Around 30,000 faithful gathered outside the ancient monument as Leo, flanked by torchbearers, led the hour‑long procession from inside the arena to the Palatine Hill. The gesture gave added weight to his first Holy Week as pontiff and placed physical suffering at the centre of the Vatican’s Easter message. The Via Crucis recalls the final hours of Jesus Christ, from condemnation to burial, and remains one of the most solemn events in the Catholic calendar.