Notre Dame holds Good Friday ceremony despite coronavirus pandemic
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Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral's rector Patrick Chauvet repositions the Crown of Thorns during the Good Friday ceremony. Photo: Ludovic Marin/Pool/AFP/Getty Images
Paris' Notre Dame held a special Good Friday ceremony led by the city's archbishop, Michel Aupetit, almost a year after a fire blazed through the cathedral.
Why it matters: Aupetit hoped that the ceremony, which only featured seven people as much of the cathedral still lies in ruin but still aired live on French TV, could provide "a message of hope" amid the coronavirus pandemic, NPR reports.
- France has over 110,000 confirmed coronavirus cases, and over 12,000 deaths, according to data from John Hopkins University.
The ceremony centered around Jesus' crown of thorns, the cathedral's most important relic, that tradition holds he wore during his crucifixion.
- It is one of its few relics to survive last year's fire.
The big picture: With religious services and travels the source of some early outbreaks, worshippers around the world are figuring out how to adjust their Easter celebrations in the time of coronavirus, per Reuters.
- Pope Francis will livestream Easter Mass from a mostly empty St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.
- An Irish priest used a "popemobile" once used by Pope John Paul to greet his homebound parishioners on Holy Thursday.
- A German priest streamed Mass while photos of parishioners were pasted on the pews.
More photos from the ceremony:
Go deeper: Major coronavirus outbreaks have been tied to religion
