Archbishop Edward Gilbert has told Catholics they will need the guidance of the Church if they are to live committed Christian lives and rise to the challenges which society imposes on them. He was delivering the homily during the celebration of the Easter Vigil at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception.

“The guidance of the Church and the wisdom of God are important guides for us on our Christian journey,” said the Archbishop, because “the challenge to say yes or no, which is at the heart of living the Covenant, is very real.”

He told the congregation that they were gathered at the Cathedral that night to celebrate being “a people of light”. Through the readings of the Old Testament to which they had listened, they were instructed, he said, on how “the world was gifted a second time” – how “our freedom was earned at a very high price.”

 They had gathered at the Eucharist table “to celebrate union with the living God who gives us wisdom and strength to continue the journey.”

Archbishop Gilbert warned of the insidious forms of “modern slavery” – “drugs, alcohol, sex, injustice, violence, manipulation” – and the wiles of Satan with his empty promises which every believer must renounce.

The Archbishop called on the faithful to recognise, therefore, the relevance of the Renewal of Baptismal Promises – comprised as they are of three renunciations and three affirmations – which they would repeat that night as part of the Easter liturgy.

He said they can take courage from the fact that “although temptation and evil are always present, so is the grace of God and the presence of the Spirit.”

In closing, he instructed the congregation to communicate with God every day, to follow ethical standards for “too many people have a gap in their lives between what they believe and how they live”, and to “choose to live a full sacramental life.”