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

The Stations: Dramatic recreation of Easter devotion depicts 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

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

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

How did Jesus die – and why? Understanding the Crucifixion

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

A need-to-know guide to Palm Sunday

News
Active faith linked to happier marriages and lower divorce rates, study finds
Active faith linked to happier marriages and lower divorce rates, study finds

People who regularly attend church are more likely to report happy marriages, according to a new report examining the relationship between faith and family life.

Indian churches fearing anti-conversion laws tell non-Christians: enter at your own risk
Indian churches fearing anti-conversion laws tell non-Christians: enter at your own risk

Churches in Dhamtari, a town in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh, have put up notices warning non-Christians that they enter at their own risk, weeks after a law against religious conversion came into force in the state.

£1k bursaries to help churches develop youth and community mentoring programmes
£1k bursaries to help churches develop youth and community mentoring programmes

Churches across the UK are being offered bursaries to help them establish mentoring programmes aimed at supporting young people and others in their communities.

World Evangelical Alliance celebrates 180th anniversary
World Evangelical Alliance celebrates 180th anniversary

The World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) has held an online celebration to mark its 180th anniversary. Hundreds of people from more than 22 countries attended, and the event was rebroadcast to accommodate different time zones.