Pope Leo XIV has centered his Regina Caeli message this Angel Monday on a decisive issue: the choice between the truth of the Resurrection and its interested denial, a tension that—he warned—remains present in the current world.
From the window of the Vatican Apostolic Palace, before the faithful gathered in St. Peter’s Square, the Pontiff proclaimed the Easter greeting and recalled that Christ’s victory over death is not an isolated fact from the past, but the event that gives meaning to all human history. This is reported in the statement released by the Holy See.
Below is the full text of the words pronounced by Pope Leo XIV in the Regina Caeli of this April 6, 2026:
Dear brothers and sisters, Christ is risen! Happy Easter!
This greeting, full of wonder and joy, will accompany us throughout the week. In celebrating the new day that the Lord has made for us, the liturgy celebrates the entry of all creation into the time of salvation; the despair of death is removed forever, in the name of Jesus.
Today’s Gospel (Mt 28, 8-15) asks us to choose between two accounts: that of the women, who have encountered the Risen One (vv. 9-11), or that of the guards, who have been bribed by the leaders of the Sanhedrin (vv. 11-14). The former announce Christ’s victory over death; the latter announce that death always triumphs in every case. In their version, Jesus has not risen, but his body has been stolen. From the same fact, the empty tomb, two interpretations arise: one is a source of new and eternal life, the other of certain and definitive death.
This contrast leads us to reflect on the value of Christian witness and on the honesty of human communication. Often, the account of the truth is obscured by fake news —as it is said today—, that is, by lies, allusions, and unfounded accusations. Nevertheless, in the face of such obstacles, the truth does not remain hidden; on the contrary, it comes to meet us, alive and radiant, illuminating the densest darkness. Just as to the women who went to the tomb, Jesus also says to us today: “Do not be afraid. Go and announce” (v. 10). Jesus himself thus becomes the good news that must be witnessed in the world: the Lord’s Easter is our Easter—the Easter of humanity—because this man, who died for us, is the Son of God, who gave his life for us. Just as the Risen One—always alive and present—frees the past from a destructive end, so the Easter announcement exempts our future from the tomb.
Dear friends, how important it is that this Gospel reach above all those who are oppressed by evil, which corrupts history and confuses consciences! I think of peoples tormented by war, Christians persecuted for their faith, children deprived of education. To announce Christ’s Easter with words and deeds means to give new voice to hope, which would otherwise be stifled in the hands of the violent. When proclaimed in the world, the Good News dispels every shadow, in every age.
With particular affection, in the light of the Risen One, we remember today Pope Francis, who precisely on Easter Monday of last year gave his life to the Lord. In remembering his great witness of faith and love, let us pray together to the Virgin Mary, Throne of Wisdom, that we may become ever more luminous heralds of the truth.