The Latin patriarch of Jerusalem has announced that at least some traditional Holy Week observances have been canceled or postponed as the military conflict in the Holy Land rages on.
On Sunday, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa issued a statement to note that the ongoing war in the region and the “restrictions” imposed as a result will not permit the faithful “to experience the traditional Lenten journey in Jerusalem.”
‘The empty tomb is the seal of the victory of life over hatred, of mercy over sin.’
In particular, the traditional Palm Sunday procession from Jerusalem to the Mount of Olives has been canceled, he said. The Chrism Mass, a Mass traditionally offered during Holy Week, during which a bishop consecrates sacred oils, has been “postponed to a date to be determined.”