In pics | Joyous Holy Week celebrations around the world

From dressing as Roman soldiers in Antigua, Guatemala, to carrying palm fronds on the streets of Lagos, Nigeria, Christians around the world are celebrating Holy Week.

For millions of Christians, the week between Palm Sunday and Easter, known as Holy Week, is the most sacred time of the year. It’s the week Christians commemorate the passion of Jesus Christ.

The week began with Palm Sunday, where mass at the Vatican was celebrated by Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square the day after he was discharged from the Agostino Gemelli University Hospital in Rome, where the Vatican said he was treated for bronchitis.

Penitents of the "Padre Jesus Nazareno" brotherhood carry a portable dais platform which supports a statue of Jesus Christ carried by "costaleros" during the holy week procession in Priego de Cordoba, southern Spain, Friday, April 7, 2023. Hundreds of processions take place throughout Spain during the Easter Holy Week. 

Christians pause along the Via Dolorosa, a route that is believed to be the path Jesus walked to his crucifixion, on Good Friday in the Old City of Jerusalem, Friday, April 7, 2023. 

Faithful dressed as Roman soldiers take part in a Holy Thursday procession outside the San Cristobal el Bajo Catholic church, in Antigua, Guatemala, Thursday, April 6, 2023.

Hooded Filipino flagellants pray as part of Maundy Thursday rituals to atone for sins or fulfill vows for an answered prayer on April 6, 2023 at Mandaluyong city, Philippines. COVID restrictions the past years have prevented crowds and devotees in participating in lenten rituals, a practice which have been opposed by the church in this predominantly Roman Catholic country.

Priests arrives during Holy Thursday celebration before a Mass at the Metropolitan Cathedral in Managua, Nicaragua, Thursday, April 6, 2023.

Hooded penitents take part in the Procissao do Fogareu or Torch Procession, in Goias, 350 km, 217 miles, west of Brasilia, Brazil, early Thursday, April 6, 2023. The Holy Thursday procession is a reenactment of Christ's arrest by Roman soldiers represented by "farricocos," who dress in colored robes with cone-shaped hats.

Pope Francis sits on the popemobile on his way to the altar to celebrate the Palm Sunday's mass in St. Peter's Square at The Vatican Sunday, April 2, 2023 a day after being discharged from the Agostino Gemelli University Hospital in Rome, where he has been treated for bronchitis, The Vatican said. The Roman Catholic Church enters Holy Week, retracing the story of the crucifixion of Jesus and his resurrection three days later on Easter Sunday.