(21 Apr 2025)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Vatican City – 20 April 2025
1. Pope on balcony
2. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Margarita Torres Hernandez, pilgrim from Mexico: ++SOUNDBITE STARTS ON PREVIOUS SHOT AND IS OVERLAID BY SHOT 3
“It is excellent, a miracle (to have seen the Pope). I come from Mexico, I just arrived here and now that he has come out, for me it is a miracle, it is something very big, very beautiful.”
3. Mid of Pope on balcony
4. Various of Pope Francis in popemobile stopping to greet and bless baby
5. SOUNDBITE (Italian) Pietro Di Gaetano, pilgrim from Palermo, Italy: ++SOUNDBITE STARTS ON PREVIOUS SHOT AND PARTIALLY OVERLAID BY SHOT6++
"I am a little sorry because I saw him very down in the dumps because he could not even read two verses of the prayer. I realised that he is also sick today, perhaps more than the other days."
6. Pope Francis in popemobile greeting faithful
STORYLINE:
Pope Francis emerged from his convalescence on Easter Sunday to bless the thousands of people in St. Peter’s Square and treat them to a surprise popemobile tour through the piazza, drawing wild cheers and applause as he continues his recovery from a near-fatal bout of double pneumonia.
He stopped occasionally to bless babies brought up to him, a scene that was common in the past but unthinkable just a few weeks ago, as the 88-year-old Francis fought for his life.
Francis didn’t celebrate the Easter Mass in the piazza, delegating it to Cardinal Angelo Comastri, the retired archpriest of St. Peter’s Basilica.
But after the Mass ended, Francis appeared on the loggia balcony over the basilica entrance for more than 20 minutes and imparted the apostolic blessing in Latin.
The thousands of people below erupted in cheers as a military band kicked off rounds of the Holy See and Italian anthems.
Francis waved from the balcony as a Vatican archbishop read aloud his speech, a global appeal for peace in the world’s hotspots that is the hallmark of the Vatican’s Easter celebrations.
Margarita Torres Hernandez, a pilgrim from Mexico described the Pope’s appearance as a "miracle".
Meanwhile Pietro Di Gaetano, a pilgrim from Palermo, was less optimistic, saying: "He could not even read two verses of the prayer. I realised that he is also sick today, perhaps more than the other days."
In all, the Pope was outside on a sunny spring day for around 50 minutes, with temperatures at 21 degrees Celsius (70 Fahrenheit) in a piazza awash in daffodils, tulips and other flowers donated by the Netherlands for Easter.
On his way to the basilica, Francis met briefly in his hotel with U.S. Vice President JD Vance, who was spending Easter in Rome with his family. The Vatican said the encounter lasted just a few minutes and was designed to allow for an exchange of Easter greetings.
Francis has only appeared in public a handful of times since returning to the Vatican on March 23 after a 38-day hospital stay. He skipped the solemn services of Good Friday and Holy Saturday leading up to Easter, but he had been expected to make an appearance on Sunday.
Easter is the most joyful moment on the Christian liturgical calendar, when the faithful celebrate the resurrection of Christ after his crucifixion. This year, Easter is being celebrated on the same day by Catholics and Orthodox Christians, and has been marked by Russia’s announced temporary Easter truce in its war in Ukraine.
AP Video by Silvia Stellacci and Francesco Sportelli
===========================================================
Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Archive
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/APArchives
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/APNews/
You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/5a4fee153ffa4638827cf1a007cffaa0
Author: AP Archive
Go to Source
News post in April 26, 2025, 3:05 am.
Visit Our Sponsor’s:
News Post In – News
