Pope laments 'ashes of international law' left by today's conflicts in Ash Wednesday liturgy
Associated Press
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Pope Leo XIV, left, arrives, with bishops and cardinals in a penitential procession marking the start of the Catholic Lent, at the Basilica of Santa Sabina in Rome, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026, where he will preside over Ash Wednesday Mass. (AP Photo/Riccardo De Luca)Pope Leo XIV presides over Ash Wednesday Mass, marking the start of the Catholic Lent, inside the Basilica of Santa Sabina in Rome, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)Pope Leo XIV, center, arrives, with bishops and cardinals in a penitential procession marking the start of the Catholic Lent, at the Basilica of Santa Sabina in Rome, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026, where he will preside over Ash Wednesday Mass. (AP Photo/Riccardo De Luca)Pope Leo XIV arrives in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican for his open-air weekly general audience, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)Pope Leo XIV administers the ashes during Ash Wednesday Mass, marking the start of Catholic Lent, inside the Basilica of Santa Sabina in Rome, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
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Pope Leo XIV, left, arrives, with bishops and cardinals in a penitential procession marking the start of the Catholic Lent, at the Basilica of Santa Sabina in Rome, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026, where he will preside over Ash Wednesday Mass. (AP Photo/Riccardo De Luca)
