On pandemic’s second year, Pope says people are weary and bogged down by economic hardship

Like last year, the Pope stuck to muted celebrations

Celebrating Palm Sunday Mass for a second time in the pandemic without crowds of faithful, Pope Francis said while shock dominated the first year of the COVID-19 health emergency, now people are more weary, with the economic crisis growing heavier. Traditionally, the Pope leads a Palm Sunday procession through St. Peter’s Square in front of tens of thousands of pilgrims and tourists clutching olive branches and braided palms before celebrating an outdoor Mass. But as Pope Francis did in spring 2020, just weeks after the COVID-19 outbreak erupted in Italy — the first country in the West to be hit by the pandemic — the pontiff led the solemn service, which begins Holy Week, inside St. Peter's Basilica. Pandemic safety concerns and Italian government restrictions on travel and other movements have kept away the usual throngs of tourists and pilgrims.