Dear readers, Blessed Holy Saturday. As with our Oxygen tradition, we bring to you reflections for each of the readings this Easter Vigil Mass. As we sit in sacred silence and anticipation of our Lord’s Resurrection, let us behold the unfolding mystery of God’s great plan for the world He created, throughout salvation history. Today, we feature reflections from six of our regular contributors. We hope you enjoy them as we all prepare our hearts and souls for Easter.
_______________________________________________________
1st Reading — God Saw The Good in All He Made
Gen 1:1-2:2
Ps 103(104):1-2,5-6,10,12-14,24,35
God created man in the image of himself, in the image of God he created him, male and female he created them… “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth and conquer it.“
There have been a recent stir of opinions and societal concerns about the state of families and childhood and the declining population in Singapore. Globally, the world is experiencing not just the falling of birthrates; there is also the wider proportion of seniors ageing alone, and the deepening inequality gaps. Let’s not even talk about the multiple wars and political tussles happening all over the various continents. Some of us may begin to feel that the world has darkened a lot in the past weeks.
Yet in the first reading today, we are greeted with a great big hope. It is the great love and wide hope of God the Creator who made this world we live in and all the creatures living within it. The most generous words in this reading were “Let there…” and “Let the…” God was sending forth his creative spirit and energy and gifting this universe and all life with grand potential and possibility. And in His pleasure, he sat back and declared it all as good.
As I reflected on this oft-repeated Genesis imagery, it finally struck me about how expansive our Heavenly Father’s generosity was. He continued to heap freedom upon the world and us humans. To ‘let’ is to allow or to not forbid. God gave of himself freely, he gave his hopes to his creations and we were told to go forth and multiply — sea and land creatures, man and woman. He did not withhold (pro)creative potential from us.
Opening this Holy Saturday with the knowledge that the first disciples were waiting in a certain darkness for the resurrection of Christ, not knowing, just despairing and feeling lost, I felt so relieved and blessed to be on this side of history. Because on this side of history, you and I know what really happened after Good Friday. We live with the awareness of Jesus’ triumph over death.
So today, I am choosing to cast away the feelings of being lost, a little dismayed by the newsfeeds, and unmoored because of the various yet-to-be-answered-prayers I have carried around for a while. Maybe you too are struggling with something similar. Let your heart take a rest, let your mind wander and wonder amidst this Genesis landscape of hope. Let your soul sink some roots and tendrils into the fresh moist earth that God seeded. All is good right now, because He is infinitely Good, and you have Him.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Debbie Loo)
Prayer: Abba Father, I sense your deep, rich love for me and I choose to rest safely in it, in this present moment. I trust You wholeheartedly, that if you created this amazing world with so beatific a vision, then all will be good. It is all good.
Thanksgiving: Great are you Lord, God of all Creation.
_______________________________________________________
2nd Reading — On the Mountain the Lord Provides
Gen 22:1-18
Ps 15(16):5,8-11
“I will shower blessings on you, I will make your descendants as many as the stars of heaven and the grains of sand on the seashore.“
I recently attended a very moving talk hosted by the Family Enrichment Society in Singapore, where a married couple shared generously about their long quiet battle with infertility and the struggles that came with their journey. The excerpt from the poster reads: “It was only when they traded bitterness for surrender that the path cleared — leading them not to the biological children they expected, but to the daughters they were meant to have.”
It was truly a remarkable, painful yet inspiring journey. I felt truly privileged to be in the presence of their authenticity, courage and generosity to reveal the depth of longing, pain and loneliness their years must have been. In this sense, while their story culminated with an effusive joy of having adopted their daughters, the audience received their life-giving story with gratitude too.
In this Genesis story of Abraham’s sacrifice, we usually think of how he averted sacrificing his beloved son, Isaac. What a relief! However, I wish to focus more on contemplating Abraham’s surrender of his will to God — the young son that he thought was his to have after decades of faithfulness. Or was it?
God works in mysterious ways. God loves in even more mysterious ways.
