The Vatican City, together with over 1.2 billion Catholics around the world, will be celebrating Easter differently this year as the world continues to pray and fight against the impact of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
His Holiness Pope Francis will be celebrating the Easter Mass today at the St. Peter’s Basilica on a livestream that is expected to begin around 4:55 am Eastern Time. (12:55 pm, UAE Time / 4:55 pm PH Time) at the Vatican News – English‘s official Youtube channel.
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His Holiness is also set to deliver his “Urbi et Orbi” (to the city and the world) blessing and message after the mass.
Earlier, the Pope presided the Easter Vigil where his homily focused on messages of hope and courage for people to be “messengers of life”.
“Do not be afraid, do not yield to fear: This is the message of hope. It is addressed to us, today. These are the words that God repeats to us this very night,” said His Holiness Pope Francis during the Easter Vigil which was also livestreamed on YouTube.
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The Vatican’s Easter Sunday Mass usually draws in around 100,000 of the Catholic faithful on ground but this year’s celebration within the church premises will only have less than 20 people, following strict measures set by the World Health Organization as well as health officials worldwide.
