Pope celebrates Easter Mass on steps of St. Peter's Basilica

VATICAN CITY -- Pope Benedict XVI celebrated Easter Sunday Mass on the flower-adorned steps of St. Peter's Basilica as thousands of pilgrims and tourists jammed St. Peter's Square to join in the service and later receive his blessing.

"Peace be with you," the pope said, using the Latin "Pax vobis" at the start of the celebration.

Choir boys rubbed their eyes as they squinted into a hazy sun. Their voices rang across the square as the head of the Roman Catholic Church led the faithful in the celebration of the Christianity's most important feast day.

Wearing gold-colored vestments, the pope gripped a slender, silver crucifix as clerics sprinkled incense across the steps. The altar area was ablaze with color -- red tulips, orange tiger lies and yellow broom plants were among the flowers delivered from the Netherlands.

The Vatican said that TV outlets in 67 countries had arranged satellite links for the Easter service.

The boulevard leading from the Tiber River to the square was filled with languages as tourists, toting backpacks and wearing hats against the sunshine, headed toward the Mass site.

Late Saturday night and into early Sunday, the pope had celebrated a candlelit Easter Vigil Mass inside the basilica, where he also baptized six adults and two children, giving them what he called "a new beginning in life."

Sunday's public celebration ends with the pope's delivery of his "Urbi et Orbi" message from the basilica's central balcony overlooking the square. The message "to the city and to the world" is an occasion for pontiffs to talk about international crises, moral issues and other concerns of the Church.

After Sunday's events, Benedict heads to the papal summer residence at Castel Gandolfo, in the Alban Hills south of Rome, for a few days of rest.

When he returns to Rome, Benedict will have two more important dates on his calendar: his 80th birthday on April 16, and the second anniversary of his election as pope three days later.