Pope Francis highlighted that this celebration is “unique in the world, because very few cities can relive these days that changed the history of humanity in settings that are more than 2,000 years old, contemporary to those in which Christ suffered the passion.”
“This year, when I attend the prayer of the Via Crucis next to the Coliseum in Rome, I will keep in mind that you will also be celebrating it in the impressive Roman Amphitheater of Mérida, which brings together so many faithful from all over the world,” he continued.
After recalling that this year the Eulaliense Jubilee Year is celebrated in Mérida in honor of the girl martyr Saint Eulalia, “whose cult turned Mérida into the cradle of Hispanic Christianity and a destination for pilgrimages throughout history,” the Pope encouraged the brotherhoods and brotherhoods to “contribute to Holy Week leaving its mark, an indelible and permanent mark on the lives of all those who contemplate the Stations of Penance.”