The best pictures of the Palm Sunday celebration around the world

Today, the Church is celebrating Jesus' entry into Jerusalem to carry out the work of Redemption, for he would suffer, die, and be resurrected there. According to the Gospels, Jesus entered the city, mounted on a donkey and was triumphantly received by the Jewish people who, with olive branches in their hands, cried, "Hosanna to the son of David, blessed be he who comes to the name of the Lord. "

The celebration consists of two parts: the blessing of the branches used during the procession in honor of Christ the King and the mbad. The language and symbols of the present liturgy are based on a strong idea: in Jerusalem, Jesus entered and today, the faithful come back to hail him as king of peace.

The olive and palm branches are also a symbol of blessing, protection and help from God. In addition, they represent the renewal of faith in God and recall his proclamation as king of heaven and earth.

The branch procession is presided over by the highest ecclesiastical authority of each place and takes place in the street towards the temple as a public testimony of the faith. Today's liturgy is a mixture of joy and sadness. The festive atmosphere of the procession is tempered by the tone of the Mbad that impresses the celebration. It reads three biblical texts: the book of Isaiah (50,4-7) where the prophet anticipates the sufferings of Jesus: "I did not turn my face when they insulted me, knowing that I would not be disappointed "; a letter from St. Paul (Philippians 2: 2-11) in which the apostle says that Jesus "humbled himself, that is why God exalted him"; finally the story of the pbadion of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to the version of the evangelist St. Luke.

In Seville, the regional capital of Andalusia, the balconies show the traditional palm trees of Palm Sunday and especially when the sections of the "official race" – the common route of the processions of all the brotherhoods leading to the cathedral – They are already covered with chairs and boxes.

There are 71 brotherhoods which, in recent weeks, have resulted in preparations in their respective temples, with transfer of images on the steps, accompanied by procession of some 84,000 Nazarenes in the streets.

Thousands of Christian pilgrims traveled to Jerusalem to celebrate Palm Sunday at the beginning of Holy Week. With palm trees and olive branches, pilgrims flocked to the Mount of Olives in the Old City of Jerusalem. According to the Israeli police, some 15,000 people took part in the procession.

Likewise, Good Friday commemorates the crucifixion and death of Jesus and, later, the Sunday of the resurrection. The procession crosses the Mount of Olives to go to the garden of Gethsemane where, according to the Bible, Jesus was betrayed, and finally through the alleys of the old city.

Pope Francis warned Catholics against over-judging and being presumptuous in his homily at a Sunday mbad. Tens of thousands of pilgrims, tourists and Romans invaded St. Peter's Square for the outdoor ceremony.

Santos Tiburcio and Valeriano, martyrs. Valeriano was the husband of Santa Cecilia who had managed to convert him to Christianity, as well as Tiburcio, brother of Valeriano. Both were baptized by Pope Saint Urbain. Conscious of this conversion, the prefect Almaquio ordered them to kill. It was the year 229.

Saint Lambert, bishop. Young man, he entered the court of France and won the favor of King Clotaire III. After a few years, he resigned his post and entered Fontenelle Abbey, where he was finally elected abbot. Around the year 679, the pope appointed him bishop of Lyon. He died in 688.

San Pedro González Telmo. Born in Palencia, Spain, in 1175, he made brilliant university studies and attained the ecclesiastical dignities of canon and dean. But after falling off the horse, he decided to enter a convent of the order of Santo Domingo. After many years, he became a tireless preacher. King San Fernando had him as a consulting man. But their main field of apostolate was the Galician relations between fishermen and navigators. After his death, which occurred at Tuy in 1246, he was proclaimed patron of the navigators who invoked him in the midst of the storms.