God chose to gift Abraham such a journey to ripen his soul with an even deeper surrender than his long aching years of wait could yield. This was in preparation for an even deeper fountain of joy to gush forth from Abraham’s heart — because far greater blessings grew from his heart of full trust and surrender. This was what lay ahead: “I will make your descendants as many as the stars of heaven and the grains of sand on the seashore.” His generous surrender of his only son, allowed God’s mercy and glory to be fully enfleshed.
“God moves in a mysterious way,
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm.”Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust him for his grace;
Behind a frowning providence,
He hides a smiling face.His purposes will ripen fast,
Unfolding ev’ry hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste,
But sweet will be the flow’r.Blind unbelief is sure to err,
And scan his work in vain;
God is his own interpreter,
And he will make it plain(excerpts from “Light Shining Out of Darkness” by William Cowper, English poet, 1731-1800)
(Today’s OXYGEN by Debbie Loo)
Prayer: Heavenly Father, I wonder what I could still have lodged in my heart, which I am yet unwilling to surrender. Show me the truth of where else I need to grow and grant me the grace and courage to desire it too.
Thanksgiving: I am grateful to you Lord for your patience and generosity to me, despite the times I may still resist and withhold giving you more of me.
_______________________________________________________
3rd Reading — Stepping into the Unknown with God
Exo 14:15-15:1
Exo 15
“March on.”
On Holy Saturday, I find myself standing with the Israelites, trapped between what is familiar and known and what I cannot control. They were afraid of what was behind them, but I think I relate to what was in front of them: the unknown before them.
I often wonder, “Will I be okay? Will I be able to take care of myself in the future? What happens when things get harder?”
God’s words to them were simple, yet so powerful: “March on.” He knows He will make a way; He will clear the path. And He parted the sea and led them to freedom.
Maybe that’s what trust looks like for you and me, too.
Holy Saturday feels much the same. Christ lies in the tomb. God seems silent. Like the Israelites, we may feel stuck, unsure, waiting for a sign. Yet, this reading reminds us that even in silence, God is already making a way where none seems possible.
The crossing of the Red Sea foreshadows the greater victory to come — the passage from death to life. What looks like an ending is, in truth, the beginning of freedom. He is already there, preparing a path for His greater glory.
We cannot plan everything. Surely, we do not have guarantees about the future. But we can take the next small step with God at our side.
Today, we are invited to trust, even in the waiting. We don’t have to cross the whole sea at once. We just have to take that next step. And somehow, with God, that will be more than enough.
Together with Moses and the Israelites, we will one day sing: “The Lord is my strength, my song, my salvation.”
(Today’s OXYGEN by Brenda Khoo)
Prayer: Dear Jesus,
One step, Lord; just one step with You.
In the unknown, be my peace.
In the waiting, be my strength. Amen.
Thanksgiving: Thank you God, for being present even when You seem to be silent. For carrying me through challenges I once thought I could not face. For the strength in my body, even when it feels limited. For the quiet resilience You continue to build in me. Thank You that my future is not something I have to hold on to on my own. You go before me, just as You did before the Israelites in Exodus. Amen.
________________________________________________
4th Reading — An Unshakeable Love
Isa 54:5-14
Ps 29(30):2,4-6,11-13
…my love for you will never leave you…
In today’s Fourth Reading, God speaks to His people with both honesty and deep compassion. He acknowledges a time of separation, yet immediately places it in a larger perspective: “For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with great compassion I will gather you.”
What stands out is the contrast between what is temporary and what is lasting. Human experiences of loss, fear, or distance may feel overwhelming, but God reminds us that these moments do not define the whole story. Instead, He points to something far more enduring: His love and His covenant of peace.
During my recent Lenten retreat, I realised my heart was too busy to simply be still before God. I was carrying worries about a person who hurt me in the past, feeling unsettled even in prayer. Yet, when I spoke to the spiritual director, he reminded me that if this person is no longer part of my life, I need not carry that burden. Most importantly, forgiveness need not be immediate but gradual, especially when the hurt was deep. That guidance helped me feel safe and reminded me of God’s steady love and peace.
