SHAH ALAM, April 12 — With restrictions enforced and congregating prohibited, Catholics here turned to technology to fulfill their spiritual obligations as they celebrated this year’s Easter Vigil by watching it through a live stream online. 

The actual vigil rites were celebrated at the Church of Divine Mercy here yesterday evening, with Kuala Lumpur Archbishop Julian Leow the lead celebrant alongside three other clerics and a single altar boy. 

However, instead of a congregation of thousands, the rites were done with only a handful of people within the same room, as scripture verses and even Leow’s Easter sermon were all delivered through the lens of a camera. 

The Easter Vigil signifies what Catholics believe as the resurrection of Jesus Christ after he was crucified. The celebration also marks the end of the 40-day period of Lent that most Catholics observe as their holy month.



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A general view inside the Church of the Divine Mercy in Shah Alam before Easter on April 11, 2020. ― Picture by Hari Anggara.
A general view inside the Church of the Divine Mercy in Shah Alam before Easter on April 11, 2020. ― Picture by Hari Anggara.

Marking the end of the Holy Week, the Vigil is held on the evening of Holy Saturday which comes a day before the traditional celebration of Easter on Sunday.



The passing of the flame, an Easter-specific ritual usually done by those seated in the congregation believed to signify the resurrecting spirit of Jesus Christ, was also performed yesterday among only those within the altar space. 

The others within the room included a cantor and a three-man media team from the KL Archdiocese that was led by its social communications chief, Ignatius Krishna. 

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Explaining how even weekly Sunday mass celebrations has moved to live streams since the implementation of the movement control order (MCO), Ignatius detailed to Malay Mail the steps taken by his team to make sure thousands at home were able to tune in and follow the celebrations. 

Reaching a viewership of up to 65,000 streamers per service over the past Holy Week that began on Palm Sunday, Ignatius said the new approach has since proven successful with at least 20,000 people tuning in during regular Sundays worship.

“There are many who have congratulated us on the efforts, thanking us for making it easy for them to follow the mass. 

“But then again there are some who still complain, asking for their lyrics, but these things are normal as they are still getting used to it,” he said. 

The technical set-up that was used for the Easter Vigil, Ignatius explains, is similar to the one used during Sunday celebrations, which includes two static and one moving head video camera which all broadcast in high-definition quality, several lighting panels, sufficient microphones and a multichannel digital mixer. 

Signals from all the devices are then channeled to Ignatius’ computer, where the feed is then compressed and broadcasted onto the archdiocese’s website, including a feed onto their YouTube channel. 

“It is actually a pretty mobile set-up that we use, so it can be moved around from place to place and is not too difficult to set. 

“It takes only around 30 minutes for us to set up from scratch to when we’re ready to go live,” he said. 

The team from Divine Mercy Church going through preparations before the Easter Vigil livestream on April 11, 2020. ― Picture by Hari Anggara.
The team from Divine Mercy Church going through preparations before the Easter Vigil livestream on April 11, 2020. ― Picture by Hari Anggara.

On how his team made sure parishioners were informed and kept up-to-date with streaming schedules, Ignatius revealed the use of social communication coordinators who are tasked with disseminating official information from the archdiocese to their respective parishes. 

“So we give these social communication coordinators the times, schedules and links, and it’s up to them to disseminate the information to their churches,” he added. 

Ignatius explained that for parts of the mass celebrations, e-missals are readily available online for parishioners to download and follow the service with their smartphones or other devices. 

A missal refers to a liturgical book used in churches containing the instructions and parts of a mass needed for a celebration. 

Among the contents of the e-missal, he said are instructions and guidelines to educate parishioners on how to observe the sanctity of a mass celebration while at home. 

“We emphasise on the practices that should be done before, during and after mass, with advice like how one should not be using their pyjamas when observing mass from their homes. 

“The online missal also includes the order of the liturgy, all the readings and parts of the mass so they can actually follow the service through their phones,” he said.  

The Easter Vigil livestream at the Divine Mercy Church on April 11, 2020. ― Picture by Hari Anggara.
The Easter Vigil livestream at the Divine Mercy Church on April 11, 2020. ― Picture by Hari Anggara.

Malaysia is in its fourth week of the MCO that began on March 18, which prohibits public gatherings that include religious congregations during the shutdown period.   

The MCO has been extended twice, with the latest extension set to end on April 28, as the nation combats the outbreak of Covid-19 cases, which to date has infected 4,530 people and taken the lives of 73 people.