St. Maria Goretti Parish

Pope Francis died on Easter Monday, April 21, 2025, at the age of 88 at his residence in the Vatican's Casa Santa Marta.

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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The hope Christians have is not a sign of avoiding reality but of trusting in the power of God to defeat sin and death as the resurrection of Jesus clearly shows, Pope Francis wrote in his Easter message.

"All those who put their hope in God place their feeble hands in his strong and mighty hand; they let themselves be raised up and set out on a journey," said the message, read before Pope Francis gave his Easter blessing "urbi et orbi" (to the city and the world) April 20. 

The pope's voice was weak, as it has been since he was released from the hospital March 23, and he barely raised his arms as he made the sign of the cross, but the tens of thousands of people in St. Peter's Square were appreciative and clapped loudly after saying, "Amen."

"Together with the risen Jesus," he wrote in his message, those who trust in God "become pilgrims of hope, witnesses of the victory of love and of the disarmed power of life."

The 88-year-old pope, who is still recovering from pneumonia, was not present at the Easter morning Mass in St. Peter's Square but arrived shortly after noon to give the solemn blessing. 

U.S. Vice President JD Vance and his family did not attend the Mass either, but Vance arrived at the Vatican at about 11:30 a.m. for a private meeting with Pope Francis in the papal residence, the Domus Sanctae Marthae. The Vatican said the meeting lasted just a few minutes and allowed the two to exchange Easter greetings.

Vance had met April 19 with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, and with Archbishop Paul R. Gallagher, the Vatican foreign minister. The Vatican said they discussed efforts to defend religious freedom as well as the international situation, especially regarding countries affected by war, political tensions and difficult humanitarian situations, with particular attention to migrants, refugees and prisoners."

Security in and around St. Peter's Square was tight. Just outside the square, an Italian army officer manned a large anti-drone gun, which he said uses electromagnetic pulses to disable the drone operator's ability to control it. 

With his voice still weak, Pope Francis wished everyone a Happy Easter and then asked his master of liturgical ceremonies, Archbishop Diego Ravelli, to read his message, which insisted that "Easter is the celebration of life!"

"God created us for life and wants the human family to rise again," he wrote. "In his eyes, every life is precious! The life of a child in the mother's womb, as well as the lives of the elderly and the sick, who in more and more countries are looked upon as people to be discarded."

Pope Francis condemned the "great thirst for death" seen in violence and wars around the world and in the "contempt" people, including government leaders, direct toward "the vulnerable, the marginalized and migrants!"

As is traditional for the message, the pope also prayed for peace in war-torn nations, mentioning by name: Israel, Palestine, Ukraine, Yemen, Sudan, South Sudan, Congo and Myanmar.

Pope Francis condemned "the growing climate of antisemitism throughout the world." But he also called attention to "the people of Gaza, and its Christian community in particular, where the terrible conflict continues to cause death and destruction and to create a dramatic and deplorable humanitarian situation."

"I appeal to the warring parties: call a ceasefire, release the hostages and come to the aid of a starving people that aspires to a future of peace," the papal message said. 

Pope Francis had chosen Cardinal Angelo Comastri, retired archpriest of St. Peter's Basilica, to be his delegate to preside over the morning Mass and read his homily.

Some 50,000 tulips, daffodils, hyacinths, roses and other flowers and bushes decorated the steps leading up to St. Peter's Basilica while garlands framed the main entrance to the atrium of the basilica and adorned the central balcony.

Because Easter fell on the same day on the Julian and Gregorian calendars, meaning Catholic and Orthodox were celebrating on the same day, the Vatican added Byzantine "stichera" or hymns and "stichos" or Psalm verses after the chanting of the Gospel in Latin and in Greek.

The homily the pope prepared focused on the Easter Gospel's description of Mary Magdalene running to tells the disciples that Jesus had risen and Peter and John running to verify the news.

Running, the pope wrote, "expresses the desire, the yearning of the heart, the inner attitude of those who set out to search for Jesus."

And because he has risen from the dead, people must look for Jesus in someplace other than the tomb, the pope's text said.

"We must take action, set out to look for him: look for him in life, look for him in the faces of our brothers and sisters," he said. "We must look for him without ceasing. Because if he has risen from the dead, then he is present everywhere, he dwells among us, he hides himself and reveals himself even today in the sisters and brothers we meet along the way, in the most ordinary and unpredictable situations of our lives." 

Jesus "is alive and is with us always, shedding the tears of those who suffer and adding to the beauty of life through the small acts of love carried out by each of us," Pope Francis wrote.

After the Mass, the Easter blessing, Pope Francis got in the popemobile and rode around St. Peter's Square, waving to the crowd and blessing babies.

