- Title: Jerusalem Palm Sunday ceremony takes place without crowds
- Date: 5th April 2020
- Summary: PRIEST PLAYING PIANO VIEW OF DOME OF THE ROCK, WHILE PRIEST PLAYING PIANO VIEW OF PALM SUNDAY CEREMONY MEMBERS OF THE LATIN PATRIARCHATE HOLDING OLIVE BRANCHES IN FRONT OF DOOR OF HOLY SEPULCHRE CHURCH MEMBERS OF LATIN PATRIARCHATE CHURCH PREPARE TO DISTRIBUTE OLIVE BRANCHES TO CHRISTIAN RESIDENTS
- Embargoed: 19th April 2020 16:45
- Keywords: COVID-19 Jerusalem coronavirus mass palm sunday procession
- Location: JERUSALEM
- City: JERUSALEM
- Country: Jerusalem
- Topics: Religion/Belief,Society/Social Issues
- Reuters ID: LVA005C87SJEV
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: In a solemn ceremony that would usually have been attended by thousands of worshippers, Roman Catholic church leaders on Sunday (April 5) held a special prayer service on the Mount of Olives overlooking Jerusalem's Old City and the iconic Golden Dome of the Rock.
Acting Latin Patriarch Of Jerusalem, Archbishop Pierbattista Pizzaballa said the situation was sad but church leaders must show solidarity with their followers.
Franciscan friars wearing surgical masks and gloves made house calls in Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, delivering olive branches to Christians who are self-isolating as a precaution against the coronavirus.
One of the friars used a loudspeaker in the streets of the walled Old City to summon people to their front doors and windows, where they received branches and blessings.
The beginning of the Holy Week leading to Easter, Palm Sunday commemorates Jesus' arrival in Jerusalem. Scripture speaks of supporters scattering palm fronds in his path, an act often replicated today with branches of other native trees.
Jerusalem's churches, like Muslim and Jewish places of worship, are now closed to the public to help slow the spread of the coronavirus. That has prompted the faithful to find alternatives to group prayer in a month in which the festivals of Passover, Easter and Ramadan will be marked in close succession.
(Production: Dedi Hayun, Ammar Awad, Suheir Sheikh) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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