Pope Francis skips Good Friday event at last minute ‘to preserve health’ for Easter rituals

Pope Francis pulled out of a Good Friday service at the last minute, the Vatican said, “to preserve his health” ahead of major Easter events over the weekend.

Pope Francis pulled out of a Good Friday service at the last minute, the Vatican said, “to preserve his health” ahead of major Easter events over the weekend. The 87-year-old pontiff’s well-being has been watched closely following an operation on his abdomen last year. In recent weeks Francis has had aides read out several of his speeches as he battles bouts of bronchitis, cold and flu, and he has been in hospital for tests. Just before the Stations of the Cross service was due to start at Rome’s Colosseum on Friday evening, the Vatican announced Francis would follow it from his residence instead of attending in person. Officials said the pontiff had presided over the Celebration of the Passion of the Lord at St Peter’s Basilica earlier in the day. The stations mark various stages of Jesus Christ’s suffering and death, with the pope seeking to apply the biblical account to contemporary concerns.