Children take centre stage at pope's scaled-back Good Friday service

Pope Francis leads the Via Crucis (Way of the Cross) procession during Good Friday celebrations in a near-empty St. Peter's square with a limited number of faithful, due to coronavirus disease (COVID-19) restrictions, at the Vatican, April 2, 2021. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Francis presided at a scaled back "Way of the Cross" service held in an empty St. Peter's Square on Friday due to coronavirus restrictions, listening as children recounted their fears and dreams.

It was the second consecutive year that the "Via Crucis" procession, commemorating the last hours in Jesus' life, was not held at Rome's ancient Colosseum since the modern-day Easter tradition was re-introduced by Pope Paul VI in 1964.