Pope John Paul II met with more than 25,000 pilgrims in St. Peter's Square for his general audience on April 23, the Wednesday after Easter. He commented briefly on Psalm 135, which he called a “splendid hymn to God's goodness.”
During the Easter season, the Holy Father said, the Church proclaims Jesus Christ has risen from the dead and death has no more power over him. The risen Savior greets his disciples with the words, “Peace be with you,” he noted. “Peace is a gift that the risen Lord offers to men and it is the fruit of the new life that was ushered in by his resurrection.” Peace, he noted, is a gift from God and not the result of human effort: “Through his death on the cross, Christ has reconciled us with God and has established in the world the foundation for all men to live together in brotherly love.”
Pope John Paul II noted that the Octave of Easter will conclude on Divine Mercy Sunday and that Easter is the perfect example of this mercy that comes from God. “God's mercy opens our hearts to forgiving our brothers and sisters,” he said, “and it is by offering forgiveness and receiving forgiveness that we will attain peace in our families and in every other aspect of life.”