The Catholic Church opened the solemn Lenten season leading to Easter on Wednesday without the participation of Pope Francis, who is in the third week of hospital treatment for double pneumonia.

Christians across the world observe a 40-day period called Lent. It represents the 40 days in the Bible that Jesus had spent fasting and praying in the desert. Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, and this year,

a Vatican official and former vicar of Rome, will preside over the March 5 ceremony and procession that inaugurates the church’s solemn Lenten season leading up to Easter in April. The Vatican ...