The Pope commemorated the many Middle Eastern Christians who suffered alongside Christ during Holy Week.

While the church contemplates the great mystery of what Christ suffered as He died, we should not forget that people partake in that suffering today. Before wrapping up his Palm Sunday mass, Pope Leo XIV commented about that thought.

He brought to the Church's notice the suffering of Christians in the Middle East, asserting that their "trial demands the conscience of all.

“"As we begin this Holy Week, our prayers and hearts are especially close to the many Christians in the Middle East who are experiencing the effects of a terrible war and, in many cases, are unable to take part fully in the observance of these holy days," he said."

His Holiness, the Pope, has called upon the peoples of the world to join in their prayers to God's son, the Prince of Peace for comfort to those suffering due to war, and to create real and meaningful pathways to reconciliation and unity across nation borders and cultural lines.

Before praying the Angelus at midday, the Pope asked the Lord to bless seafarers affected by conflict; he prayed for victims of war (deceased, injured, and their families). "The heavens, the earth and the sea should be used to nourish life and support peace', as he put it.

In conclusion, Pope Leo called on the church to pray for all sea migration victims, especially those who died recently off the coast of Crete.

"Earth, sky, and sea," he underscored, "are created for life and for peace."

Finally, Pope Leo urged the Church to pray for all migrants who have died at sea, in particular for those who lost their lives in recent days off the coast of the island of Crete.