分类： religion

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.

VATICAN CITY, ROME — In a deliberate departure from the progressive reforms of his predecessor Pope Francis, Pope Leo XIV has revived a centuries-old tradition for the Holy Thursday foot-washing ritual, washing the feet of 12 priests this year in a ceremony held at Rome’s Archbasilica of St. John Lateran, the official episcopal seat of the Bishop of Rome.

Among the 12 participants, 11 were ordained by Leo himself just last year, and the group was rounded out by Rev. Renzo Chiesa, head of the Rome Diocese’s main seminary. Following the long-standing script for the ritual, Leo poured water over each priest’s feet from a ornate golden pitcher, dried them with a plain white linen cloth, and finished with a ceremonial kiss. In his homily delivered during the service, the pontiff framed the humble act as a reflection of divine power, calling it a “gratuitous and humble gesture” that reveals “the true omnipotence of God.”

“Through this act, Jesus purifies not only our image of God – from the idolatry and blasphemy that have distorted it – but also our image of humanity,” Leo told attendees. The pope, who has already established a pattern of outspoken public opposition to global armed conflict, added that modern conceptions of power stand in stark contrast to Christ’s example: “For we tend to consider ourselves powerful when we dominate, victorious when we destroy our equals, great when we are feared. In contrast, as true God and true man, Christ offers us the example of self-giving, service and love.”

The foot-washing rite is a central tradition of Christian Holy Week, commemorating the act of Jesus washing the feet of his 12 apostles during the Last Supper, ahead of his crucifixion. For decades before Francis’ papacy, popes exclusively performed the ritual on Catholic men within the walls of a Rome basilica. But when Francis took office in 2013, he revolutionized the ceremony, expanding it to include laypeople, women, and even non-Christians, often holding services in unconventional settings including prisons, youth detention facilities, and refugee asylum centers. Francis framed this shift as a rejection of the “clerical culture” that elevates priests above lay followers, an attitude he blamed for enabling the systemic clergy sexual abuse crisis that has shaken the global Catholic Church for decades.

Leo’s decision to roll back this reform and restore the ritual’s exclusive focus on priests is not an arbitrary change, but a deliberate step aligned with his broader papal priorities. The new pontiff has made supporting and protecting clergy a core focus of his early tenure, highlighting the struggles many priests face in modern ministry. Just this week, the Vatican released Leo’s monthly prayer intentions for April, which are dedicated to priests experiencing crisis, burnout, loneliness, and spiritual doubt. In that message, Leo pushed back against the idea that priests are mere ecclesiastical functionaries, asking: “Let them feel they are not mere functionaries or lonely heroes, but beloved sons, humble and cherished disciples, and pastors sustained by the prayer of their people.” He called on lay Catholic faithful to support their clergy, urging them “to listen without judging, to give thanks without demanding perfection,” and walk alongside priests through persistent prayer.

This shift in the Holy Thursday ritual is the latest in a series of early moves by Pope Leo that signal a return to more traditional Vatican practices, paired with a renewed focus on lifting up the Catholic clergy. It comes alongside other recent high-profile actions from the new pontiff, including carrying the cross during the entire Good Friday procession (the first pope to do so in decades) and delivering repeated calls for global peace in his first Easter celebrations as head of the Catholic Church.