A solemn yet uplifting Holy Week concluded with news of Christ’s empty tomb and the promise of new life renewing the hearts of the faithful across Sydney and the world.
This year, the Archdiocese of Sydney welcomed a record number of nearly 460 candidates and catechumens in the church – a 20 per cent increase on last year – and many thousands filled parishes to mourn the Lord’s passion and rejoice in his resurrection.
In his homilies at St Mary’s Cathedral across the Triduum, Archbishop Anthony Fisher OP reflected on the role of women in the early church – from unseen acts of organisation and service to becoming the first witnesses of the empty tomb.
“They were organisers and intercessors, while the men were concelebrants and witnesses,” he said on Holy Thursday.
Today as well, “we can be proud of the contributions of Catholic women and men to church and society.”
The archbishop continued this theme on Good Friday, reflecting on the suffering of Christ as described in Isaiah, “despised and rejected.”
“But what about the women? Where were they on Good Friday? Some were doubtless among the crowd baying for his blood, though one suspects these were mostly men,” he said.
“Strikingly, the only voice raised in Jesus’ defence during his trial was a woman’s.”
He pointed to Pontius Pilate’s wife, who urged her husband to “leave that innocent man alone,” but was ignored.
“She speaks when every male disciple was silent and every official complicit,” he said.
Beyond the churches, Sydneysiders marked Good Friday in familiar ways, with crowds also gathering at fish markets, beaches, parks, and the Royal Easter Show.
Parishes reenacted the Passion of Christ, and cinemas screened The Passion of the Christ, depicting the brutality of the crucifixion.
At the Easter Vigil at the cathedral nearly 20 new Catholics were baptised or received into the fullness of the Catholic faith. Worship began in the forecourt with the blessing of the fire and Paschal candle before the faithful entered the darkened cathedral.
Archbishop Fisher described it as a “truly exciting time to be taken up into the great adventure of God.”
Joy fills St Mary’s Cathedral as Easter Vigil proclaims Christ’s resurrection
St Mary’s was packed again for Easter Sunday Mass, with Archbishop Fisher emphasising that Christ’s sacrifice was part of a divine plan.
“The whole of Scripture traces a single arc from creation to resurrection through exodus and exile, covenant and promise, fall and fulfilment,” he preached.
“Not random or disconnected events these, but steps in a grand design as God draws nearer to us.”
Returning to the role of women, the archbishop noted that Mary Magdalene and the other women were first at the tomb.
“The women came while the men cowered … the women proclaimed the resurrection while men took their time warming to the task,” he said.
“God chooses his witnesses and, against the prejudices of that day, the first ones would be women.”
He described them as the “first Christian missionaries,” pointing to a progression across the Triduum.
“On Maundy Thursday, the women were organisers and intercessors working behind the scenes; on Good Friday, they were seers and companions to Christ,” he said.
“Now at Easter, they step into the full light – no longer hidden or silent, the first worshippers and preachers of the Lord.”
For newly baptised Matthew Daw, from Good Shepherd parish in Plumpton, the experience marked a profound moment.
“I’ve never felt more complete,” he told The Catholic Weekly.
“Going into Easter, I thought I would be more nervous, but having such a supportive community made me feel more excited than anything.
“Having people come up to me, congratulate me, and say my testimony inspired them … left me lost for words.”
Already active in parish life, Daw presented the oil of catechumens on Holy Thursday and played the role of a Roman guard during the Good Friday Stations of the Cross, deepening his connection to the faith ahead of his baptism.
