Pope Leo XIV leads faithful in Good Friday Way of the Cross at Colosseum
By Devin Watkins
Pope Leo XIV became the second Pope to carry the Cross for the entire Via Crucis on Good Friday at Rome’s Colosseum.
Joined by around 30,000 faithful and countless people worldwide via social media, television, and radio, the Pope led the Way of the Cross through the candlelit ruins of the ancient Roman edifice, where many early Christians were martyred.
Built by Emperor Vespasian and completed in 80 AD by Emperor Titus, the Colosseum, the largest ancient elliptical amphitheater, was later consecrated as a Catholic church.
Each year, the Pope and the faithful of Rome gather at the Colosseum to retrace the fourteen Stations of the Cross, commemorating Jesus’ death and burial.
Pope Leo XIV followed in the footsteps of Pope St. John Paul II, who carried the Cross for the Via Crucis from 1980 to 1994.
As Pope Leo carried the Cross, Gospel passages were read, along with excerpts from St. Francis’s writings and meditations by Franciscan Fr. Francesco Patton, former Custos of the Holy Land.
In his meditations, Fr. Patton presents St. Francis’s example of embodying faith, hope, and love in the real world.
Fr. Patton guides believers along the path Jesus took in Jerusalem to Golgotha, highlighting the challenges of faith among skeptics, the importance of living virtues in daily life, and the need for humility.
Over 30,000 people participated in the Stations of the Cross with Pope Leo near the Colosseum.
At each station, Fr. Patton warns against the misuse of power and the pursuit of glory over humility, emphasizing the redemptive power of love.
He calls out authoritarian regimes, the media’s indifference, and our own destructive tendencies, urging us to remain humane in the face of suffering.
In his prayers, Pope Leo XIV invites Christians to deepen their love and communion with God, following St. Francis’s call to a journey of spiritual growth.
Watch the full video of the Via Crucis led by Pope Leo at Rome’s Colosseum.
