On Easter Monday Pope Francis greeted pilgrims and visitors gathered in St Peter’s Square, praying especially for Christians who are persecuted for their faith.

Speaking from the window of the Apostolic Palace before the recitation of the Regina Coeli midday prayer, the Pope said the day’s liturgy echoes the great cry of Easter Sunday, ‘Christ is Risen, Hallelujah!’

We hear the words of the angel to the women at the tomb, saying ‘Go quickly and tell his disciples, he has been raised from the dead.”

Those words are directed at us too, the Pope said, inviting us to go quickly and proclaim this message of joy and hope to the women and men of our day…

On Easter Sunday morning Pope Francis presided over Mass in St Peter’s Square festooned for the occasion with colourful tulips from Holland.

Breaking with tradition the Pope gave an off the cuff homily encouraging Christians to keep the faith despite the wars, sickness and hatred in the world.

“The Church never ceases to say, faced with our defeats, our closed and fearful hearts, ‘stop, the Lord is risen’…

About 20,000 faithful were present tonight, April 14, 2017, at the traditional Via Crucis (Way of the Cross) presided over by Pope Francis near the Colosseum in Rome. With much security amidst a climate of meditation and prayer, thousands of small flames of the candles that illuminated the night. The texts of this year’s meditations for the Stations of the Cross were prepared by French biblical scholar, and winner of the prestigious Ratzinger Prize, Anne-Marie Pelletier…