“Day has dawned now, Sorrow’s gone now. Sorrow’s gone now, Christ rose again. Thereby we’re given Life’s Light from heaven. Life’s Light from heaven caused night to end!”
By: Tom Blekstad
Several thousand people from more than 36 countries will be singing these well-known stanzas in unison on Easter Sunday at Brunstad. The fact that it is sung in Norwegian is taken for granted, no matter which country visitors comes from. The churches of BCC have gathered for conferences here in Vestfold for more than 60 years.
READ ALSO: Easter conference for 37 Nations in Norway
Easter – a worldwide Christian event
Every Easter Sunday, the holy day’s most well-known hymn underlines the spiritual community amongst Christians in our nation. Regardless of which church we belong to, we share faith in and thankfulness for the Easter message. Easter is in many ways a worldwide event for all Christians. Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection are remembered, honoured, and celebrated around the world by Catholics, Orthodox, Anglicans, Protestants or Oriental Orthodox alike.
READ: Christian Easter and the Lord’s Supper
Are our Easter celebrations mostly invisible?
Compared to Catholic and Orthodox church masses and other church communities, we have nothing resembling rituals or symbolic activities during holy week beyond our tradition of gathering for a conference.
Along with many other Norwegians, we enjoy Easter sunshine and free days in the mountains or at the seaside, if it fits before or after our Easter conference. We have the same enjoyable Easter traditions as most people: Easter breakfasts at school, handmade Easter decorations made by our children, and Easter eggs brimming with treats to be enjoyed by all during Easter break.
Does that mean that we take the Easter message lightly? On the contrary, when we sing “Day has dawned now! Sorrow’s gone now!” at our Easter conference, it is with reverence and thankfulness in our hearts. We are grateful for the great work Jesus accomplished by his death and resurrection, and also inexpressibly thankful for the life he made available to us through his example and his messages.
“Day has dawned now!” is sung with devotion and gratitude every year during the first service on Easter Sunday. Easter conferences have been held at Brunstad since the 1950s. Photo: BCC
The Easter message lives on for the whole year
The message of the Cross, the Easter message, is carried in our hearts every day and at every church gathering, whether it be at an international conference or part of an ordinary weekday. When we gather for edification, we study Jesus’ life and doctrine in depth. We read about his first disciples, like Paul, Peter, and John. What they observed and learned from Jesus is now available for us to learn and live, and not just at Easter. It is a big help and joy every day, whether during hectic work days or in our interactions with our families.
This Easter, children, young people, and adults from around the world are gathering again for our traditional Easter conference, exactly 100 years after our first Easter conference was held in Sarpsborg in 1919. The message we celebrate during Easter, presented using modern technology and methods, is the same: we hear and learn about what Jesus made possible for us on Easter more than 2,000 years ago.
Day has dawned now, sorrow’s gone now!
By N.F.S. Grundtvig, 1843 – Melody by L.M. Lindeman
Day has dawned now! Sorrow’s gone now!
Sorrow’s gone now! Christ rose again.
Thereby we’re given Life’s Light from heaven!
Life’s Light from heaven caused night to end!
Day has dawned now! Sorrow’s gone now!
Sorrow’s gone now! Christ rose again.
Christ has risen from death’s prison!—
From death’s prison with dawn’s bright rays!
Hell thus confounding, heav’n is resounding!
Heav’n is resounding with songs of praise!
Christ has risen from death’s prison!—
From death’s prison with dawn’s bright rays!
Christ our Savior! Praise Him ever!
Praise Him ever! His life He gave
So He could meet us, so He could greet us,
So He could greet us beyond the grave.
Christ our Savior! Praise Him ever!
Praise Him ever! His life He gave!”
Death’s defeated! Sin’s unseated!
Sin’s unseated; Christ ransomed us.
Death’s bands are severed! He reigns forever!
He reigns forever, victorious!
Death’s defeated! Sin’s unseated!
Sin’s unseated; Christ ransomed us.”