“For the mountains may depart, the hills be shaken, but my love for you will never leave you and my covenant of peace with you will never be shaken, says the Lord who takes pity on you.”
Even when everything else in life is uncertain, God’s love remains constant.
About 15 minutes before the retreat began, I opened my Bible to the book of Ruth, where Naomi guided her to a safe field to work in. That story, like today’s reading, reminds me that God guides me, protects me, and cares for me.
Today’s reading invites us to shift our trust, from people and circumstances, to a relationship with God that does not falter. On Holy Saturday, this message takes on an even deeper meaning. In a time marked by silence and waiting, we are reminded that God’s faithfulness is unwavering.
God is a restorer — the One who rebuilds, strengthens, and establishes His people in peace. He is not distant nor indifferent. And so, we are invited to trust in a love that does not waver, a promise that does not break; and a God who remains, even in the silence.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Brenda Khoo)
Prayer: Dear Jesus, when things around me feel uncertain, help me to trust in Your love that does not change. Teach me to rest in Your peace. Amen.
Thanksgiving: Thank You, Jesus, for Your faithful and unshakable love. Even when all else fails, You remain constant. Thank You for holding me in Your peace.
___________________________________________________________
5th Reading — A Life of Prayer, Fasting, Almsgiving
Is 55:1-11
Is 12:2-3,4,5-6
For just as from the heavens the rain and snow come down and do not return there till they have watered the earth, making it fertile and fruitful, giving seed to the one who sows and bread to the one who eats, so shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth; my word shall not return to me void, but shall do my will, achieving the end for which I sent it.
Lent is drawing to a close. As a period of reflection and conversion, how has Lent been for you? For a while, I have had the image of being in the desert — the dry, arid desert with nothing but the hot sun beating down on me, without recourse to any shelter. It is just me out there, exposed so painfully. When we fast and deny ourselves of material wants, it is like putting ourselves in the desert. We have nothing except our own sorry selves for company, as well as all our weaknesses and desires that eventually rise up to the surface to bother us to no end. However, we need not face this alone. This is where prayer comes in. A turning towards God, a conversation with him who knows your innermost being, a request for graces to get you through the darkest moments and to help you conquer your weaknesses.
Just as the rains quench the thirst of the parched land, so does prayer quench the thirst of our parched souls after we have stripped away all the weeds crowding our hearts. Then, our hearts can be fertile soil for the seeds of faith to be sown. They can be fruitful, with us bearing God’s love to others. It was the feast of the Annunciation not too long ago, where Mary said ‘yes’ to God’s will despite her uncertainties. When we say ‘yes’ to accepting God’s will for us, we are saying ‘yes’ to being witnesses to the hope we have in God’s love. We are saying ‘yes’ to carrying out the will of God to bring life and love to others. Doing God’s will, while certainly good for your soul, also very much involves other people. Almsgiving is outward, where self sacrifice means that other people get to experience love and care.
Tonight’s 5th reading seems to be telling me to forsake all that does not satisfy. It seems to be calling me to a life of fasting from unnecessary worldly desires, not just a short period of Lenten fasting. Being able to have mastery over one’s earthly desires is important if we wish to listen to God’s word and obey his commandments. The reading also calls us to a life of prayer. God is right here with us, and he is always reaching out to us. All we need is to respond to him, and listen. Again, prayer is not a one-time Lenten thing, but a part of our everyday life, forever. And so is almsgiving, helping others, spreading God’s word and God’s love to others so that God’s will may be done. This is not supposed to be merely spring cleaning or donating extras (these aren’t bad things in themselves, so please continue). This is supposed to be more than that — a sacrifice for the good of someone else, a gift of yourself for the betterment of another.
