In Vatican City, nearly a quarter of a million people jam St. Peter’s Square to watch the pope preside over an outdoor Mass. At the tolling of the noon hour, the pope appears on the basilica balcony to give his annual Easter address​—a condemnation of violations of human rights and the arms race.

Proclaimed the Vatican: “Every week, on the day which she has called the Lord’s day [Sunday], [the church] keeps the memory of His resurrection.” Additionally, “in the supreme solemnity of Easter she also makes an annual commemoration of the resurrection.”​—The Documents of Vatican II.