The sun rises behind a cross as hundreds attend the Easter sunrise service on top of Stone Mountain in Stone Mountain, Ga., on Sunday, March 31, 2024. (Ben Gray/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)
The sun rises behind a cross as hundreds attend the Easter sunrise service on top of Stone Mountain in Stone Mountain, Ga., on Sunday, March 31, 2024. (Ben Gray/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)(Ben Gray/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)

Across the globe, people celebrated Easter Sunday — commemorating the day when, according to Christian tradition, Jesus was resurrected in Jerusalem two millennia ago.

In India, Christian families lit candles and placed flowers on the graves of their loved ones in the early morning in Purulia, West Bengal.

At the Vatican, Pope Francis presided over Easter Sunday Mass in a flower-decked St. Peter’s Square and delivered a heartfelt prayer for peace in his annual roundup of global crises. Francis rallied from a winter-long bout of respiratory problems to lead some 60,000 people in Easter celebrations, making a strong appeal for a cease-fire in Gaza and a prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine.

In Ukraine, clerics read prayers before lighting the holy fire during the Easter religious service at the St. Nicholas Roman Catholic Church in Kyiv.

In Israel, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Pierbattista Pizzaballa led the Easter Sunday Mass at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. The medieval church in the Old City is the holy site where Christians believe Jesus was crucified, buried and resurrected. In years past, the church has been packed with worshippers and tourists. But the bloody conflict in Gaza, now into its sixth month, has seen a huge downturn in tourism and pilgrimages across Israel and the Palestinian territories.

In Britain, King Charles III joined the queen and other members of the royal family for an Easter service at Windsor Castle in his most significant public outing since he was diagnosed with cancer last month.

And in the U.S., revelers wearing decorated hats and costumes participated in the annual Easter Parade and Bonnet Festival in front of St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York. In Washington, worshipers prayed on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during a sunrise Easter service.

