Pope Francis at Easter Sunday Mass
Pope Francis leads the Easter Sunday mass at St Peter’s Square at the Vatican (Picture: AP/Getty)

Pope Francis opened a celebration of Mass on Easter Sunday at the Vatican despite fears over his health.

At least 45,000 people gathered in a sunny St Peter’s Square for what is seen as the most important date in the Church’s liturgical calendar.

The celebration started inside at the entrance of the Basilica this morning before the pope greeted worshippers.

The 86-year-old is currently recovering from bronchitis, which recently saw him hospitalised for three days in Rome.

Pope Francis leads the Easter Sunday mass at St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, April 9, 2023. REUTERS/Remo Casilli
Tens of thousands of people travelled to the Vatican for the ceremony (Picture: Reuters)

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He was treated with intravenous antibiotics and was discharged on April 1, but there are still concerns his health is declining and he is experiencing difficulties breathing.

As a precaution, Francis chose to skip Good Friday’s night time ‘Way of the Cross’ procession at the Colosseum after temperatures in the capital dropped sharply.

He followed the service from his residence in the Vatican instead, and returned to public view on Saturday to preside over Easter vigil mass.

Today’s celebrations are being watched by millions of Catholics across the world on TV.

Pope Francis, left, stands on the altar in St. Peter's Square at The Vatican during the Easter Sunday mass, Sunday, April 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Francis stood on the altar in St Peter’s Square (Picture: AP)
Pope Francis greats cardinals following the Easter Sunday mass at St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, April 9, 2023. REUTERS/Remo Casilli
He greeted cardinals following the celebration (Picture: Reuters)

Orange-red tulips, yellow sprays of forsythia and daffodils, and other colourful seasonal blooms were transported in trucks from the Netherlands and set up in planters to decorate the Vatican square.

At the start of the Easter ceremony inspired by the core Christian belief that Jesus rose from the dead after his crucifixion, Francis sprinkled holy water.

He sounded somewhat tired as he recited the ritual words in Latin.

But except for forgoing the Colosseum Way of the Cross torch-lit procession, he has stuck to his heavy schedule of Holy Week public appearances.

Faithful attend Easter Sunday mass led by Pope Francis at St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, April 9, 2023. REUTERS/Remo Casilli
For many worshippers this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity (Picture: Reuters)

Francis later went up to the central balcony of the Basilica to deliver his twice-yearly ‘Urbi et Orbi’ message to the crowd.

‘Help the beloved Ukrainian people on their journey towards peace, and shed the light of Easter upon the people of Russia,’ he said.

The pontiff also asked God to ‘comfort the wounded and all those who have lost loved ones because of the war, and grant that prisoners may return safe and sound to their families’.

He said: ‘Open the hearts of the entire international community to strive to end this war and all conflict and bloodshed in our world.’

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