Pope Benedict XVI,
holding a tall, lit, white candle, enters a hushed and darkened St.
Peter’s Basilica, at the Vatican Saturday, April 7, 2012, to begin the
Vatican’s Easter vigil service. Except for the twinkle of camera
flashes, the basilica was almost pitch-black as the thousands of
faithful in pews awaited Benedict’s arrival through the rear entrance
Saturday night. Christians on Easter joyously mark their belief that
Christ rose from the dead after his crucifixion. Praying at the start of
the service, Benedict said Easter brings hope to the faithful. On
Sunday morning, he will lead Easter Mass in St. Peter’s Square
Pier Paolo Cito / AP
Pope Benedict XVI enters St. Peter's Basilica on Saturday to begin the Vatican's Easter vigil service.
Benedict presided at a solemn Easter vigil Mass in St Peter's Basilica to usher the 1.2 billion-member church into the most important day of its liturgical calendar.
The basilica, the largest church in Christendom, was in the dark for the start of the service to signify the darkness in Jesus' tomb before what Christians believe was his resurrection from the dead three days after his crucifixion.
The some 10,000 faithful in the basilica lit candles as the pope moved up the central aisle on a wheeled platform he uses to conserve his strength and then the basilica's lights were turned on when he reached the main altar.
RAW: Pope's Easter service
18 hours ago - CBC.ca 4:54
Pope Benedict conducts Easter service in St. Peter's Square on Easter Sunday
Easter for Christians commemorates Christ's triumph over death with his resurrection following his crucifixion.
"Life
is stronger than death. Good is stronger than evil. Love is stronger
than hate. Truth is stronger than lies,"
Wearing gold and white vestments at the Mass, his
last Holy Week service before Easter Sunday, Benedict wove his sermon
around the theme of darkness and light."The darkness that poses a real threat to mankind, after all, is the fact that he can see and investigate tangible material things, but cannot see where the world is going or whence it comes, where our own life is going, what is good and what is evil," he said.
"The darkness enshrouding God and obscuring values is the real threat to our existence and to the world in general," he said.
Around the world, Christians celebrate the holiest week of the year.
"If God and moral values, the difference between good and evil, remain in darkness, then all other 'lights', that put such incredible technical feats within our reach, are not only progress but also dangers that put us and the world at risk," he said.
Blessing ... Pope Benedict XVI
"With regard to material things, our knowledge and our technical accomplishments are legion, but what reaches beyond, the things of God and the question of good, we can no longer identify," Benedict added, saying that faith was the “true enlightenment.”
Benedict, who has made protection of the environment a theme of his papacy, made a reference to urban pollution in his homily. “Today we can illuminate our cities so brightly that the stars in the sky are no longer visible,” he said. “Is this not an image of the problems caused by our version of enlightenment?”
The pope, who returned from a grueling trip to Mexico and Cuba last week, looked fatigued at the long service, during which be baptized eight adults from Italy, the United States, Slovakia, Turkmenistan, Albania, Germany and Cameroon. He turns 85 on April 16.
On Sunday the pope will preside at an Easter day Mass and then deliver his twice-yearly "Urbi et Orbi" (to the city and the world) blessing and message from the central balcony of St Peter's Basilica.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this story.
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