The Christian Holy Week begins every year on Palm Sunday and culminates with Easter the following Sunday. It is a time of worship and reflection on Jesus’s journey into Jerusalem, through the Last Supper, his crucifixion and his ultimate resurrection as portrayed in the Christian gospels.
The week includes a variety of observances, from the processions with palm fronds on Palm Sunday, to the ceremony of the washing of the feet on Maundy Thursday, to the Easter Vigil.
Here is a look at some of the diverse observances for 2016 Holy Week around the world:
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Pope Francis begins the Holy Week observances in St. Peter's Square, in front of thousands of people, on March 20.
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A devotee carrying palm fronds receives the holy Communion in Quiapo, Mexico on March 20.
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Catholic devotees hold palm fronds as they pray during Palm Sunday Mass in Surabaya, Indonesia on March 20.
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A girl attends Palm Sunday celebrations at the Cathedral of Managua, Nicaragua on March 20.
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Christian nuns carry palm branches during a procession for Palm Sunday at the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem on March 20.
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A group of Catholic devotees hold their "palaspas" (palm leaves) while listening to the priest on Palm Sunday, March 20, in Tanay, Philippines.
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A Greek Orthodox Christian man holds an icon depicting Jesus Christ as he walks with Christian Melkites during a joint procession in the streets of the southern Lebanese city of Sidon on March 20.
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Syrian Christian Roman Catholic scouts parade after a mass marking Palm Sunday in the capital Damascus, on March 20.
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A penitent is holds candles during the Procession of Saint Nicholas Tolentino as part of the celebrations of Holy Week in Taxco, Mexico on March 22.
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Pope Francis blesses the mother of girl with a disability during his general audience on Holy Wednesday in St Peter's square on March 23.
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Britain's Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip pose with Yeomen of the Guard and schoolchildren, after attending a Maundy Thursday service at St George's Chapel in Windsor, Britain March 24, 2016.
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People carry a giant white cross during The Passion, a Dutch passion play, held on Maundy Thursday in Amersfoort, Netherlands on March 24, 2016.
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Pope Francis kisses the foot of a refugee during the foot-washing ritual at the Castelnuovo di Porto refugees center near Rome, Italy, March 24, 2016.
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People perform crucifixion of Jesus Christ during the Good Friday ahead of the Easter in Juba, South Sudan on March 25, 2016.
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Penitents and pilgrims during the procession for the Passion of Jesus Christ on Good Friday in Mexico City, on March 25, 2016.
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Penitents parade on Good Friday during the Holy Week, in the Northwestern Spanish village of Bercianos de Aliste, near Zamora, on March 25, 2016.
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Pope Francis lies on the floor during the celebration of the Lord's Passion on Good Friday at St Peter's Basilica in Vatican City on March 25, 2016.
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