Pope Francis marked a surreal Palm Sunday in an empty St. Peter's Basilica, urging people living through the coronavirus pandemic not to be so concerned with what they lack but how they can ease the suffering of others.
The service, kicking off Holy Week events leading to Easter, usually attracts tens of thousands of people to a St. Peter's Square bedecked with olive and palm trees. The service normally includes a long procession of cardinals, priests and faithful carrying palm fronds.
This time, it was held from a secondary altar behind the main one Francis normally uses and attended by only about two dozen people, including a few aides, nuns and a scaled-down choir, all practicing social distancing.
The symbolic procession was only several meters long and a few potted olive trees were brought in.
The Mass was broadcast on television and over the internet to many millions. Churches in countries around the world were holding similar, virtual services this week because of restrictions on gatherings.
Cutting a solitary figure, Francis listened as three priests read the gospel account of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem and being hailed as the messiah.
Holy Week marks the period when Christians commemorate events surrounding the key tenets of their faith - that Jesus was betrayed, crucified and rose from the dead.
In his sermon, Francis urged his listeners to turn to God "in the tragedy of a pandemic, in the face of the many false securities that have now crumbled, in the face of so many hopes betrayed, in the sense of abandonment that weighs upon our hearts."
The pandemic could help transform fear into service, he said.
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