In pictures: Joyous Holy Week celebrations around the world

Penitents of the “Padre Jesus Nazareno” brotherhood carry a portable dais platform which supports a statue of Jesus Christ carried by “costaleros”during the holy week procession in Priego de Cordoba, southern Spain (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

The week began with Palm Sunday, where mass at the Vatican was celebrated by Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square the day after he was discharged from the Agostino Gemelli University Hospital in Rome, where the Vatican said he was treated for bronchitis.

Christians pause along the Via Dolorosa, a route that is believed to be the path Jesus walked to his crucifixion, on Good Friday in the Old City of Jerusalem (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)

In Bolivia’s highland region, artists gathered for an annual event where they built sand sculptures based on Bible stories. Members of the faithful in Brazil wore tunics and hoods to take part in the Procession of Souls in Goiás state. And in Managua, Nicaragua, a child dressed as an angel during an event observing Good Friday, during which a masked worshipper held a religious banner depicting Jesus Christ on a cross.

Faithful dressed as Roman soldiers take part in a Holy Thursday procession outside the San Cristobal el Bajo Catholic church, in Antigua, Guatemala (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

Half a world away, Catholic nuns held candles during a Holy Thursday procession at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Old City of Jerusalem. It’s the site where Jesus was crucified and buried according to tradition. Celebrations in Haiti included a Stations of the Cross reenactment in Port-au-Prince on Good Friday. In Spain, worshippers carried a portable dais platform supporting a statue of the Virgin Mary through the streets of Seville.

Hooded Filipino flagellants pray as part of Maundy Thursday rituals to atone for sins or fulfill vows for an answered prayer on April 6, 2023 at Mandaluyong city, Philippines. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

In recent years, Holy Week has been scaled back due to COVID-19 restrictions that require precautions such as social distancing and mask use. However, this year many of the faithful gathered in celebrations reminiscent of the era before the virus changed the nature of religious observance.

Priests arrives during Holy Thursday celebration before a Mass at the Metropolitan Cathedral in Managua, Nicaragua (AP Photo/Inti Ocon)

This year’s Holy Week was a year for gathering together in prayer.

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