Pope Leo XIV will preside over the 14 stations of the Way of the Cross at the Colosseum in Rome on Good Friday, venerating the passion of Jesus Christ.
According to Vatican News, the commemoration will mark Pope Leo’s first Holy Friday celebration as Pope, during which he will carry the cross for the duration of the liturgy.
Each year, a different individual is selected to write the meditations for the Stations of the Cross, a tradition Pope John Paul II introduced in 1985, according to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
The report noted that the meditations for this year’s ceremony were assigned to Franciscan Father Francesco Patton, who previously served as Custos of the Holy Land and reportedly has “given voice” to those suffering in the Middle East due to conflict.
The meditations will be released before the ceremony April 3, the report stated.
According to a 2022 Vatican News report, the papal tradition of Via Crucis, meaning “way of the cross,” at the Colosseum dates back centuries. The tradition as it is observed today dates to 1964, when Pope St. Paul VI first presided over the event.