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CHRISTIANS MARK GOOD FRIDAY, HOLY WEEK UNDER COVID THREAT
- By The Financial District
- Apr 3, 2021
- 2 min read
Christians in the Holy Land marked Good Friday without the mass pilgrimages usually seen in the days leading up to Easter due to the coronavirus, and worshippers in many other predominantly Christian countries where the virus is still raging observed their second annual Holy Week with tight restrictions on gatherings, Joseph Krauss an Frances D’Emilio reported for the Associated Press (AP).
In Jerusalem, many holy sites were open, thanks to an ambitious Israeli vaccination campaign. It was a stark contrast to last year, when the city was under lockdown. In neighboring Lebanon, Christians observed Good Friday under a lockdown and suffering a severe economic crisis.
In Latin America, penitents from Mexico and Guatemala to Paraguay carried tree branches covered with thorns and large crosses in Passion Plays reenacting the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
At the Vatican, Pope Francis presided over a torch-lit Way of the Cross ceremony in St. Peter’s Square, foregoing for a second year the traditional Colosseum procession that draws thousands of pilgrims, tourists and Romans.
Worshippers in the Philippines and France marked a second annual Holy Week under movement restrictions amid outbreaks fanned by more contagious strains. In the US, officials urged Christians to celebrate outdoors, while social distancing, or in virtual ceremonies.
In the Philippines, streets were eerily quiet and religious gatherings were prohibited in the capital, Manila, and four outlying provinces but penitents still flogged themselves.
The government placed the bustling region of more than 25 million people back under lockdown this week as it scrambled to contain an alarming surge in COVID-19 cases.
The Philippines had started to reopen in hopes of breathing life into its suffering economy, but infections surged last month, the suspected causes being the entry of more contagious strains, increased public mobility and the government having relaxed restrictions during the previous months.