Pope Francis holds his skull cap to prevent it blowing in the wind, from the central balcony of the St. Peter's Basilica prior to the 'Urbi et Orbi' (To the city and to the world) blessing, at the Vatican, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Pope Francis holds his skull cap to prevent it blowing in the wind, from the central balcony of the St. Peter's Basilica prior to the 'Urbi et Orbi' (To the city and to the world) blessing, at the Vatican, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)(AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
A priest offers a communion wafer to a faithful during the Easter Sunday Mass led by the Latin Patriarch at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where many Christians believe Jesus was crucified, buried and rose from the dead,, in the Old City of Jerusalem, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)
A priest offers a communion wafer to a faithful during the Easter Sunday Mass led by the Latin Patriarch at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where many Christians believe Jesus was crucified, buried and rose from the dead,, in the Old City of Jerusalem, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)(AP Photo/Leo Correa)
Christian families remember their loved ones by lighting candles and putting flowers on their graves early morning on Easter in Purulia, West Bengal, India, Sunday, March 31, 2024. Christian around the world are celebrating Easter commemorating the day when according to Christian tradition Jesus was resurrected in Jerusalem two millennia ago. (AP Photo/Bikas Das)
Christian families remember their loved ones by lighting candles and putting flowers on their graves early morning on Easter in Purulia, West Bengal, India, Sunday, March 31, 2024. Christian around the world are celebrating Easter commemorating the day when according to Christian tradition Jesus was resurrected in Jerusalem two millennia ago. (AP Photo/Bikas Das)(AP Photo/Bikas Das)
Clergymen walk in a procession around the Stone of Unction, the stone slab traditionally claimed as the stone where Jesus' body was prepared for burial during the Easter Sunday Mass led by Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Pierbattista Pizzaballa, at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, in the Old City of Jerusalem, Sunday, March 31, 2024, where many Christians believe Jesus Christ was crucified, buried and rose from the dead. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)
Clergymen walk in a procession around the Stone of Unction, the stone slab traditionally claimed as the stone where Jesus' body was prepared for burial during the Easter Sunday Mass led by Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Pierbattista Pizzaballa, at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, in the Old City of Jerusalem, Sunday, March 31, 2024, where many Christians believe Jesus Christ was crucified, buried and rose from the dead. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)(AP Photo/Leo Correa)
Worshipers pray on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial following a sunrise Easter service in Washington, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Nathan Howard)
Worshipers pray on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial following a sunrise Easter service in Washington, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Nathan Howard)(AP Photo/Nathan Howard)
Britain's King Charles III, center, and Queen Camilla arrive to attend the Easter Matins Service at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, England, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (Hollie Adams/Pool Photo via AP)
Britain's King Charles III, center, and Queen Camilla arrive to attend the Easter Matins Service at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, England, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (Hollie Adams/Pool Photo via AP)(Hollie Adams/Pool Photo via AP)
Young girl, Nadie Pardo, secured by a harness, floats in the air during the Easter Sunday ceremony ''Descent of the Angel'', part of Holy Week in Tudela, northern Spain, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos)
Young girl, Nadie Pardo, secured by a harness, floats in the air during the Easter Sunday ceremony ''Descent of the Angel'', part of Holy Week in Tudela, northern Spain, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos)(AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos)
Father Pavlo Vyshkovskyi, head of St. Nicholas Roman Catholic Church, sprinkles Catholic worshipers with holy water during the Easter religious service in Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, March 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Father Pavlo Vyshkovskyi, head of St. Nicholas Roman Catholic Church, sprinkles Catholic worshipers with holy water during the Easter religious service in Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, March 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Worshippers hold candles during the Easter vigil Mass in the Cathedral Basilica of Vilnius, Lithuania, late Saturday, March 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
Worshippers hold candles during the Easter vigil Mass in the Cathedral Basilica of Vilnius, Lithuania, late Saturday, March 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)(AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
Revelers wearing decorated hats and costumes participate in the annual Easter Parade and Bonnet Festival in front of St. Patrick's Cathedral on Sunday, March 31, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)
Revelers wearing decorated hats and costumes participate in the annual Easter Parade and Bonnet Festival in front of St. Patrick's Cathedral on Sunday, March 31, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)(AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)
A child walks on the catwalk as revelers wearing decorated hats and costumes participate in the annual Easter Parade and Bonnet Festival in front of St. Patrick's Cathedral on Sunday, March 31, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)
A child walks on the catwalk as revelers wearing decorated hats and costumes participate in the annual Easter Parade and Bonnet Festival in front of St. Patrick's Cathedral on Sunday, March 31, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)(AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)
Royal supporters hold cardboard cutout of Britain's King Charles III and Princess of Wales Kate, outside the Windsor Castle where Royal family attending the Easter Matins Service in Windsor, England, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
Royal supporters hold cardboard cutout of Britain's King Charles III and Princess of Wales Kate, outside the Windsor Castle where Royal family attending the Easter Matins Service in Windsor, England, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)(AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
A reveler wearing a decorated hat participates in the annual Easter Parade and Bonnet Festival in front of St. Patrick's Cathedral on Sunday, March 31, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)
A reveler wearing a decorated hat participates in the annual Easter Parade and Bonnet Festival in front of St. Patrick's Cathedral on Sunday, March 31, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)(AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)
Clerics and Catholic worshipers walk around the cathedral during the Easter religious service at the St. Nicholas Roman Catholic Church in Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, March 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Clerics and Catholic worshipers walk around the cathedral during the Easter religious service at the St. Nicholas Roman Catholic Church in Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, March 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Clerics read prayers before lighting the holy fire during the Easter religious service at the St. Nicholas Roman Catholic Church in Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, March 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Clerics read prayers before lighting the holy fire during the Easter religious service at the St. Nicholas Roman Catholic Church in Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, March 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Worshippers hold candles during the Easter vigil Mass the Cathedral Basilica of Vilnius, Lithuania, late Saturday, March 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
Worshippers hold candles during the Easter vigil Mass the Cathedral Basilica of Vilnius, Lithuania, late Saturday, March 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)(AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
Worshipers listen to a sermon by Mark Batterson, lead pastor of National Community Church, during a sunrise Easter service at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Nathan Howard)
Worshipers listen to a sermon by Mark Batterson, lead pastor of National Community Church, during a sunrise Easter service at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Nathan Howard)(AP Photo/Nathan Howard)
Clergymen pray as they take part in a procession around the Stone of Unction, the stone slab traditionally claimed as the stone where Jesus' body was prepared for burial during the Easter Sunday Mass led by Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Pierbattista Pizzaballa, at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, in the Old City of Jerusalem, Sunday, March 31, 2024, where many Christians believe Jesus Christ was crucified, buried and rose from the dead. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)
Clergymen pray as they take part in a procession around the Stone of Unction, the stone slab traditionally claimed as the stone where Jesus' body was prepared for burial during the Easter Sunday Mass led by Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Pierbattista Pizzaballa, at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, in the Old City of Jerusalem, Sunday, March 31, 2024, where many Christians believe Jesus Christ was crucified, buried and rose from the dead. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)(AP Photo/Leo Correa)
A woman kisses a baby while attending the Easter religious service at the St. Nicholas Roman Catholic Church in Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, March 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
A woman kisses a baby while attending the Easter religious service at the St. Nicholas Roman Catholic Church in Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, March 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Parishioners attend Easter Mass at Sacred Heart of Jesus and Saint Patrick, Sunday, March 31, 2024, in Baltimore, Md. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Parishioners attend Easter Mass at Sacred Heart of Jesus and Saint Patrick, Sunday, March 31, 2024, in Baltimore, Md. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)(AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Pope Francis waves faithful after celebrating Easter mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Pope Francis waves faithful after celebrating Easter mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)(AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Fresh flowers are spread on a grave as Christian families remember their loved ones by lighting candles and putting flowers on their graves early morning on Easter in Purulia, West Bengal, India, Sunday, March 31, 2024. Christian around the world are celebrating Easter commemorating the day when according to Christian tradition Jesus was resurrected in Jerusalem two millennia ago. (AP Photo/Bikas Das)
Fresh flowers are spread on a grave as Christian families remember their loved ones by lighting candles and putting flowers on their graves early morning on Easter in Purulia, West Bengal, India, Sunday, March 31, 2024. Christian around the world are celebrating Easter commemorating the day when according to Christian tradition Jesus was resurrected in Jerusalem two millennia ago. (AP Photo/Bikas Das)(AP Photo/Bikas Das)
Worshipers pray on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during a sunrise Easter service in Washington, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Nathan Howard)
Worshipers pray on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during a sunrise Easter service in Washington, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Nathan Howard)(AP Photo/Nathan Howard)