Pope to visit Rome jail to perform pre-Easter feet-washing ritual

Pope Francis would perform the pre-Easter washing of the feet ritual in Rome’s Regina Coeli prison, the Vatican said on Tuesday.

The ritual recalls the gesture that Jesus is believed to have performed for the 12 apostles before the Last Supper, to show that the man they saw as their leader was capable of the most humble act.

On March 29, Holy Thursday, Francis would visit the prison infirmary, wash the feet of 12 prisoners, and meet with some more inmates, a statement said.

The Regina Coeli prison is in the central Trastevere district and is mostly used for pretrial detention.

A former convent, it has more than 900 inmates, according to the Italian Ministry of Justice.

In 2017, Francis washed feet in a prison outside Rome for Mafia turncoats.

Previously, he performed the ceremony in a juvenile prison, a centre for the disabled, a high-security jail and a refugee centre. (dpa/NAN)