Tonight, on the holiest day of the year for Christians around the world.

The solemn images from the Vatican.

Pope Francis addressing a nearly empty St Peter's Basilica, calling on the faithful to spread a new type of contagion, one he calls, a contagion of hope.

Around the world, cathedrals, usually filled to the brim on Easter, deserted in Spain, Bolivia, Australia, striking images of empty pews.

Instead, parishioners watching live streams from the safety of their homes.

And across Italy, a country devastated by the coronavirus, signs that contagion of hope is spreading.

Priests taking to the rooftops, parishioners listening from a safe distance on their balconies.

And opera singer, Andrea Bocelli, holding a concert he called 'Music for Hope' from an emptied Duomo in Milan. The performance going viral, his voice filling the void across images of empty cityscapes.

The goal, he said, to hug this wounded earth's pulsing heart.

The messages of hope tonight.