Following a tradition that goes back to 1962, the St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Toronto held its annual Good Friday Procession on the streets of Little Italy yesterday, Friday, April 3rd:

The mile-long Procession included religious statues, musical bands, and people representing different characters associated with re-enacting the fourteen Stations of the Cross (Jesus on his way to crucifixion).

The Procession, which has become a sight to behold due to its scale and grandeur alone, has not always been that way, according to current pastor Fr. Massimo Buttigieg:

This was something started by our people back in 1962, and it was originally a simple drama play done in the hall of the parish. They evolved over the years, and it wasn’t until they bought the statue (of the crucifix) that they started the procession with that statue.

Ever since those early days, we have added more statues, volunteers with costumes and different characters from the Passion. Today, we have eight statues in total and around 200 different characters in the street procession.

The Procession started at 3:00PM, but I’ve always found the more interesting shots are not of the Procession itself, but of the event participants getting ready at the St. Francis of Assisi Church, at the corner of Grace Street and Mansfield Avenue.

When I arrived I was surprised to find 30-35 other photographers already on site – paparazzi abounded!