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Pope Leo XIV marked his inaugural Easter Mass as the leader of the Catholic Church with a heartfelt appeal for global peace, urging an end to conflict through dialogue. Departing from the tradition of specifically naming global issues during the Urbi et Orbi blessing, he addressed the world from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City.
The first pope from the United States, Leo XIV, underscored the hopeful message of Easter, celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ. His homily and blessing both highlighted this theme of hope.
“Let us open our hearts to be transformed by His boundless love!” the pope urged. “Let those who wield weapons lay them down. Let those with the power to wage war choose peace—peace not enforced by might, but achieved through dialogue. Not with the intent to dominate, but to engage with one another!”
As the conflict involving the U.S. and Israel against Iran continues into its second month, and as Russia persists in its military actions in Ukraine, Pope Leo acknowledged the prevailing sense of apathy towards the loss of life and the divisive consequences these conflicts engender. He also reflected on the economic and social toll that wars inflict.
While refraining from mentioning specific conflicts, Pope Leo echoed the words of his predecessor, Pope Francis, who, during his final Easter address from the same balcony, spoke of the pervasive “thirst for death and killing” witnessed daily.
Francis, weakened by a long illness, died the next day on Easter Monday.
The Urbi et Orbi blessing, Latin for “to the city and the world,” has traditionally included a litany of the world’s woes. Leo followed that formula during his Christmas blessing. There was no immediate explanation for the shift.
Earlier, Leo addressed some 50,000 faithful from an open-air altar in St. Peter’s Square flanked with white roses, while the steps leading down to the piazza where the faithful gathered were filled with spring perennials, symbolically resonating with the pope’s words.
He implored the faithful to keep their hope in the face of death, which lurks “in the abuses that crush the weakest among us, because the idolatry of profit that plunders the earth’s resources, because of the violence of war that kills and destroys.”
Speaking from the loggia, the pope announced a prayer vigil for peace April 11 in the Basilica.
“On this day of celebration, let us abandon every desire for conflict, domination, and power, and implore the Lord to grant his peace to a world ravaged by wars and marked by a hatred and indifference that makes us feel powerless in the face of evil,” he said.
Small shifts in traditions
Leo greeted the global faithful in 10 languages, including Arabic, Chinese and Latin, reviving a practice that his predecessor Pope Francis had let lapse.
Before retreating into the basilica, Leo stepped forward out of the loggia’s shadow and waved to the cheering crowd below.
During the marathon that is Holy Week, Leo also reclaimed the tradition of washing priests’ feet on Holy Thursday, a gesture of encouragement toward clergy, after Francis had chosen a more inclusive path, traveling to prisons and homes for the disabled to wash the feet of women, non-Christians and prisoners.
The 70-year-old pontiff also became the first pope in decades to carry the light wooden cross for the entire 14 stations during the Way of the Cross on Good Friday.
Christians in the Holy Land were marking a subdued Easter
Traditional ceremonies at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, revered by Christians as the traditional site of Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection, were scaled back under an agreement with Israeli police. Authorities have put limits on the sizes of public gatherings due to ongoing missile attacks.
The restrictions also dampened the recent Muslim holy month of Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr holiday, as well as the current weeklong Jewish festival of Passover. On Sunday, the Jewish priestly blessing at the Western Wall – normally attended by tens of thousands – was limited to just 50 people.
The restrictions have strained relations between Israeli authorities and Christian leaders. Police last week prevented two of the church’s top religious leaders, including Latin Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzaballa, from celebrating Palm Sunday at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
On Tuesday, the pope had expressed hope that the war could be finished before Easter.
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Barry reported from Milan. Associated Press writer Josef Federman in Jerusalem contributed to this report
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