until midnight.
Other vigils include the solemn vigil held after
Holy Saturday services (Easter vigil) each year during Lent.
What is a vigil?
In the first ages, during the night before every
feast, a vigil was kept.
In the evening the faithful assembled in the place
or church where the feast was to be celebrated and prepared themselves
by prayers, readings from Holy Writ (now the Offices of Vespers and
Matins), and sometimes also by hearing a sermon.
On such occasions, as on fast days in general, Mass
also was celebrated in the evening, before the Vespers of the following
day.
Toward morning the people dispersed to the streets
and houses near the church, to wait for the solemn services of the
forenoon. This vigil was a regular institution of Christian life and
was defended and highly recommended by St. Augustine and St. Jerome.
