Day 1 - Wednesday, April 12
We arrived at the Monti Palace Hotel in Rome around 2 pm, ate lunch at a nearby restaurant, and began sightseeing around 4 pm. We stayed close to the hotel and explored the nearby churches.
Where We Went
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Basilica of St. Mary Major
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Basilica of St. Praxedes
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The Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels and of the Martyrs
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Church of St Bernard's at the Baths
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Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus
1. Basilica of St. Mary Major
Italian: Santa Maria Maggiore
Saint Mary Major is one of the four papal basilicas of Rome. The other three are St. Peter’s, St. John Lateran and the Basilica of St. Paul Outside The Walls
This is one of the largest and noblest religious edifices of the Christian world. It is the greatest and most important of our Lady's sanctuaries. It is also known as Our Lady of the Manger, from its possessing the relics of the Holy Manger, in which our Infant Saviour was laid; Our Lady of the Snow, because of the miraculous event mentioned below, to which it owes its origin; St. Mary Major, because it ranks above all the churches of our Lady in Rome.
The traditional story of its foundation as follows: A Roman patrician named John, who owned the property on the Esquiline hill where the basilica now stands, had married a pious lady, and, having no children, he and his wife resolved to make our Lady heiress of all their property and sought in prayer for some intimation of her will as to its disposal. One night both were bidden in their sleep to build a church on that part of the Esquiline hill which they should find on the following morning marked out in the snow. This happened on August 5, A.D. 358. As August is the hottest month of the year in Rome, a fall of snow at that season could only happen by miracle. John hastened next morning to acquaint Pope Liberius with the purport of our Lady's expressed wish and found that the Pope had himself received command from our Lady to cooperate with the pious couple in the work enjoined them. The Pope, accompanied by the clergy and people, repaired to the Esquiline, and there found the ground white with snow and a plan of the future church clearly traced thereon. The basilica was begun forthwith and completed in 360.
Notable relics in this basilica
The Holy Crib, St. Pius V, St. Jerome
Exterior of St. Mary Major
Praying in front of a portion of the manger in which our Infant Savior was laid.
Beautiful, gilded interior of St. Mary Major
Interior of St. Mary Major
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2. Basilica of St. Praxedes
Italian: Santa Prassede
This church, which stands close to St. Mary Major, is very ancient, being mentioned in the acts of a council held in 490. It was rebuilt by Pope Paschal I in 822, and remains practically as he left it. It is entered by a side door opening into the right aisle; the front entrance through an ancient gateway in the Via S. Martino and an atrium, or open court, being now closed. There is much to interest us both spiritually and artistically in the interior.
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The Sacred Pillar of the Flagellation, at which our Blessed Saviour was scourged, is preserved here. It is only half of the original pillar, the other portion being at Jerusalem.
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SS. Pudentiana and Praxedes, daughters of Pudens and Claudia, are well known for their heroic charity to the poor, and their zeal in rescuing the bodies and the blood of the martyrs from desecration. They went forth fearlessly in days of persecution to gather the relics of martyrs for Christian entombment and their blood as a sacred memorial.
Notable relics in this basilica
This church is rich in precious relics, the chief of which are the Holy Pillar of the Scourging, the bodies of SS. Praxedes and Pudentiana, the bodies of St. Zeno and 2,200 martyrs transferred from the catacombs by Paschal I in the ninth century, the bodies of SS. Valentine, Nicomedes, Candida, & Zoace and the bodies of popes SS. Siricius and Celestine I.
Father Jenkins explains some of the history of the Chapel of St. Charles Borromeo in the Basilica of St. Praxedes
The students singing "Adoramus Te" in the Basilica of St. Praxedes
Interior of St. Praxedes
Exterior of St. Praxedes
A piece of the Holy Pillar of the Scourging of Our Lord
3. The Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels and of the Martyrs
Italian: Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri
The church was formed out of the ruins of the ancient Baths of Diocletian. In the year 1091, Urban II made a present of these ruins to St. Bruno for the establishment of a Carthusian monastery. In about 1533, Cardinal du Bellay, Ambassador of Francis I, purchased the property and laid out gardens among the picturesque ruins. At his death, in 1560, it passed to St. Charles Borromeo, who gave it to his uncle, Pope Pius IV.
The interior is vast and impressive, the walls and arched roof being as solid as in the days of Diocletian.
Notable relics in this basilica
The remains of seven hundred and thirty martyrs
Father Jenkins explains the history of this basilica.
Interior of the basilica
Statue of St. Bruno
4. Church of St Bernard's at the Baths
Italian: San Bernardo alle Terme
On the opposite side of the piazza is the interesting Church of S. Bernardo, a rotunda in form, and originally part of the famous baths of Diocletian. This circular hall was converted into a church in 1598 by Catherine de Nobili Sforza, Countess of Santa Fiora, who founded here a monastery for Cistercian monks.
Interior of the church
Exterior of the church
5. Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus
Italian: Sacro Cuore di Gesù (Not to be confused with the Gesù - Day 5)
The Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus was built between 1870 and 1887, according to the plans of the architect Francesco Vespignani. The church was commissioned by Pope Pius IX (1846-1878), but due to the annexation of Rome to the Kingdom of Italy, work was interrupted. It was only thanks to the tenacity of the priest John Bosco that construction was resumed in 1880 and completed in 1887.
Notable relics in this basilica
Altar where St. John Bosco said mass.
Interior of the basilica
Altar where St. John Bosco said mass.
Exterior of the basilica
