Crucifixions, Papal Traditions Mark Good Friday Worldwide

Pilgrims retraced the last steps of Jesus Christ through old Jerusalem’s narrow alleys in observance of Good Friday, while at the Vatican, the Pope followed his tradition of hearing confessions before Easter Sunday.

Observances elsewhere around the world included voluntary crucifixions in the Philippines and a ban on entertainment in Cologne, Germany.

Rain-drenched pilgrims chanting “Jesus loves you” marched through the cobblestone streets of old Jerusalem. About 5,000 people showed up instead of the usual tens of thousands, because of the weather and heightened tensions.

The holiday that commemorates the crucifixion of Christ came five weeks after a Jewish settler massacred about 30 Muslim worshipers in a mosque in the West Bank town of Hebron, sparking violence in the occupied territories.

In Vatican City, Pope John Paul II heard confessions from 13 Roman Catholics chosen from a crowd of thousands in St. Peter’s Basilica.

Later, John Paul spoke to tens of thousands gathered outside the Roman Colosseum, where the pontiff marked the final sufferings and crucifixion of Christ in a Good Friday procession.

In the Philippines, Asia’s only Roman Catholic country, at least 19 people were voluntarily crucified in rituals re-enacting Christ’s death.

Godolieve Rombaut, 54, a Belgian, fainted after spending two minutes nailed to a cross under a broiling sun in the village of San Pedro Cutud. In another village, a 53-year-old grandmother underwent her eighth crucifixion.

The Roman Catholic hierarchy officially frowns on Good Friday crucifixions. But the events are so popular in rural areas that the church makes little effort to discourage them.

In Cologne, Germany, officials in the heavily Roman Catholic area enforced a law banning entertainment on Good Friday.

Franz-Josef Antwerpes, head of the Cologne regional government, said there would be no theater, opera, discos or bars.