The passage from Isaiah conjures up some beautiful imagery. It speaks of an everlasting type of joy, a kind of renewal and cleansing. It tells of abundance and refreshment and relief. And indeed, one’s heart can become very relieved and at peace once we learn to trust in God and in his promise of such eternal joy and happiness. I could not help but see a similarity between this passage, Lent, and the later part of The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. After a long, long winter, a long period of darkness, spring finally returns and brings with it running water and life, joy and gaiety, feasting and celebrating. Death has been conquered forever, and we are all invited to eternal life.
My brothers and sisters in Christ, if we desire to be a part of this eternal life, we need to turn towards God and turn away from sin. We need to learn to listen to God’s voice, to learn to die to ourselves, to learn to make sacrifices for the good of another. We need to prune ourselves in order to become fruitful. There is no better role model than Jesus himself — as his disciples, we must follow in his footsteps. If we have had a conversion during Lent, we must continue to live out that converted life. If we have not, it is never too late to start.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Felicia Zou)
Prayer: Dear Lord, we pray for the strength and courage to die to ourselves, and to allow our lives to be used to do your will.
Thanksgiving: Dear Lord, we thank You for Your unending love and patience for us, even when we fall so many times.
__________________________________________________________________
6th Reading — The importance of wisdom and prudence
Bar 3:9-15,32-4:4
Ps 18(19):8-11
Learn where knowledge is, where strength, where understanding…
As someone who has not attended the Easter Vigil for years (or more accurately, decades), the Oxygen reflections gave me a chance to find out more about the passages featured in this ‘mother of all masses’. The book of Baruch is a collection of writings meant to instruct and comfort the diaspora Jews – those who had settled in foreign lands after being exiled from Jerusalem and were still trying to hold on to their faith. Chapters 3 and 4, in particular, dwell on the importance of wisdom. However, I did not really manage to find out why this reading is part of the Easter Vigil, and when I first read it, it seemed slightly out of place, after the more dramatic stories which preceded it.
But then it occurred to me that this apparent lack of connection could itself be an important reminder. Often during my faith journey, I tend to place more emphasis on memorable, ‘God speaks to me through a thunder clap’ type of events and less on the quieter moments trying to reflect on these events, as well as on more mundane moments – and even less on the process of learning more about my faith.
This does not stand me in good stead when I encounter ideas different from Catholic teachings, and often, I am confused and uncertain of how to react because I lack the appropriate foundation of knowledge. Perhaps, I am rather similar to the diaspora Jews in this aspect, especially in our current environment, which seems to favour relativism and pragmatism over ‘purist’ views. This year, I also learned the importance of prudence, defined as “the virtue that disposes practical reason to discern our true good in every circumstance and to choose the right means of achieving it” when I realised how I needed to find a balance between my Lenten disciplines (e.g. going for mass and Stations of the Cross more often) and family responsibilities. Prudence is hence, a practical way forward which involves reflection and moderation if needed.
Seen in this light, the passage from Baruch can serve as both reassurance and reminder. It can offer encouragement that God is always willing to save us, and that His word and His wisdom are always accessible to us wherever we are in our faith journey. Nonetheless, despite His patience and generosity, we need to prioritise His wisdom and consciously cultivate prudence in order to stay close to Him.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Jaclyn Lam)
Prayer: Lord, forgive us for the times we have ignored your wisdom either wilfully, or due to ignorance. Send your Holy Spirit upon us to help us grow in prudence.
Thanksgiving: Thank you, Lord, for always being willing to share your wisdom with us, as long as we keep our minds and hearts open to you. Thank you for the wealth of resources we have today, online and offline, to learn more about your teachings.
___________________________________________
7th Reading — Renewal in heart and spirit
Eze 36:16-17,18-28
Ps 41(42):2-3,5,42:3-4
“I shall give you a new heart, and put a new spirit in you; I shall remove the heart of stone from your bodies and give you a heart of flesh instead.”
This line about God replacing our ‘stony hearts’ with new ones leaps out at me whenever I read this passage. This time round, it made me recall a comment I heard at a personal development workshop, about the difference between resignation and acceptance. According to the speaker, resignation was a relatively more passive approach towards the circumstances one was in, while acceptance involved an active choice to cope (as well as courage and self-awareness, in my own opinion).
