Ukrainian mayor present
At the end of his homily, the pope addressed the mayor of the Ukrainian city of Melitopol, Ivan Fedorov, who was present with three deputies in St. Peter’s Basilica after being received on Saturday by the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin. “In this darkness that you are experiencing, Mr Mayor, ladies and gentlemen of Parliament, the darkness of war and cruelty, we all pray with you tonight, we pray for so much suffering. We pray and encourage you, and we will accompany you. tell them what is the greatest thing we celebrate today: ‘Christ is risen'”, said the Pope, uttering these last words in Ukrainian.
On Friday night, Francis prayed the traditional Via Sacra at the Coliseum with tens of thousands. The Via Sacra happened again after two years, having been suspended during the pandemic.
Pope Francis celebrates Easter Mass on Sunday (10am) – after a break forced by Corona, this time again in front of the faithful in St Peter’s Square in Rome. Then the head of the world’s 1.3 billion Catholics announces his traditional Easter message and bestows the “Urbi et Orbi” (“To the city and the world”) blessing. This year’s Easter celebrations in the Vatican and around the world have been overshadowed by the war in Ukraine.