Pope Francis celebrated Easter Mass for around 50,000 people in St. Peter’s Square on 17 April. It is the first Easter Mass with the public after two years of COVID-19 pandemic restrictions.
Pope Francis also participated in the “Resurrexit,” an ancient rite honoring an icon of the Holy Savior.
The ritual sequence, sung in Latin, recalls how the apostle Peter, of whom the Pope is the successor, was one of the first witnesses to Christ’s resurrection, after St. Mary Magdalene.
While the “Resurrexit” was sung, deacons opened the panels of the icon of the Holy Savior next to the altar.
Pope Francis then sprinkled holy water before proceeding with the rest of Mass.
For Easter 2022, the Vatican’s altar was decorated with flowers from the Netherlands, the continuation of a 37-year tradition.
Pope Francis concelebrated the Easter Sunday Mass with 280 priests, 25 bishops, and 23 cardinals. Students from the North American College Seminary in Rome were ministers at the pope’s Mass.