This made me think of Jesus’ prayer in the garden of Gethsemane, and how He chose to obey His Father’s will despite His own terror and fear, as well as the words we hear during the Eucharistic Prayer about Jesus willingly entering into His Passion. Jesus didn’t resign himself to just doing what His Father told Him to do (with a heart numbed beyond feeling), but fully accepted His mission (with a natural heart which might have been full of love and determination, but would also have been filled with fear). It made me appreciate Jesus’ sacrifice for us anew, because He had to keep accepting His Father’s will at every agonising step of the Way of the Cross. It also made me realise again, how we have to continually run to God to seek his help instead of relying only on ourselves, because only He can give us the new heart and spirit we need to carry on.
On a broader note, I am writing this reflection at the halfway point of Lent this year, which makes me both relieved (since my resolve to keep to my Lenten disciplines is already flagging) and disappointed (since I’m not even sure which Lenten disciplines I managed to carry out). But the thought that our Lord can place a new spirit in us provided me a good reminder that I should not get distracted by whether I am ‘succeeding’ for Lent, but to focus on the spirit of what I am doing for Lent and whether it is helping me to turn back to God. After all, as the passage’s last line says, “You shall be my people, and I will be your God.” Our God has adopted us as His beloved children and is always waiting for us to turn back to Him, not just during Lent. May we cherish the grace and mercy we have received throughout this holy season and look forward to His gift of the Holy Spirit.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Jaclyn Lam)
Prayer: Lord, we offer You all that we have done – or failed to do – this Lent. Renew us in heart and spirit to look ahead to the season of Easter.
Thanksgiving: Thank you, Lord, for being our loving Father who knows us better than ourselves; who waits for us and is willing to run to us.
___________________________________________________
Epistle — New Life
Rm 6:3-11
Ps 117(118):1-2,16-17,22-23
…when we were baptized we went into the tomb and joined him in death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the Father’s glory, we too might live a new life.
I am a cradle Catholic, and have been for over 50 years. However, it is only in the last 10 plus years that I found out that the Easter Tridium — that is, from Holy Thursday to the Easter Vigil is actually ONE mass! Hence that explains why there is no ‘final Blessing’ after the Holy Thursday service and no signing ourselves with the sign of the Cross at the beginning of Good Friday services and Easter Vigils. When I first learnt about this, I asked myself, “How much more don’t I know about our faith?”
As I was growing up, I only attended the Good Friday services and Easter Day masses. I skipped the Holy Thursday services and the Easter Vigils because I didn’t think that I had to, especially the Easter Vigils, with the minimum 2-3 hour services. It was only when I met my wife, that she introduced me to attending the entire Triduum. Then again, we went only as a routine and not because we understood the full significance of the Triduum. On one particular Holy Saturday, we even googled which parishes around where we lived, had the least number of baptisms, so that the Easter Vigil wouldn’t end too late.
It was only when we moved to our current parish, where we learnt a lot more about our faith. This was due to two factors. One was that the parish priest at that time, conducted sessions on the liturgy and the faith. And another factor was how our parish celebrates the Holy Saturday liturgy.
Our parish celebrates full immersion, that is the elect would have their whole body immersed, for baptisms at the Easter Vigil, and we would also proclaim the full set of Vigil readings, that is 9 readings in total. Although the average duration of the Easter Vigil would usually be around 4 hours, they seemed to melt away as we celebrated and commemorated our salvation history, and how Christ by rising from the dead, has given us new life.
The entire celebrations are meticulously planned and all the readings beautifully proclaimed. There were, at times, more than one lector proclaiming the different voices in the readings, and this greatly assisted all of us to follow the readings, as our parish doesn’t project the readings on screens.
