Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK

VATICAN

Pope skips Good Friday procession due to cold weather in Rome

Pope Francis, who is recovering from bronchitis and last week spent three nights in hospital, did not attend the traditional "Way of the Cross" prayer service on Good Friday, the Vatican said.

Published: 7 April 2023 17:30 CEST
Pope skips Good Friday procession due to cold weather in Rome
Pope Francis arrives seated in a wheelchair for mass on Good Friday at St. Peter's basilica in The Vatican, on April 7th, 2023. (Photo by Tiziana FABI / AFP)

Some 20,000 people took part in the ceremony at the Colosseum in Rome, which was dedicated to victims of conflict, with a young Ukrainia and a young Russian praying for peace and brotherhood.

It was the first time that Francis, 86, has missed the annual service, which falls two days before Easter — Christianity’s most important holiday — in the 10 years of his papacy.

“Due to the intense cold of the past days, Pope Francis will follow this evening’s Way of the Cross from Casa Santa Marta, joining the prayer of those who will gather with the Diocese of Rome at the Colosseum,” the Vatican said in a short statement.

READ ALSO: WEATHER: Italy braced for wet and chilly Easter weekend

Santa Marta is the pontiff’s residence within the Vatican.

A spell of colder than usual weather in Italy has seen night-time temperatures in Rome fall to 10 degrees Celsius (50 degrees Fahrenheit) this week.

The Way of the Cross service on Good Friday, commemorated by Christians as the day Jesus Christ died on the cross, marks the 14 stations of Jesus’ suffering and death, from his condemnation to his burial.

Christian worshippers gather by the Colosseum to attend the Way of The Cross on Good Friday in 2022. (Photo by Filippo MONTEFORTE / AFP)

Francis was discharged from a Rome hospital on April 1st after a three-night stay for a bronchial infection. He has suffered increasing health issues in recent years, and it was his second stay in hospital since 2021.

Ahead of the Way of the Cross, Francis presided over the celebration of the Passion of the Lord within St Peter’s Basilica Friday afternoon, where he arrived in a wheelchair.

He has participated in various events since his hospital release, including washing the feet of 12 young prisoners on Holy Thursday. On Sunday, he is expected to lead Easter mass at St Peter’s Square.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.
For members

WEATHER

Italy to be ‘split in two’ by opposite weather fronts over Easter weekend

Italy faces a weather divide over the Easter weekend, forecasters have said, with rainy conditions expected in the north and the south set for sunshine.

Published: 28 March 2024 16:35 CET
Italy to be ‘split in two’ by opposite weather fronts over Easter weekend

The Easter holidays in Italy have been consistently marked by wet and chilly conditions in recent years, and the trend looks set to continue this weekend, though only for part of the country. 

According to the latest reports, the presence of two opposite weather fronts – a cold front sweeping in from western Europe and a warm air area moving up from northern Africa – will create a ‘weather split’ over the weekend, with rainfall expected in northern regions and sunny conditions forecast for much of the centre and south.

The cold front is expected to bring showers of low to medium intensity to all northwestern regions from the early hours of Saturday, March 30th, with rainfall forecast to concentrate in the Lombardy and Liguria regions. 

The rest of the country should experience sunny or partly sunny conditions and daytime temperatures in line with or even above seasonal averages, with the mercury possibly rising as high as 23C to 24C in the south. 

Conditions in the north should worsen on Easter Sunday, with heavy rain expected to hit all northern regions at some point during the day and possibly pushing as far down along the peninsula as Tuscany and Marche. Temperatures during the day are expected to largely range between 14C and 18C depending on the location.

The rest of the country should continue to experience clear skies and warm temperatures throughout the day, with possible daytime highs of 25C in southern regions, including Sicily and Puglia.

Overall weather conditions in the north shouldn’t show any meaningful improvement on Easter Monday (or Pasquetta in Italian) as all regions in the area and northern sections of Tuscany and Marche are expected to see heavy downpours during the day. 

Sunny weather and warm daytime temperatures are forecast to persist across the rest of the peninsula on Monday.

SHOW COMMENTS