On Sunday, Pope Francis expressed prayers to the victims of the attack that took place at a music hall in Moscow, calling the violence “inhuman acts” that offended God.
“I assure my prayers for the victims of the cowardly terrorist attack carried out the other evening in Moscow,” said the 87-year-old pope, following a Palm Sunday mass in Saint Peter’s Square.
“May the Lord welcome them in his peace and comfort their families, and convert the hearts of those… who organize and carry out these inhumane actions which offend God, who commanded ‘Thou shalt not kill’.” the Pope added.
The pontiff presided over Palm Sunday Mass in front of a congregation that the Vatican estimated 25,000 people.
However, he spoke in a weak and faltering voice and did not deliver his sermon as intended.
After mass, though, he seemed happy as he went around the piazza, grinning and waving to the people.
The pontiff caught the flu last month and has subsequently asked others to read his texts at appearances.
Francis has suffered some health issues in recent years, from knee and hip pain to an inflamed colon and hernia surgery last year.
Sunday’s liturgical celebration marked the start of Holy Week, in which the pope presides over a series of significant events leading up to Easter, Christianity’s most important holiday.
Last year, for the first time, Francis missed the traditional “Way of the Cross” prayer service on Good Friday.
The weather at the time was unusually cold, and he was recovering from a bronchitis infection, which saw him hospitalized for three nights.
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