Although some wondered whether Pope Francis would celebrate the Easter Mass since he was recovering from a recent respiratory illness, he stood tall at St. Peter’s Square to lead approximately 100,000 people during the service.

“Jesus, the Living One, is with us, forever,” he said in a tweet before the Mass. “Let the Church and the world rejoice, for today our hopes no longer come up against the wall of death, for the Lord has built us a bridge to life.” 

As part of the Mass on Sunday, April 9, he gave the traditional Urbi et Orbi blessing and discussed the significance of celebrating Christ’s resurrection, calling it “the most important and beautiful day in history,” the Catholic News Agency said in a report. 

Thirty-one cardinals, 15 bishops, and 300 priests joined the pope in the celebration.

During his Easter message, Pope Francis prayed for an end to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, and acknowledged Christians celebrating Easter under particular circumstances, including those in Nicaragua, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops reported. 

In accordance with tradition, Pope Francis did not deliver a homily during the morning Mass. Instead, he bowed his head and observed a few moments of quiet contemplation after the Gospel readings were made in Latin and Greek.

Pope Francis returned to the Vatican on April 1 after receiving treatment for bronchitis at a Rome hospital. Despite his recent health issues, he presided over a busy week of liturgies for Holy Week and Easter in Rome and the Vatican. The pontiff adhered to his usual schedule, although cold weather prevented him from attending the Good Friday Stations of the Cross at the Colosseum, the Catholic News Agency said.

Following a long-standing tradition, Dutch flower growers sent 38,000 blooming bulbs to St. Peter's Square for Easter, including tulips, daffodils and hyacinths. The floral display also featured roses, anthurium, delphinium, chrysanthemums, azaleas, ivy and celosia, arranged by workers from the Netherlands and the Vatican on the steps leading to the basilica, the area around the altar and the church balcony, the USCCB said.

"Yes, brothers and sisters, at Easter the destiny of the world was changed," Pope Francis said, according to the USCCB. "And on this day, which also coincides with the most probable date of Christ's resurrection, we can rejoice to celebrate, by pure grace, the most important and beautiful day of history."