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The Middle East continues to grapple with widespread instability and violence, with poverty further compounding the challenges in several regions.

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Easter is here; thank God for that! Alleluia resounds, but how many Nigerians can sing it? How many people in the world can celebrate Easter? How many can celebrate Easter in Ukraine, Haiti, Gaza, Yemen, Sudan, or the Democratic Republic of Congo? What about in Plateau, Borno, and Zamfara States, along with other places in Nigeria and in our homes and churches?

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The brief meeting of Pope Francis with US Vice President JD Vance offered the opportunity to exchange Easter greetings. Yesterday Cardinal Parolin met with the US leader at the Secretariat of State.

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Pope Francis dedicates his Easter Urbi et Orbi message to calling for peace worldwide, for global disarmament and for the release of prisoners.

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Celebrating the joy of Easter during the morning Mass in Saint Peter’s Square, Pope Francis in his homily calls on us to hasten to seek the risen Lord, like the first disciples, and to renew the gift of hope within us, sharing with those we meet along our life journey.

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In his homily for the Easter Vigil read by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re presiding on his behalf, Pope Francis explains how this celebration "reminds us that the light of the Resurrection illumines our path" and our hearts. The Pope made a brief visit to St. Peter's Basilica a couple hours before the celebration for prayer and to greet the faithful gathering.

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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Against the backdrop of deep differences with the Trump administration over migration and foreign aid as well as concerns for Ukraine and for Gaza, the Vatican secretary of state welcomed U.S. Vice President JD Vance to the Vatican.

Vance met with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, and with Archbishop Paul R. Gallagher, the Vatican foreign minister, April 19 in the Apostolic Palace.

A Vatican statement said areas of agreement, such as the defense of religious freedom, as well as the areas of tension with the Trump administration were discussed. 

"There was an exchange of opinions on the international situation, especially regarding countries affected by war, political tensions and difficult humanitarian situations, with particular attention to migrants, refugees and prisoners," the Vatican statement said.

While "other issues of mutual interest were also discussed," the Vatican said that "hope was expressed for serene collaboration between the State and the Catholic Church in the United States, whose valuable service to the most vulnerable people was acknowledged."

The vice president arrived at the Vatican with his wife, Usha, and three children: Ewan, Vivek and Mirabel. Cardinal Parolin greeted all of them before holding talks with Vance and his entourage. 

After their meeting, the Vance family was given a tour of the Apostolic Palace and the Sistine Chapel.

"Oh, wow, look how beautiful this is," Vance could be heard saying on a Vatican video clip as he got out of the elevator when he arrived in the building. He also could be heard saying he was proud of his children because "they mostly held it together" during the long Vatican Good Friday liturgy.

Vance was in Rome for talks with the Italian government and, with his family, was visiting tourist sites in the city and participating in Holy Week and Easter services. The Vance family attended the Liturgy of the Lord's Passion in St. Peter's Basilica April 18 and was expected to attend Easter morning Mass in St. Peter's Square April 20.

A quick encounter with Pope Francis was possible Easter morning but was not scheduled officially as the pope continues to recover after a long hospitalization. 

The pope, in a letter to U.S. bishops in early February, strongly supported their traditional assistance to migrants and refugees and criticized threats and policies of "mass deportations" announced by Trump and vigorously defended by Vance. 

Pope Francis had described Trump's immigration policy as a "major crisis."

Every nation has the right to defend itself and keep its communities safe "from those who have committed violent or serious crimes while in the country or prior to arrival," the pope had written. However, "the act of deporting people who in many cases have left their own land for reasons of extreme poverty, insecurity, exploitation, persecution or serious deterioration of the environment, damages the dignity of many men and women, and of entire families, and places them in a state of particular vulnerability and defenselessness."

In a January interview, Vance, who joined the Catholic Church in 2019, questioned the motives of the U.S. bishops' criticism of Trump's immigration policies, suggesting their objection to the suspension of a federal refugee resettlement program had to do with "their bottom line."

The pope and the U.S. bishops noted that helping the stranger is a Gospel tenet and, the bishops said, their work with refugees cost more than the government grants covered.

Pope Francis' February letter also responded to an assertion Vance made in a Fox News interview about the Catholic concept of "ordo amoris" (the order of love or charity).

The concept, Vance said, teaches that "you love your family, and then you love your neighbor, and then you love your community, and then you love your fellow citizens in your own country. And then after that, you can focus and prioritize the rest of the world."

However, the pope said, "Christian love is not a concentric expansion of interests that little by little extend to other persons and groups. In other words: the human person is not a mere individual, relatively expansive, with some philanthropic feelings!"

