The Leave-Taking of Pascha: Still Rejoicing in the Resurrection
As the Church prepares to close the Paschal season tonight and tomorrow morning with the Leave-Taking of Holy Pascha (Apodosis), we are reminded that the joy of the Resurrection is not something that fades—it is something we carry with us always.
For forty days, we have greeted one another with the words “Christ is risen! Truly He is risen!” and have sung the radiant hymn:
“Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and upon those in the tombs bestowing life!”
We have sung it in the quiet of early mornings and in the stillness of the night, in monasteries and parishes, in cities and in countryside chapels. And now, as we chant it one final time in the Divine Liturgy of the Leave-Taking, we do so with hearts filled with both joy and reverence.
The Church does not simply “move on” from Pascha. Instead, She gently transitions us to the next moment in the life of Christ and His Body, the Church. Just as the Risen Lord ascended in glory, lifting our humanity to the right hand of the Father, so too we lift our eyes upward in anticipation of the great feast of His Ascension, celebrated on the very next day.
But first, we bid farewell to Pascha with solemnity. Tonight or Tomorrow morning, the full Resurrection Matins is served again, as on the night of Pascha itself. The Holy Doors are opened. The clergy wear bright vestments. The joy of the Resurrection is renewed once more—and then lovingly entrusted to our memory and our daily life.
Let us take with us not only the words but the meaning of Pascha:
• That Christ has truly conquered death, and we need not fear the grave.
• That repentance is always possible, because the Tomb is empty and mercy flows like light from it.
• That the Church is a community of the Risen, called to walk in the light of the Resurrection every day—not just for 40, but for eternity.
So tonight and tomorrow, let us sing one last time with full hearts:
Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death…
And may the joy of the Resurrection remain ever bright in our souls.
Amen.
