Easter Marked By Prayers, Marred By Blood

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(CBS/AP)  Pope Benedict XVI celebrated Easter Sunday Mass in rain-drenched St. Peter's Square and rejoiced over conversions to Christianity, a day after he baptized a prominent Muslim commentator.

A white canopy on the steps of St. Peter's Basilica protected the 80-year-old pontiff from the chilly rain, while thousands of pilgrims, tourists and Romans huddled under a sea of colored umbrellas in the square.

The crowd was expected to grow before the noon Urbi et Orbi (Latin for "to the city and to the world") address, which has previously been an occasion for pontiffs to speak about the globe's conflicts and other problems.

Just before the late morning Mass began, a thunderclap competed with a chorus of "Alleluia," and the already gray sky grew darker.

A rainstorm forced the pope to skip walking in the Way of the Cross Good Friday procession at the Colosseum.

Christians on Easter celebrate their belief in the resurrection of Jesus two days after he was crucified.

Benedict told the faithful in the square that the resurrection "broke the chains of death" and that thanks to the apostles' preaching, "thousands and thousands of persons converted to Christianity."

"And this is a miracle which renews itself even today," the pope said at the start of the Easter Day Mass.

In a late-night Easter vigil service Saturday, Benedict baptized seven adults, including Magdi Allam (left), a journalist who has received death threats for his denunciations of Islamic fanaticism.

Allam, 55, is deputy editor of Corriere della Sera newspaper and writes often on Muslim and Arab affairs. He was born a Muslim in Egypt, but was educated by Catholics and says he has never been a practicing Muslim.

Saying he was writing as a "private citizen," Allam said in a letter published Sunday in Corriere that he was now taking on a middle name, "Cristiano," (Christian in Italian). "From now on, I will call myself Magdi Cristiano Allam," he wrote, expressing gratitude to Benedict.

The day of his baptism was "the most beautiful day of my life," Allam wrote.

"The miracle of the resurrection of Christ reverberated in my soul, freeing it from the shadows of a preaching where hate and intolerance toward he who is different, toward he who is condemned as an 'enemy,' prevailed over love and respect for your neighbor."

Allam's criticism of Palestinian suicide bombings prompted the Italian government to provide him with a sizable security detail in 2003, after Hamas singled him out for death, Allam told the Il Giornale newspaper in a December interview.

The pope himself has come under verbal attack from Islamic militants.

Osama bin Laden, in a new audio message posted last week, accused Benedict of playing a role in what he called a "new Crusade" against Islam. The Vatican has described the accusation as baseless.

Security during papal public appearances was stepped up in 2001 after the Sept. 11 attacks, and there has been no noticeable increase in protective measures since the new message surfaced.


Christians Gather In Jerusalem To Mark Easter Sunday

Pilgrims thronged Christian holy sites in Jerusalem on Sunday, braving a heightened security alert to celebrate Easter in the city where they believe Jesus was resurrected on this day two millennia ago.

In the walled Old City, hundreds of believers escaped the stifling temperatures of an unseasonable heat wave and filled the cool, dark rooms of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, traditionally the site where Jesus was crucified, buried and resurrected. The odor of incense wafted from the church doors into the courtyard outside.

Ahead of the weekend, security forces deployed thousands of officers nationwide to secure events connected with Easter and the Jewish festival of Purim. The alert was also high because of Israeli concerns about a possible revenge attack for the assassination of a Hezbollah commander last month in Syria.

Israel denied involvement, but Hezbollah has blamed the Jewish state and threatened to avenge his death with an attack on Israeli targets.

On March 6, a Palestinian gunman killed eight young students at a Jerusalem rabbinical seminary, the first major attack in the city in four years.

Jeri Minasy, 59, a retired flight attendant from Newnan, Georgia, said the recent violence couldn't deter her from spending Easter in Jerusalem. She called the experience "special, mystic and spiritual."

But she wondered what Jesus would think about the bloodshed. "I think he would be appalled that people can't get along. He would be crying," Minasy said.