Pope Leo XIV used his first Easter Sunday message as pontiff to issue an appeal for peace, urging leaders to end global conflicts and calling on those with power to “lay down their weapons” and choose dialogue over domination.
Speaking from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica before tens of thousands gathered in St. Peter’s Square, the pope warned that the world is becoming increasingly indifferent to violence and suffering. Without naming specific wars, he condemned what he described as a growing acceptance of injustice, oppression and the destruction caused by armed conflict.
“Let those who have weapons lay them down,” Leo said in his Urbi et Orbi blessing. “Let those who have the power to unleash wars choose peace — not a peace imposed by force, but through dialogue.”
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The message marked Leo’s first Easter as pope. He was elected on May 8, 2025, succeeding Pope Francis, who died a day after presiding over last year’s Easter celebrations.
During the Easter Mass, he told the faithful that the holiday proclaims a hope that endures even amid suffering, injustice and what he called the “wounds of the world.”
“Death is always lurking,” he said. Yet, Leo added, the resurrection of Christ offers a promise that death and despair do not have the final word.
“Easter opens us to a hope that never fails, to a light that never fades,” the pope said. “Death has been conquered forever.”
Leo acknowledged that embracing such hope is often difficult, particularly when people feel overwhelmed by personal suffering or by the scale of violence and injustice worldwide. Still, he insisted that the resurrection signals the dawn of a new life for humanity, stronger than death and hatred.
Quoting from the Evangelii Gaudium of Pope Francis, Leo echoed the idea that even when injustice and cruelty appear to prevail, “something new always springs to life” and eventually bears fruit.
Pope Leo XIV presides over Easter Mass in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino) 
Clergy follow Pope Leo XIV as he presides over Easter Mass in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino) 
Pope Leo XIV arrives to preside over Easter Mass in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026 (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino) 
Pope Leo XIV arrives to preside over Easter Mass in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino) 
Pope Leo XIV presides over Easter Mass in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini) 
Faithful wait for Pope Leo XIV to deliver the traditional Urbi et Orbi blessing — Latin for “to the city of Rome and to the world” — at the end of the Easter Mass in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini) 
Pope Leo XIV delivers the Urbi et Orbi blessing — Latin for “to the city of Rome and to the world” — from the central loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica at the end of Easter Mass he presided over in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini) 
Pope Leo XIV delivers the Urbi et Orbi blessing —Latin for “to the city of Rome and to the world” — from the central loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica at the end of Easter Mass he presided over in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino) 
Pope Leo XIV addresses the faithful after delivering the Urbi et Orbi blessing — Latin for “to the city of Rome and to the world” — from the central loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica at the end of Easter Mass he presided over in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini) 
Pope Leo XIV delivers the Urbi et Orbi blessing — Latin for “to the city of Rome and to the world” — from the central loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica at the end of Easter Mass he presided over in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
The Easter celebrations took place in a St. Peter’s Square decorated with more than 75,000 flowers, continuing a 40-year tradition of floral donations from the Netherlands.
Leo also announced that he will return to St. Peter’s Square on April 11 to lead a prayer vigil for peace, extending his Easter appeal beyond the holiday and reinforcing his call for an end to war.
Leo on Friday became only the second pope to carry the cross for the entire Good Friday procession at Rome’s Colosseum.
The pontiff led the Way of the Cross before an estimated 30,000 faithful. The service commemorates the 14 Stations of the Cross, which recount the suffering, death and burial of Jesus. Pope John Paul II was the only other pope to carry the cross throughout the ceremony.
