On Easter, pope praises Iran deal, rips barbarism

Pope Francis delivers the Urbi et Orbi (to the city and to the world) blessing at the end of the Easter Sunday Mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican , Sunday, April 5, 2015.  In an Easter peace wish, Pope Francis on Sunday praised the framework nuclear agreement with Iran as an opportunity to make the world safer, while expressing deep worry about bloodshed in Libya, Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Nigeria and elsewhere in Africa. Cautious hope ran through Francis' "Urbi et Orbi" Easter message, a kind of papal commentary on the state of the world's affairs, which he delivered from the central balcony of St. Peter's Square.  (AP Photo/L'Osservatore Romano, Pool)
Pope Francis delivers the Urbi et Orbi (to the city and to the world) blessing at the end of the Easter Sunday Mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican , Sunday, April 5, 2015. In an Easter peace wish, Pope Francis on Sunday praised the framework nuclear agreement with Iran as an opportunity to make the world safer, while expressing deep worry about bloodshed in Libya, Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Nigeria and elsewhere in Africa. Cautious hope ran through Francis' "Urbi et Orbi" Easter message, a kind of papal commentary on the state of the world's affairs, which he delivered from the central balcony of St. Peter's Square. (AP Photo/L'Osservatore Romano, Pool)

VATICAN CITY -- In an Easter peace wish, Pope Francis on Sunday praised the framework nuclear agreement with Iran as an opportunity to make the world safer, while expressing deep worry about bloodshed in Libya, Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Nigeria and elsewhere in Africa.

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Cautious hope ran through Francis' "Urbi et Orbi" Easter message, a kind of papal commentary on the state of the world's affairs, which he delivered from the central balcony of St. Peter's Square.

He had just celebrated Mass in rain-whipped St. Peter's Square for tens of thousands of people, who huddled under umbrellas or braved the downpour in thin, plastic rain-slickers.

Easter day is "so beautiful, and so ugly because of the rain," Francis said after Mass about Christianity's most important feast day. He expressed thanks for the flowers that bedecked the square and which were donated by the Netherlands, but the bright hues of the azaleas and other blossoms seemed muted by the gray skies.

Francis made his first public comments about the recent framework for an accord, reached in Lausanne, Switzerland, and aimed at ensuring Iran doesn't develop a nuclear weapon.

"In hope we entrust to the merciful Lord the framework recently agreed to in Lausanne, that it may be a definitive step toward a more secure and fraternal world."

Decrying the plenitude of weapons in the world in general, Francis said, "And we ask for peace for this world subjected to arms dealers, who earn their living with the blood of men and women."

He denounced "absurd bloodshed and all barbarous acts of violence" in Libya, convulsed by fighting fueled by tribal and militia rivalries. He hoped "a common desire for peace" would prevail in Yemen, wracked by civil warfare.

Francis prayed that the "roar of arms may cease" in Syria and Iraq, and that peace would come in Africa for Nigeria, South Sudan, Sudan and Congo.

He recalled the young people, many of them targeted because they were Christians, killed last week in a Kenyan university, and lamented kidnappings, by Islamic extremists, that have plagued parts of Africa, including Nigeria.

He also cited bloodshed closer to home, in Ukraine, praying that the Eastern European nation would "rediscover peace and hope thanks to the commitment of all interested parties." Government forces have been battling pro-Russia rebels in eastern Ukraine, months after a cease-fire was proclaimed after international diplomatic efforts.

"We ask the grace not to succumb to the pride which fuels violence and war," Francis said. He called for peace "above all," asking "the international community not to stand by before the immense humanitarian tragedy unfolding."

On Good Friday, Francis chastised the international community for what he called the complicit silence about the killing of Christians. On Easter he prayed that God would alleviate "the suffering of so many of our brothers persecuted because of his name."

During Mass, Francis was shielded from pelting rain by a canopy erected outside St. Peter's Basilica, while prelates carried umbrellas in the yellow and white colors of the Vatican.

The downpour petered out to a drizzle, and by the end of the ceremony, the rain had stopped. Francis, wearing a white overcoat, was driven through the square in the open-sided popemobile so he could wave to the faithful.

Francis, 78, who celebrated the third Easter since his election, has made peace and the plight of the world's poor key issues of his pontificate. His efforts include hosting Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and then-Israeli President Shimon Peres in the Vatican last year for a joint prayer for peace, and helping broker a historic accord between the U.S. and Cuba.

Christians across the world were joining in the Easter celebration. Orthodox Christians, who follow a different calendar, marked Palm Sunday with processions.

In the Holy Land, the cavernous Holy Sepulcher church in Jerusalem was packed with worshippers Sunday. The site is where Christians believe Jesus was crucified, buried and resurrected. Later, a Mass was celebrated in Bethlehem's Nativity Church, built atop the site where, Christians believe, Jesus was born.

In the U.S., crowds strutted along New York City's Fifth Avenue for the annual Easter Parade. The tradition began in the 1880s as a strolling display of what prosperous New Yorkers wore to church. The parade has evolved since to feature outlandish 21st century headpieces that were hardly bonnets, featuring everything from bunnies and butterflies to grassy, egg-dotted lawns and even a tall ship on the high seas.

In the U.S., President Barack Obama and his family attended an Easter service at the Alfred Street Baptist Church in Alexandria, Va., whose history dates back almost 200 years to when Thomas Jefferson was in the White House.

Obama, his wife, Michelle, and their daughters, Sasha and Malia, were welcomed to the historic church by the pastor, the Rev. Dr. Howard-John Wesley, who noted that, like the first lady, he is a native of Chicago's South Side.

"How fitting that on the day we celebrate the rising of our Lord and savior, we also welcome our sitting president," Wesley said, as members of the congregation rose to their feet in applause.

"This is not selfie time," Wesley said jokingly. "Let the brother worship in the house of God."

Churchgoers traditionally walk around to shake hands and give hugs during the greetings and announcements portion of service, but the pastor encouraged the crowd to stay in their seats and greet only their closest neighbors, as the sanctuary was tightly secured with Secret Service agents.

The choir -- including women in purple dresses and men sporting purple ties -- sang a rendition of the hymn "He Lives," prompting most of the church, filled to capacity, to clap, sing and sway to the thumping organ keys while ushers collected the offering.

The pastor based his sermon on a Scripture from 1 Corinthians on the life and resurrection of Christ.

"Where do you stand in the resurrection of Christ?" he asked. "You either believe it or reject it."

Wesley said the sacrifices of Christ allowed the congregation to be forgiven for their own sins.

"He took the pain for me. I owe him my life. I owe him my praise. I owe him my hallelujah," he said.

According to the church's website, the Alexandria Baptist Society was formed in 1803 when members split from another church in the Northern Virginia city, and a slave was baptized that year as its first black member.

Three years later, black members established the Colored Baptist Society as a "conjoined" church. The congregation adopted its current name in the late 1800s.

In 2000, President Bill Clinton visited Alfred Street a few days before the November election. He sang with the gospel choir and appealed to black voters to turn out in large numbers for Vice President Al Gore in his race against Republican George W. Bush.

Information for this article was contributed by Frances D'Emilio, Stacy A. Anderson, Verena Dobnik and staff members of The Associated Press and by Alessandra Migliaccio of Bloomberg News.

A Section on 04/06/2015

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