Pope Leo XIV carried a wooden cross for all 14 stations during the Good Friday procession at Rome's Colosseum, marking his first such ceremony as pontiff. This act marked the first time in decades that a pope has performed this ritual in its entirety.
Key Takeaways
Pope Leo XIV carried a wooden cross for all 14 stations during the Good Friday procession at Rome's Colosseum, marking his first such ceremony as pontiff. This act marked the first time in decades that a pope has performed this ritual in its entirety.
- Pope Leo completed all 14 stations of the Good Friday procession with a wooden cross
- Estimates suggest between 30,000 to 50,000 faithful attended the event at Rome's Colosseum
- The pontiff called for global leaders to choose peace and dialogue over war in his first Easter address
The procession began inside the Colosseum and continued through the crowd outside before ascending to Palantine Hill where Leo gave the final blessing. According to CBS News, some 30,000 faithful gathered at Rome's Colosseum for the event, though UPI reported that an estimated 50,000 people attended.
Inside the Colosseum, Pope Leo lifted the cross flanked by two torchbearers who accompanied him throughout the hour-long procession. The meditation prepared especially for his first Good Friday underlined that those with authority will have to answer to God for how they exercise their power.
The spiritual texts written by Rev. Francesco Patton, who was custodian of the Holy Land from 2016-25, read: 'The power to judge; the power to start or end a war; the power to instill violence or peace; the power to fuel the desire for revenge, or for reconciliation.'
In his first Easter address as pontiff, delivered on Sunday in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Pope Leo beseeched world leaders to 'lay down' the weapons of war and use 'dialogue' rather than force as the means to bring about peace. He warned against allowing 'indifference' to blunt the impact of war's devastation as conflicts raged in Iran, Lebanon, Gaza, Ukraine, and elsewhere in the world.
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