Pope Leo to carry the cross for all 14 stations on Good Friday at Colosseum

(LifeSiteNews) – Pope Leo XIV will commemorate the first Good Friday of his pontificate by carrying the cross for all 14 stations during the customary “Via Crucis” (Way of the Cross) at the Roman Colosseum himself.

Pope Leo will notably be the first pontiff since Pope John XXIII revived the practice of celebrating the Via Crucis inside the Colosseum more than 60 years ago to carry the cross himself for each station, per Vatican News. While each pope since Paul VI has continued the custom of leading the Way of the Cross at the Colosseum on Good Friday, most have carried the cross for some of the stations, whereas Leo’s predecessor, Pope Francis, did not carry it at all.

The meditations for this year’s Way of the Cross will be written by Father Francesco Patton, OFM, who served as Custodian of the Holy Land from 2016 to 2025 and is known for speaking out on the suffering of the faithful in Gaza. The late Pope Francis had prepared the meditations for the previous two Good Friday services, though he was unable to attend last year’s due to health issues in the final days of his life.

Celebrating the Via Crucis in the Colosseum dates back to the 18th century when Pope Benedict XIV approved Saint Leonardo da Porto Maurizio’s request to build stations inside the former arena. The Way of the Cross inside the Colosseum quickly became a popular practice; however, it fell out of favor after the Colosseum’s cross was removed in the 1870s.

READ: We cannot follow Christ without sharing in His suffering

The practice was restored in the Colosseum in 1959 by Pope John XXIII, and Pope Paul VI made it a custom to pray the stations each Good Friday at sunset. However, recent pontiffs such as Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI would typically only carry the cross themselves at the beginning and end of the Viva Crucis.

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This year will be Pope Leo XIV’s first as pope

He will take part in the Via Crucis at the Colosseum, as Pope Benedict XVI can be seen doing in 2006 pic.twitter.com/CQyZa0cHY8

— Catholic Arena (@CatholicArena) March 22, 2026

Pope Francis, however, had not carried the cross himself at all during his 12-year pontificate, only presiding over the Good Friday Way of the Cross, making Leo’s decision to carry the cross for all 14 stations a clear contrast from his predecessor’s customs. The late Argentine pontiff was also unable to attend last year’s stations during the final days of his life as he dealt with health issues. Cardinal Baldassarre Reina, the cardinal Vicar of the Diocese of Rome, had presided instead.

Pope Leo has made another significant break from his predecessor’s Holy Week customs, restoring the tradition of washing the feet of 12 priests on Holy Thursday in the Basilica of St. John Lateran.

READ: Pope Leo XIV restores Holy Thursday tradition of washing priests’ feet after 14-year break

Francis had broken with tradition by celebrating the Holy Thursday Mass in alternative locations such as prisons and migrant reception centers, and by regularly washing the feet of laypeople rather than priests. LifeSiteNews has previously reconstructed the full chronology of all the foot‑washing ceremonies performed by Francis.