Pope skips homily during Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square | Wilnesh News

Francis The last-minute decision to skip the homily during Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square to avoid a fiery speech at the start of the busy Holy Week would have tested his increasingly fragile health.

Hobbled by bad knees and persistent breathing problemsFrancis also did not join the procession of cardinals around the square’s obelisk at the start of Mass. Instead, the 87-year-old pontiff blessed the palm leaves and olive branches that faithful carried from the altar.

Francis is expected to deliver a homily midway through the service, and a prepared text has been distributed to reporters. But as an aide handed Francis his glasses and began reading, the pope made it clear he would not speak and told the crowd to wait in silence.

Vatican officials did not immediately explain why. The Vatican press office later said the sermon was replaced by “a moment of silence and prayer.”

Francis did pray throughout the service and ended the Mass with a lengthy appeal for peace. He said he was praying for the families of the victims of the “inhumane” attack on a concert hall in a Moscow suburb and asked for prayers for “martyrdom of Ukraine” and the people of Gaza.

Vatican officials estimated that about 60,000 people attended the Mass, which was held on a sunny and breezy spring day. Francis spent several minutes greeting them in the papal car and made several laps around the square at the end of the ceremony.

Palm Sunday kicks off a busy week for Francis leading up to Easter, when believers will commemorate the resurrection of Christ. On Thursday, Francis will visit Rome’s women’s prison for a traditional foot-washing ceremony. On Friday, he plans to preside over a torch-lit crossroads procession at the Colosseum in Rome, reenacting the Passion of Christ.

The next day is the Easter Vigil, during which Francis leads a solemn evening service in the cathedral, followed by Easter Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square and a noon blessing in the loggia above.

Even under the best of circumstances, the Holy Week schedule is challenging for the pope. But this year has been especially true for Francis, who has spent the winter on and off battling what he and the Vatican describe as the flu, bronchitis, or cold.Over the past few weeks, he has occasionally Ask your assistant to read aloud His lectures and catechism lessons saved him.

On Sunday, no substitutes took the field and the sermon was skipped. Vatican officials said the prepared text will be treated as if it never existed. Typically, the pope does not preach on Easter, but he traditionally delivers reflections on Palm Sunday.

Even when not sick, Frances often spoke in a low voice and seemed to get out of breath easily. As a young man, he had part of his lung removed due to a respiratory infection.

This time last year, he was hospitalized for three days with acute bronchitis but bounced back to spend Holy Week. He was also hospitalized twice for abdominal surgeries during his tenure, including a 10-day stay in 2021 where part of his large intestine was removed.

At the end of the Mass, Pope Francis prayed for peace for all those who have suffered from war and asked the Lord to comfort the victims of the “despicable terrorist attacks” in Moscow.

“May he change those who protect, organize and carry out these inhumane acts that offend God, who commands us not to kill,” Francis said.

Pope Francis, without quoting Moscow, also asked the faithful not to forget the suffering in Ukraine. He noted that due to “violent attacks on infrastructure, many Ukrainians are now without power, which brings not only death and suffering, but also the risk of a larger humanitarian disaster”.

“Please do not forget the martyred Ukraine,” he said. “Let us also think about Gaza, which is suffering, and many other sites of war.”