Pope makes last-minute decision not to deliver Palm Sunday Mass homily

Pope Francis celebrates the Palm Sunday mass in St Peter’s Square (Gregorio Borgia/AP/PA)

Pope Francis decided at the last minute to skip his homily during Palm Sunday Mass in St Peter’s Square, avoiding a strenuous speech at the start of a busy Holy Week that will test his increasingly frail health.

Francis – affected by bad knees and persistent respiratory problems – also did not participate in the procession of cardinals around the obelisk in the piazza at the start of the Mass.