Palm Sunday: 12 stunning pictures of celebrations around the world

Yesterday was Palm Sunday; the day Christians remember Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey. It marks the start of Holy Week – leading up to Jesus' death on Good Friday, and resurrection on Easter Sunday.

Christians around the world celebrate Palm Sunday – named so because people threw palms on the ground as Jesus rode by – with ritual processions where palm branches are carried into church. These palms are blessed, and sometimes folded into crosses.

Here's a look at some of the celebrations from across the globe:

A Catholic priest sprinkles holy water to bless churchgoers' palm fronds during mass at Our Lady of Perpetual Help church in Paranaque city, Manila.

Members of the clergy carry palm fronds as they take part in a procession at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem's Old City. 

Pope Francis leads the Palm Sunday mass at Saint Peter's Square at the Vatican.

A woman prays on a hill with wooden crosses after a procession in the town of Oshmiany, Belarus.

Belarussian Catholics carry a wooden cross in Oshmiany.

Christian Maronite children hold palm fronds during a procession in the coastal city of Tripoli, northern Lebanon.

Children attend during a Palm Sunday procession in Pontevedra, northern Spain.

Catholics carry a statue of Jesus Christ on a donkey during a procession outside the Metropolitan Cathedral, in downtown Asuncion, Paraguay.

Clergy take part in a procession on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem.

Catholics hold weavings made of palm fronds during a procession at the 20 de Julio Church in Bogota, Colombia.

People take part in the Palm Sunday procession and traditional contest for the largest handmade palms (made of wicker twigs and decorated with colourful flowers and ribbons) in Lipnica Murowana near Krakow, southern Poland.

related articles
The Stations: Dramatic recreation of Easter devotion depicts refugees\' journey of suffering
The Stations: Dramatic recreation of Easter devotion depicts refugees' journey of suffering

A dramatic re-imagination of the Stations of the Cross devotion will focus on refugees' journey of suffering.

The promise of Easter: After the wilderness comes a new beginning
The promise of Easter: After the wilderness comes a new beginning

The Promise of Easter: After the Wilderness Comes a New Beginning

Palm Sunday: What Jesus\' mission teaches us about God\'s timing
Palm Sunday: What Jesus' mission teaches us about God's timing

How do we learn to emulate Christ? We can certainly ask the famous question, "What would Jesus do?" There's another question thrown up by this text, though. "When would Jesus do?"

How did Jesus die – and why? Understanding the Crucifixion
How did Jesus die – and why? Understanding the Crucifixion

On Good Friday when we remember the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ. We know what happened: he was fastened to a cross with nails that pierced his hands and his feet, and died after hours of torment.

A need-to-know guide to Palm Sunday
A need-to-know guide to Palm Sunday

Palm Sunday will be here sooner than you know. Before you go searching the web for tutorials so that you can master the technique required to create the perfect palm cross (or something that, at the very least, vaguely resembles one) take a read of our handy guide to the feast day.

News
Faith in difficult times: lessons from 1930s Britain
Faith in difficult times: lessons from 1930s Britain

Architectural historian Steven Brindle talks to Christian Today about the faith that shaped 1930s Britain, the churches that supported struggling communities and what lessons the decade might have for us today.

Campaign aims to mobilise 500,000 Christians for Christmas outreach
Campaign aims to mobilise 500,000 Christians for Christmas outreach

Shine Your Light is aiming to mobilise half a million Christians to share the gospel with five million people across the UK this Christmas, with more than 2,000 churches already signed up, organisers say.

The Church of England should repent for previous calls to ban 'conversion therapy'
The Church of England should repent for previous calls to ban 'conversion therapy'

The Church of England's uneasiness about the government's ‘conversion practices’ bill is a perfect lesson in the old adage, 'be careful what you wish for,' writes Dr Martin Davie.

Leaked Home Office report links 'Christian extremism' to traditionalist beliefs and immigration concerns
Leaked Home Office report links 'Christian extremism' to traditionalist beliefs and immigration concerns

An internal Home Office report lists concerns about immigration, multiculturalism and changing social values among the characteristics associated with what it calls "Christian extremism", it has been reported.