(RNS) Holy Week begins on Palm Sunday and spans the commemoration of the days leading up to Jesus’ death and burial — from his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, hailed by hosannas and palm fronds, to the Last Supper and betrayal by Judas, to the Passion of Good Friday that ends in the Crucifixion.
On the evening of Holy Saturday — March 26 this year — Christians mark the Easter vigil that leads to the observance of the Resurrection on Easter Sunday morning.
Click on any photo below to view a slideshow. Photos courtesy of Reuters.
*Editors: These photos may only be republished with RNS-HOLY-WEEK, originally transmitted on March 23, 2016.
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- Catholics hold palm fronds during a Palm Sunday celebration in Nahuizalco, El Salvador, on March 20, 2016. Palm Sunday commemorates Jesus Christ’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey and marks the start of Holy Week. Photo courtesy of REUTERS/Jose Cabezas
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- A man holds traditional palm, made of wicker twigs and decorated with colorful flowers and ribbons, during the Catholic Palm Sunday procession and traditional contest for the largest handmade palm in Lipnica Murowana near Krakow, southern Poland, on March 20, 2016. Photo courtesy of REUTERS/Lukasz Krajewski/Agencja Gazeta
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- Archbishop Edmundo Valenzuela blesses the congregation during a Palm Sunday Mass outside the Metropolitan Cathedral in downtown Asuncion, Paraguay, on March 20, 2016. Photo courtesy of REUTERS/Jorge Adorno
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- A penitent cries after the governing body of the “Estudiantes” brotherhood decided that penance could not be carried out in the streets due to rain on Palm Sunday in Oviedo, northern Spain, on March 20, 2016. Photo courtesy of REUTERS/Eloy Alonso
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- Pope Francis leads the Palm Sunday Mass at St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, March 20, 2016. Photo courtesy of REUTERS/Tony Gentile
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- Catholics participate in a Palm Sunday procession on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem on March 20, 2016. Photo courtesy of REUTERS/Amir Cohen
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- Penitents of La Paz (The Peace) brotherhood make their penance during a Holy Week procession in the Andalusian capital of Seville, southern Spain, on March 20, 2016. Photo courtesy of REUTERS/Marcelo del Pozo
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- Penitents locally called “Morions” take part in the start of Holy Week celebrations in Mogpog, Marinduque, in central Philippines, on March 21, 2016. Photo courtesy of REUTERS/Erik De Castro
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- Belarussian Catholics kiss a wooden cross set up after a procession celebrating Palm Sunday in the town of Oshmiany, Belarus, on March 20, 2016. Catholic believers mark Palm Sunday on March 20 and will celebrate Easter the following Sunday. Photo courtesy of REUTERS/Vasily Fedosenko