Photos: An unconventional Easter, in the time of coronavirus

By HT Correspondent

Updated On Apr 12, 2020 08:40 pm IST

The world celebrated Easter at a distance on Sunday, hunkered down at home; having to improvise on the holiest day of the Christian calendar. St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, where tens of thousands would gather to hear the Pope’s message to the world was empty like churches and cathedrals around the world amid wide-ranging coronavirus shutdowns. Breaking centuries of tradition, the Pope also livestreamed his address in quiet ceremony --urging the world to rise over self-centeredness and division in facing the coronavirus pandemic.

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Pope Francis holds the Holy Bread as he celebrates the Eucharist during Easter Sunday Mass on April 12, 2020 behind closed doors at St. Peter’s Basilica in The Vatican. The 83-year-old pontiff’s message to the world, calling for solidarity the world over to confront an “epochal challenge”, was live-streamed for the first time. (Andreas Solaro / AFP)

Updated on Apr 12, 2020 08:40 pm IST

Pope Francis holds the Holy Bread as he celebrates the Eucharist during Easter Sunday Mass on April 12, 2020 behind closed doors at St. Peter’s Basilica in The Vatican. The 83-year-old pontiff’s message to the world, calling for solidarity the world over to confront an “epochal challenge”, was live-streamed for the first time. (Andreas Solaro / AFP)

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Father Bruno Lefevre Pontalis on the rooftop of Saint Francois Xavier church to bless the city, in Paris on Saturday, April 11. “For many, this is an Easter of solitude lived amid the sorrow and hardship that the pandemic is causing, from physical suffering to economic difficulties,” the pope said to the world, urging that this was not a time for division. (Nathan Laine / Bloomberg)

Updated on Apr 12, 2020 08:40 pm IST

Father Bruno Lefevre Pontalis on the rooftop of Saint Francois Xavier church to bless the city, in Paris on Saturday, April 11. “For many, this is an Easter of solitude lived amid the sorrow and hardship that the pandemic is causing, from physical suffering to economic difficulties,” the pope said to the world, urging that this was not a time for division. (Nathan Laine / Bloomberg)

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A man rides past a police check point outside St.Anthony’s church, one of the sites attacked during last year’s Easter, in Colombo, Sri Lanka on Sunday, April 12. Sri Lanka’s Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith said in a televised Mass that the Roman Catholic Church had forgiven the suicide bombers who killed 279 people and wounded nearly 600 others last year. (Eranga Jayawardena / AP)

Updated on Apr 12, 2020 08:40 pm IST

A man rides past a police check point outside St.Anthony’s church, one of the sites attacked during last year’s Easter, in Colombo, Sri Lanka on Sunday, April 12. Sri Lanka’s Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith said in a televised Mass that the Roman Catholic Church had forgiven the suicide bombers who killed 279 people and wounded nearly 600 others last year. (Eranga Jayawardena / AP)

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Christian devotees sing a Gospel hymn during a special Easter fellowship outside their house, amid a three-week nationwide COVID-19 lockdown, in Dimapur, Nagaland. (PTI)

Updated on Apr 12, 2020 08:40 pm IST

Christian devotees sing a Gospel hymn during a special Easter fellowship outside their house, amid a three-week nationwide COVID-19 lockdown, in Dimapur, Nagaland. (PTI)

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Musicians Frank and Gloria Martinez wear masks, as they perform for a live-streamed celebration of Easter Vigil Mass at St. Patrick Church in North Hollywood, California, on Saturday, April 11. Families around the world who normally would attend Holy Week observances remain hunkered down at home. (Damian Dovarganes / AP)

Updated on Apr 12, 2020 08:40 pm IST

Musicians Frank and Gloria Martinez wear masks, as they perform for a live-streamed celebration of Easter Vigil Mass at St. Patrick Church in North Hollywood, California, on Saturday, April 11. Families around the world who normally would attend Holy Week observances remain hunkered down at home. (Damian Dovarganes / AP)

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Protestant priest Sunil offers special prayers on Easter at Lutheran Church in Hyderabad on Sunday. The world observed a solitary Easter Sunday, blending the joyful feast day with sorrow over the toll the coronavirus has already taken. (MAhesh Kumar A. / AP)

Updated on Apr 12, 2020 08:40 pm IST

Protestant priest Sunil offers special prayers on Easter at Lutheran Church in Hyderabad on Sunday. The world observed a solitary Easter Sunday, blending the joyful feast day with sorrow over the toll the coronavirus has already taken. (MAhesh Kumar A. / AP)

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Pastor Matt Johnson leads an Easter service that is live-streamed via the internet for parishioners due to social gathering restrictions, at One1Seven evangelical Anglican church in Sydney, Australia on Sunday. Technology has come to aid believers in the face of a new illness that has changed the shape of society and altered the way religion is observed. (Loren Elliott / REUTERS)

Updated on Apr 12, 2020 08:40 pm IST

Pastor Matt Johnson leads an Easter service that is live-streamed via the internet for parishioners due to social gathering restrictions, at One1Seven evangelical Anglican church in Sydney, Australia on Sunday. Technology has come to aid believers in the face of a new illness that has changed the shape of society and altered the way religion is observed. (Loren Elliott / REUTERS)

