Photos of the Week: Pope leaves hospital, tattoo removals
By Kit Doyle · March 26, 2025
(RNS) — Each week RNS presents a gallery of photos of religious expression around the world. This week’s photo gallery includes Pope Francis being discharged from the hospital, free tattoo removals for Ramadan and more.
A Muslim man gets a tattoo removed with a free service offered by an Islamic charity organization during Ramadan to give practicing Muslims an opportunity to "repent," in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)
A Muslim woman uses a free tattoo removal service offered by an Islamic charity organization during Ramadan to give practicing Muslims an opportunity to "repent" in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)
People attend a meeting about leadership changes at Willow Creek Church on March 22, 2025, in South Barrington, Illinois. (RNS photo/Bob Smietana)
Pope Francis leaves the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic in Rome, Sunday, March 23, 2025. He was admitted on Feb. 14 for bilateral pneumonia. (AP Photo/Marco Ravagli)
Pope Francis waves from a window of the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic in Rome, Sunday, March 23, 2025, where he was treated for bronchitis and bilateral pneumonia since Feb. 14. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Shiite worshippers place copies of the Quran on their heads during Laylat al-Qadr, the Night of Destiny, in the holy fasting month of Ramadan at the shrine of Imam Ali in Najaf, Iraq, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Anmar Khalil)
Muslim devotees pray as a cleric displays a holy relic believed to be a hair from the beard of the Prophet Muhammad, during special prayers to observe the martyr day of Hazrat Ali, the fourth caliph of Islam, at Hazratbal shrine in Srinagar, Indian-controlled Kashmir, Saturday, March 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan)
Catholic bishops lead a march in solidarity with migrants, Monday, March 24, 2025, in downtown El Paso, Texas. (AP Photo/Andres Leighton)
The Rev. Arturo Bañuelas, left, and Archbishop of San Antonio Gustavo Garcia-Swiller, second from right, among other prelates, pay tribute to late San Salvador Archbishop Oscar Arnulfo Romero, on the 45th anniversary of his assassination, during a vigil in solidarity with migrants, Monday, March 24, 2025, at the Sacred Heart Church in El Paso, Texas. (AP Photo/Andres Leighton)
Orthodox priests read prayers in Kocani, North Macedonia, Wednesday, March 19, 2025, during a vigil for the victims of a massive fire in a nightclub. (AP Photo/Armin Durgut)
Archival Photos
Pope Paul VI was warmly greeted by hundreds of school children holding colorful balloons — all inscribed "Viva Il Papa" when he visited the Rome suburban Church of Santa Maria Consolatrice on March 1, 1964. Later the white and yellow balloons were released by the waving and cheering children as the Pope watched with visible emotion. The pontiff made Lenten visits to the stational churches of Rome. He followed the example of Pope John XXIII, who renewed the ancient custom in which the Pope joined priests and faithful in Lenten exercises at designated churches. (RNS archive photo. Photo courtesy of the Presbyterian Historical Society.)
During the observance of Ramadan, a mesaharati goes through the streets tapping his drum to awaken sleepers for the “suhour,” or final meal before the daytime fast begins. The mesaharati, or night-watcher, is aided by an assistant whose lantern lights the way. In 1965, Ramadan began Dec. 23. The location of this photo is unknown. (RNS archive photo. Photo courtesy of the Presbyterian Historical Society.)