As for the baptisms, we can really experience their joy as the individuals rise from the water a baptised child of God. Our then parish priest explained to us, he sometimes delays raising the newly baptised from under the water, so that when they take the first breath, it would be a great big gulp of air while opening their eyes as they behold Christ (on the crucifix) as the first thing they see after Baptism. By taking that huge gulp of air, it symbolises that they have been raised from their death into a new life in Christ.
By being witnesses to such celebrations, I am reminded of my own baptism, and how I should be as joyful as these newly baptised neophytes, embracing the love of Christ. I am very blessed that I am able to be a witness and this gives me the courage to persevere in my life in Christ. I know at times, my own journey has many speedbumps; I am a sinner, after all. But by witnessing the joy of these neophytes, I am encouraged to strive to be like them. To be always open to the love of Christ and to be loving as Christ is.
As Easter comes every year, I am also reminded by Pope St John Paul II’s exhortation that “We are an Easter people and “Alleluia is our song!” I think that this is truly another reminder to remain joyous, even though the world is once again facing darkness with turmoil and wars. We have been given a newness of life and I know that God walks with us in these dark times.
Let us, brothers and sisters, make a conscious decision to show the light of Christ in this dark world and to always remember that with God on our side, no one and nothing can overcome us.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Calvin Wee)
Prayer: Heavenly Father, I pray for the newly baptised in our community. That their hearts will remain open to the workings of the Holy Spirit, and that their hearts continue to be open to your love as they embrace their new life as a neophyte. Amen.
Thanksgiving: Heavenly Father, we thank you for constantly moving in our lives and in the lives of the newly baptised. We thank you for this opportunity at Easter, to renew our baptismal promises and to reaffirm that we are your sons and daughters, and to claim that inheritance as your children and your heirs. Amen.
___________________________________________________
Gospel — Joy amidst fear
Mt 28:1-10
…He is not here, for he has risen…
A few years ago, the entire world experienced a historic, life-changing event of somewhat epic proportions. Save for isolated tribal communities and those stationed in the most remote corners of the globe, nearly every individual on the planet felt its impact. A common thread ran through it: fear, uncertainty, and a growing sense of foreboding that the world as we knew it had shifted. Now, we find ourselves living in a post-pandemic age, and the questions linger: Will something like this happen again? What will it look like the next time it does? Are we ready for it?
In today’s Gospel reading, we encounter two women whose worlds have just collapsed. The person whom they have followed, loved and trusted, who had performed wondrous deeds and who transformed their lives, had just suffered one of the most humiliating and torturous forms of death. Surely, Jesus’ end must have felt devastatingly premature and sudden. Barely a week ago, He was greeted with cries of “Hosanna” by the crowds. Hope had been in the air. It seemed as though something long awaited was finally unfolding. But now, that hope appears to have been buried with Him. What were they to do, now that He is gone? In their grief, they visit His tomb, only to experience something truly earth-shattering.
A violent earthquake. The appearance of an angel, who reveals to the women a cosmic event: “He is not here, for he has risen.” It was something beyond their wildest imagination and deeper than their greatest hope. The tomb was empty. Before they had time to comprehend this turn of events, they were given a mission — to tell the disciples the good news of the resurrection. They left immediately, “fearful yet overjoyed” (USCCB translation), without full clarity, but only trust and obedience in their Lord.
This Easter presents an invitation for us to renew our trust in the Risen One, especially when the path ahead is murky and potentially beset with difficulties. For the women at the tomb, the joy that they carried did not arise from having all their questions answered, but from the fact that Christ has conquered death and was alive among them. In the same way, Christ meets us in the midst of our fear and calls us forward. Rather than waiting until we feel ready, we are invited to step out in faith, trusting that He goes before us. “Do not be afraid.”
(Today’s OXYGEN by Edith Koh)
Prayer: Dearest Father, in moments of fear and uncertainty, teach us to trust in You. When we feel unsure of what lies ahead, give us the courage to move forward in faith.
Thanksgiving: Dear Lord, we thank you for the gift of the resurrection, which brings light and hope to our darkest times. May our lives always bear witness to the joy of the empty tomb.
OXYGEN 
Leave a comment