The washing of feet on Holy
Thursday to recall Jesus's washing of his disciples feet at the
Last Supper is "not folklore" and reminds us how much God gives
us, Pope Francis said as he was set to wash the feet of 12
inmates of Paliano jail south of Rome.
"Once the disciples were quarrelling amongst themselves on
who was the greatest, the most important, and Jesus said 'the
one who wants to be the greatest must become small and a
servant'," Francis told the inmates.
"That's what God does with us, all of us who are poor
wretches, but he is great, he is good, he loves us, let't hink
of this ceremony, which is not a folkloric ceremony, it is a
gesture to recall what Jesus did, after this he took the bread
and he took the wine and he gave us the love of God, let's thin,
think about the love of God today".
The pope said he would become a servant just as Jesus did.
"The pope is the figure of Jesus, and I would like to do the
same as he did." said Francis.
The inmates, at Paliano prison south of Rome, included
three women, a Muslim who is set to be baptised in June, and
Argentinian and an Albanian.
The other six inmates were Italian, two of them lifers.
Paliano hosts a number of high-security Mafia offenders, and
the pope was seen as sending another message against organised
crime after his recent condemnation of mobsters.
Francis recently blasted money from the organised crime
syndicates as blood stained during an audience with anti-mafia
and counter-terrorism officials.
"Money from dirty mafia businesses and crimes is blood
stained and produces iniquitous power," the pope said.
The Argentine pontiff called on God to touch "the hearts of
the men and women in the different mafias so that they stop
doing evil, convert and change life".
He described the mafia as an "expression of death" that must
be fought as it "opposes the gospel".
Thursday's ritual at the high-security prison kicked off
Francis's Easter duties which include the Stations of the Cross
around the Colosseum on Good Friday, Easter vigil mass on
Saturday in St Peter's, and the 'Urbi et Orbi' (To the City and
the World) blessing on Easter Sunday.
Security ws stepped up around those and other Easter events
on Thursday.
Bomb squads complete with sniffer dogs will be deployed to
clear all the areas where Easter events will take place in Rome,
city police chief Guido Marino said.
All the areas will be fitted with new CCTV cameras, he said.
Authorities have beefed up security in Rome and other Italian
cities for Easter after recent international terror attacks.
The Vatican is an especially sensitive site but monuments
like the Colosseum, where Pope Francis will say the Stations of
the Cross on Friday, are also considered at risk.
The Colosseum is to close to visitors at 13:00 for security
reasons ahead of the papal event, sources said Thursday.
Meanwhile a meeting of the government's strategic
anti-terrorism analysis committee (CASA) decided to "intensify
security measures on at-risk objectives and places where
tourists will gather, like ports, airports and stations."
Chaired by Interior Minister Marco Minniti, it OK'd
extraordinary security measures for Easter and, "in particular,
the ceremonies linked to Holy Week".
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © Copyright ANSA
