Three days after the preacher of the papal household called on Catholics to repent for the ways they are dividing the church, the Vatican secretary of state said the divisions are real and they are harmful.

The message of Easter is not a mirage or a magic formula, Pope Francis said. But it does offer hope to a world suffering from the Covid-19 pandemic and many sources of conflict.

"Fraternity among Catholics is wounded," Cardinal Raniero Cantalamessa said. "Divisions between churches have torn Christ's tunic to shreds.”

Perhaps the only real answer is in asking the questions.

Suffering is never the end in the Christian worldview and, more importantly, the Christian experience.  

Pope Francis celebrated the Mass commemorating the Last Supper in the private chapel of the demoted Cardinal Angelo Becciu, this Holy Thursday evening.