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A priest plays the guitar while leading an Easter Sunday Mass on the roof of the Santissima Trinita a Villa Chigi parish church in Rome, Italy. A few lucky parishioners with homes overlooking churches attended rooftop services in Rome from their balconies. (Remo Casilli / REUTERS)

Updated on Apr 12, 2020 08:40 pm IST

A priest plays the guitar while leading an Easter Sunday Mass on the roof of the Santissima Trinita a Villa Chigi parish church in Rome, Italy. A few lucky parishioners with homes overlooking churches attended rooftop services in Rome from their balconies. (Remo Casilli / REUTERS)

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Rev. Shahid Mehraj, center, leads an Easter Mass live-streamed from Cathedral Church of the Resurrection due to a government-imposed lockdown in Lahore, Pakistan. Francis’ lonely mass was a scene that was repeated around the world, with churches either closed or, for the few still open, forcing the faithful to practice social distancing. (K.M. Chaudary / AP)

Updated on Apr 12, 2020 08:40 pm IST

Rev. Shahid Mehraj, center, leads an Easter Mass live-streamed from Cathedral Church of the Resurrection due to a government-imposed lockdown in Lahore, Pakistan. Francis’ lonely mass was a scene that was repeated around the world, with churches either closed or, for the few still open, forcing the faithful to practice social distancing. (K.M. Chaudary / AP)

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Devotees drink the Eucharist during Easter Sunday prayer at Dhaka Baptist Church in Bangladesh on April 12. Caution prevailed in observances the world over even as some nations think about a pandemic exit strategy and others confront alarming rises in infections or deaths. (Mohammad Ponir Hossain / REUTERS)

Updated on Apr 12, 2020 08:40 pm IST

Devotees drink the Eucharist during Easter Sunday prayer at Dhaka Baptist Church in Bangladesh on April 12. Caution prevailed in observances the world over even as some nations think about a pandemic exit strategy and others confront alarming rises in infections or deaths. (Mohammad Ponir Hossain / REUTERS)

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Palm Sunday service in the Alexander Nevski cathedral in Sofia, Bulgaria. Bulgaria celebrates Palm Sunday on April 12 and Easter on April 19.The church's governing body the Holy Synod has insisted cathedrals and churches will remain open, despite persistent calls from medical experts and the government's COVID-19 taskforce to shut their doors. (Nikolay Doychinov / AFP)

Updated on Apr 12, 2020 08:40 pm IST

Palm Sunday service in the Alexander Nevski cathedral in Sofia, Bulgaria. Bulgaria celebrates Palm Sunday on April 12 and Easter on April 19.The church's governing body the Holy Synod has insisted cathedrals and churches will remain open, despite persistent calls from medical experts and the government's COVID-19 taskforce to shut their doors. (Nikolay Doychinov / AFP)

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The Vicar of Brenchley Reverend Campbell Paget conducts an Easter Service at dawn in the churchyard of All Saints’ Church in Brenchley, England, adhering to government advice on social distancing. People were urged by the government to respect lockdown measures by celebrating the holiday in their homes. (Ben Stansall / AFP)

Updated on Apr 12, 2020 08:40 pm IST

The Vicar of Brenchley Reverend Campbell Paget conducts an Easter Service at dawn in the churchyard of All Saints’ Church in Brenchley, England, adhering to government advice on social distancing. People were urged by the government to respect lockdown measures by celebrating the holiday in their homes. (Ben Stansall / AFP)

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Roman Catholic devotees wearing face masks observe social distancing as they pray during an Easter Sunday mass at the Holy Redeemer Church in Bangkok, Thailand. The church cancelled the traditional Easter celebration of handing out decorated eggs while mass was broadcast on a livestream. (Romeo Gacad / AFP)

Updated on Apr 12, 2020 08:40 pm IST

Roman Catholic devotees wearing face masks observe social distancing as they pray during an Easter Sunday mass at the Holy Redeemer Church in Bangkok, Thailand. The church cancelled the traditional Easter celebration of handing out decorated eggs while mass was broadcast on a livestream. (Romeo Gacad / AFP)

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Women in traditional ethnic Sorbian attire sing in front of a church on Easter Sunday in Schleife, Germany. German president Frank-Walter Steinmeier told compatriots in a rare televised address Saturday night: “Every one of you has changed his life radically; every one of you has saved human lives in doing so and is saving more every day.” (Matthias Rietschel / REUTERS)

Updated on Apr 12, 2020 08:40 pm IST

Women in traditional ethnic Sorbian attire sing in front of a church on Easter Sunday in Schleife, Germany. German president Frank-Walter Steinmeier told compatriots in a rare televised address Saturday night: “Every one of you has changed his life radically; every one of you has saved human lives in doing so and is saving more every day.” (Matthias Rietschel / REUTERS)

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Genevieve Pina, 3, smiles as a person dressed as an Easter bunny surprises her in their backyard, amid the ongoing coronavirus outbreak, in Plymouth, Michigan, US on April 11. (Emily Elconin / REUTERS)

Updated on Apr 12, 2020 08:40 pm IST

Genevieve Pina, 3, smiles as a person dressed as an Easter bunny surprises her in their backyard, amid the ongoing coronavirus outbreak, in Plymouth, Michigan, US on April 11. (Emily Elconin / REUTERS)

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