In an interview with the Italian newspaper La Repubblica April 18, Cardinal Parolin said the Vatican supported approaching global problems with "multilateralism and a policy based on cooperation among states, international law and diplomacy, rather than on opposition and the logic of power."

Asked about the Trump administration's growing frustration at not ending Russia's war on Ukraine, a frustration that seems focused on Ukraine's unwillingness to cede territory, Cardinal Parolin responded, "As Pope Francis has repeatedly reminded us, peace cannot be imposed, it is built patiently, day after day, through dialogue and mutual respect."

At the same time, the cardinal said, "anything that promotes a just and lasting peace is to be considered helpful."

Cardinal Parolin also was asked about Israel's continuing bombardment of Gaza and Trump's remarks that Palestinians whose homes have been destroyed in Gaza should be resettled elsewhere and the territory turned into a "Riviera."

"For the Holy See," the cardinal said, "the principles of the social doctrine of the church remain clear: Self-defense is lawful, but it can never imply the total or partial annihilation of another people or the denial of their right to live in their own land."

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Reporting by CNS Rome is made possible by the Catholic Communication Campaign. Give to the CCC special collection in your diocese May 10-11 or any time at: https://bit.ly/CCC-give
 

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- As the lights of St. Peter's Basilica were extinguished and silence settled through the sprawling interior, a single flame -- the paschal candle -- pierced through the gloom, representing the light of the risen Christ which "quietly shines forth, even though we are in darkness," Pope Francis said.

Before the wounds of selfishness and violence present throughout the world, "the promise of new life and a world finally set free awaits us; and a new beginning, however impossible it might seem, can take us by surprise, for Christ has triumphed over death," he wrote in his prepared homily for the Easter Vigil at the Vatican April 19.

The pope, still recovering from respiratory infections, did not attend the Mass but he made an appearance in the basilica earlier in the day to pray, and upon exiting, he greeted a group of pilgrims from Pittsburgh present there. His homily at the Easter Vigil was read by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the College of Cardinals.

The vigil began in the atrium of the basilica with the blessing of the fire and lighting of the paschal candle. A deacon carried the candle into the darkened church, chanting "lumen Christi" ("the light of Christ") three times, to which the congregation responded, "Deo gratias" ("thanks be to God"). As the flame was shared among the faithful, candles throughout the basilica were lit and the lights gradually rose.

After the clergy -- 34 cardinals, 24 bishops and 260 concelebrating priests -- processed to the altar, the Exsultet, the solemn Easter proclamation, was sung by Deacon Nicholas Monnin, a seminarian from the Diocese of Fort Wayne–South Bend studying at the Pontifical North American College in Rome.

In the Exsultet, the deacon invited all of creation to rejoice in the light of Christ, a theme echoed in the pope’s homily.

"The light of the Resurrection illumines our path one step at a time; quietly, it breaks through the darkness of history and shines in our hearts, calling for the response of a humble faith, devoid of all triumphalism," Pope Francis wrote.

The pope acknowledged that the Resurrection does not erase the suffering of the world but enters into it. "We cannot celebrate Easter without continuing to deal with the nights that dwell in our hearts and the shadows of death that so often loom over our world," he said in his written message.

"Christ indeed conquered sin and destroyed death," he wrote. "Yet in our earthly history the power of his Resurrection is still being brought to fulfilment. And that fulfilment, like a small seed of light, has been entrusted to us, to protect it and to make it grow."

During the Mass, Cardinal Re baptized three catechumens: two Italians and one Albanian. He also confirmed them and gave them their first Communion.

In his homily, the pope emphasized that the Resurrection is not a private consolation but a call to witness for all Christians.

Through small, everyday actions and decisions inspired by the Gospel "our whole life can be a presence of hope," he wrote. "We want to be that presence for those who lack faith in the Lord, for those who have lost their way, for those who have given up or are weighed down by life; for those who are alone or overwhelmed by their sufferings; for all the poor and oppressed in our world; for the many women who are humiliated and killed; for the unborn and for children who are mistreated; and for the victims of war."

"In the risen Jesus," the pope added, "we have the certainty that our personal history and that of our human family, albeit still immersed in a dark night where lights seem distant and dim, are nonetheless in God’s hands."

The Holy Year 2025, Pope Francis said, is a time for renewed faith and action for Christians. "We should feel strongly within us the summons to let the hope of Easter blossom in our lives and in the world!"

"Let us make room for the light of the risen Lord," he wrote, "and we will become builders of hope for the world."

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Reporting by CNS Rome is made possible by the Catholic Communication Campaign. Give to the CCC special collection in your diocese May 10-11 or any time at: https://bit.ly/CCC-give