Christians in Akwa Ibom State joined their counterparts in the world to mark Palm Sunday, signalling the beginning of the Holy Week.
The day symbolises the entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem where he triumphantly rode on a donkey a week before his resurrection. The event is recounted in each of the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
In Uyo, Akwa Ibom capital, many Christian faithful made small crosses from palms to celebrate the day and some churches also held processions, reenacting Christ’s entry into Jerusalem.
The palm branches, for most Christians, signify goodness and victory. Palm Sunday is the last week of the Lent season that precedes Easter.
Read also: Today Is Palm Sunday
In several churches in the country, messages were centred on the lessons from the event. In his message, Pope Francis called for an Easter truce in Ukraine to pave the way for peace through “real negotiations”.
Pope Francis called for an Easter ceasefire in Ukraine to pave the way for peace through “real negotiation.”
“Let the Easter truce begin. But not to provide more weapons and pick up the combat again — no! — a truce that will lead to peace, through real negotiation,” he told a public mass at Saint Peter’s Square.
The pontiff denounced a war where “defenceless civilians” suffered “heinous massacres and atrocious cruelty”.
“What victory is there in planting a flag on a pile of rubble?” he asked.
Francis on Wednesday had already condemned the targeting of civilians in Ukraine, calling the discovery of bodies in Bucha near Kyiv a “massacre” and embracing a Ukrainian flag from the “martyred town”.
He has also expressed his willingness to contribute to halting the fighting in Ukraine and said he would be ready to travel to Kyiv.
Russia has denied responsibility for the apparent killings of civilians in Bucha, accusing Ukraine of staging them. Moscow has not provided any evidence to back up its claim.
(AFP)
