On Easter Sunday, thousands of devout worshippers packed Vatican City’s St. Peter’s Square to witness a historic moment: the first ever Easter Mass and address delivered by Pope Leo XIV, the first pontiff born in the United States.
Framed by elegant arrangements of white roses on the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, the new pontiff opened his message with a urgent plea directed at global power holders. Standing against a backdrop of vibrant spring decor—rows of sunny daffodils interspersed with thousands of purple, red, and white blooms arranged for the holiest day on the Christian liturgical calendar—Leo called for an end to the violence tearing through communities across the globe.
“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,” he told the gathered crowd. Expanding on his critique of global inaction in the face of bloodshed, the pontiff highlighted a dangerous cultural shift taking root across the world: “We are growing accustomed to violence, resigning ourselves to it, and becoming indifferent, indifferent to the deaths of thousands of people.”
He doubled down on his core appeal, stating clearly: “Let those who have weapons lay them down. Let those who have the power to unleash wars choose peace.” In a departure from recent papal tradition, Leo chose not to name specific nations or ongoing conflicts in his main Easter address, though his track record of public criticism makes his priorities clear: he has emerged as a prominent vocal opponent of the ongoing war between the United States and Iran, and has used every recent public platform to denounce global armed conflict and push for immediate de-escalation. Earlier this week, he made an uncommon direct appeal to U.S. President Donald Trump, urging him to pursue a diplomatic “off-ramp” to end the Iran conflict.
Before closing his address, Leo paid respectful tribute to his predecessor, Pope Francis, who delivered his final Easter address exactly one year prior, only hours before his death. Drawing a connection between the core Easter narrative of Jesus Christ’s resurrection after crucifixion and modern calls for peace, Leo emphasized that Christ remained entirely nonviolent even in the face of unjust suffering.
Following his address, the pontiff delivered the traditional “Urbi et Orbi” blessing—Latin for “to the city [of Rome] and the world”—to the crowd below, waving to thousands of gathered faithful before concluding the service. As Vatican bells rang out across the city-state and the assembled worshippers erupted in applause, Leo closed the event by offering Easter greetings in multiple languages, including Latin, Arabic, and Chinese.
Consistent with his sustained push for peace advocacy, the pope also announced he would return to St. Peter’s Basilica on April 11 to lead a special prayer vigil dedicated to global peace. This public event marks the next step in a weeks-long campaign by Pope Leo to draw attention to the human cost of war: during Holy Week leading up to Easter, he delivered a series of addresses warning against growing public apathy toward suffering caused by armed conflict. During his sermon at the Easter Vigil held Saturday night, he urged Christian believers across the world not to grow numb to the scale of global violence, but to actively work toward reconciliation between divided groups.