In a momentous gathering at St. Peter’s Square in Rome, Pope Leo XIV commenced his inaugural Holy Week as pontiff by celebrating Palm Sunday with a crowd of tens of thousands. This event evoked memories of the poignant final days of Pope Francis, a revered figure who left a lasting legacy.
The Palm Sunday ceremony unfolded with a majestic procession. Cardinals, bishops, priests, and laypeople entered the square, each carrying olive branches and palm fronds, some of which were elaborately braided. As they paused at the central obelisk, Pope Leo offered an opening prayer before the group proceeded to the altar, marking the beginning of the Mass.
Palm Sunday holds a significant place in the Christian calendar, symbolizing Jesus Christ’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem. This event sets the stage for the somber observance of Good Friday, commemorating Christ’s crucifixion, and culminates in the joyous celebration of his resurrection on Easter Sunday.
Reflecting on the previous year, Holy Week was a time of recovery and reflection for Pope Francis. He had been recuperating at the Vatican following a five-week hospital stay for double pneumonia. Although he entrusted the liturgical duties to others, he made a remarkable appearance on Easter Sunday, greeting the faithful from the loggia of St. Peter’s Square. In a touching farewell, he embarked on what would be his final ride around the piazza in the popemobile.
Pope Francis passed away on Easter Monday, succumbing to a stroke. His nurse, Massimiliano Strappetti, recounted to Vatican Media that Francis expressed his gratitude, saying, “Thank you for bringing me back to the square” for one last farewell.
During this Holy Week, Pope Leo XIV is set to oversee the liturgical events, including the reinstatement of the traditional Holy Thursday feet-washing ceremony, which commemorates Jesus’ Last Supper with his disciples. This gesture of humility and service underscores the deep spiritual significance of the week’s observances.
During his 12-year pontificate, Francis famously celebrated the Holy Thursday ritual by travelling to Rome-area prisons and refugee centers to wash the feet of people most on society’s margins. His aim was to drive home the ritual’s message of service and humility, and he would frequently muse during his Holy Thursday homilies “Why them and not me?”
Francis’ gesture had been praised as a tangible evidence of his belief that the church must go to the peripheries to find those most in need of God’s love and mercy. But some critics bristled at the annual outings, especially since Francis would also wash the feet of Muslims and people of other faiths.
Leo, history’s first U.S.-born pope, is returning the Holy Thursday foot-wash tradition to the basilica of St. John Lateran, where popes performed it for decades. The Vatican hasn’t yet said who will participate, though Popes Benedict XVI and John Paul II normally washed the feet of 12 priests.
On Friday, Leo is due to preside over the Good Friday procession at Rome’s Colosseum commemorating Christ’s Passion and crucifixion. Saturday brings the late night Easter Vigil, during which Leo will baptize new Catholics, followed a few hours later by Easter Sunday when Christians commemorate the resurrection of Jesus.
Leo will celebrate Easter Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square and then deliver his Easter blessing from the loggia of the basilica.
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