WASHINGTON — Hours before he died, Pope Francis made a final public appearance on Easter Sunday, blessing a crowd of faithful from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome and taking one last trip in the popemobile.
“Brothers and sisters, Happy Easter,” Francis said from the same loggia where Jorge Mario Bergoglio was introduced to the world on March 13, 2013 as the 266th pope.
Francis also made a surprise ride in the square in his popemobile, drawing wild cheers and applause.
“Viva il Papa!” (Long live the pope), “Bravo!” the crowd shouted as Francis looped through the square in his open-topped popemobile and then up and down the main avenue leading to it. 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 pope fought for his life in the hospital, battling pneumonia.
Despite appearing in public, Francis did not deliver the Easter sermon traditionally given by the pope. Instead, he delegated the speech to a cardinal, Archbishop Diego Ravelli.
The speech, written by Francis, called for an end to some of the high-profile conflicts in the world and urging freedom and respect. It specifically mentioned Gaza and Ukraine, two areas torn apart by still-ongoing conflict.
“What a great thirst for death, for killing, we witness each day in the many conflicts raging in different parts of our world,” Ravelli said to the crowd of faithful watching. “How much violence we see, often even within families, directed at women and children! How much contempt is stirred up at times towards the vulnerable, the marginalized, and migrants!”
After the Mass ended, Francis appeared on the balcony over the basilica entrance for more than 20 minutes and imparted the apostolic blessing in Latin.
The crowd of people below, estimated by the Vatican to be more than 35,000, erupted in cheers as a military band kicked off rounds of the Holy See anthem.
In all, Francis 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.
The meeting was a short one, lasting only a few minutes as the two men exchanged Easter greetings while Vance was on holiday in Rome.
The pope had a strained relationship with the Trump administration, despite Vance converting to Catholicism later in his life.
In his later years, Francis spoke out frequently about the plight of migrants, and denounced the Trump administration’s mass deportation policies.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
