Pope washes 12 men's feet
2008-03-21 09:36
Rome - Pope Benedict washed and dried
the feet of 12 men at a traditional Holy Thursday service
commemorating Christ's gesture of humility to his apostles on
the night before he died.
The 80-year-old German-born Pope, approaching the third
Easter of his pontificate, called on Catholics to be of service
to each other and to confess their sins.
"We need the foot washing, the washing of our sins every
day. And for this reason we need to confess our sins," the Pope
said.
During the service, he poured water over the right feet of
12 men sitting on raised platforms, and dried them.
The ritual
was held in Rome's Basilica of St John's in Lateran, the Pope's
cathedral in his capacity as bishop of the Italian capital.
Earlier on Thursday, the Pope said in a ceremony
at St Peter's Basilica that priests should be vigilant for evil and
stand firm on Church truth despite "the currents of time".
Both services were to mark Christ's founding of the
priesthood at the Last Supper on the night before he died.
On Good Friday, the Pope will hold two services
commemorating Christ's crucifixion - including a Via Crucis (Way
of the Cross) procession around the ruins of Rome's Colosseum.
He says an Easter Eve mass on Saturday night and on Sunday
will deliver an "Urbi et Orbi" (to the city and the world)
blessing and message.
- Reuters