Pope Francis washes prisoners' feet in Holy Thursday service

 CIVITAVECCHIA – Pope Francis travelled to the New Penitentiary Complex north of Rome on Holy Thursday to celebrate mass “in Coena Domini” with prisoners detained there and washed their feet as part of his service, said the Holy See Press Office.

 Francis arrived around 4 p.m. and was welcomed by the prison authorities to the chapel, where he led the service. The Italian Justice Minister was present along with several detainees and prison staff.

 During the liturgy, the pope delivered his homily off the cuff and spoke about the washing of the feet in the bible.

 By “washing the feet of the traitor, the one who sells him, Jesus teaches us this, [that] you must wash each other’s feet. One serves the other, without interest,” said the pope. “How nice it would be if this were possible to do every day and for all people.”

 To serve, said the pontiff, is to act like Jesus when he calls the traitor a "friend,” waits for him until the end, and forgives everything.

 “God forgives everything and God always forgives! We are the ones who get tired of asking for forgiveness.”

 Each of us,” the pope said, has something that has long been in his heart, "but, ask Jesus for forgiveness.” He continued, "there is a Lord who judges, but it is a strange judgement. The Lord judges and forgives.”

 At the end of the homily, as is customary, Francis repeated the gesture of Jesus during the Last Supper, when the Lord washed the feet of his disciples as a sign of love, towards 12 prisoners, men and women, including people of different ages and different nationalities.

 At the end of the mass, the prison director addressed a few words of thanks to the pontiff and offered as a gift a print of the ancient port of Civitavecchia, some products from the garden cultivated by the inmates and some works made by the staff and inmates.

 After the celebration, the Pope went to another room and briefly greeted about 50 people, representing the prisoners and staff of the prison.

Before evening he returned to Casa Santa Marta.

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