Rome: Relics, Churches, and Gelato

My last full day in Rome was a Sunday. So I went to Mass at Santa Susanna, the American Catholic Church in Rome. After Mass, I took a free tour of the church. There are five saints buried here (Susanna, her father Gabinus, Felicity, Eleutherius, and Genesius). Like many other buildings in Rome, the modern-day church is built over other buildings. I had the privilege of going beneath the present floor of the church into the home (ruins) of Susanna and Gabinus.

The story goes that in 284 AD, the new Emperor Diocletian enforced a tetrarchy where he appointed various people to rule different sectors of the empire. Maxentius Galerius was appointed a junior ruler with the right to succeed him, however he was unmarried. So Diocletian decided to marry him into the family and chose his cousin Susanna in 293 AD. Susanna refused because she was a Christian and had taken a vow of virginity. Diocletian was extremely angry by this and ordered her execution. She was beheaded. Her father, Gabinus, who was also Christian and supported her refusal of the marriage, was hauled off to prison where he starved to death.

In the photo above, taken in the home beneath the church, you can see Santa Susanna and San Gabinus. To the right of San Gabinus is an older woman. This is Santa Felicity, the patron saint of parents who have lost a child. The widow and her seven young sons were Christian and refused to pray to the gods so were killed by Emperor Antonius Pius. He had offered her the opportunity to save her sons but she refused to renounce Christianity.

After leaving Mass, I continued with my crusade to learn more about the various churches in Rome.

The mosaic to the left showing Christ and angels is in the Chapel of St. Zeno in the 9th century church of Santa Prassede. The walls and ceilings of this church are covered by other magnificient Byzanthine mosaics.

Inside this church is a remnant of a column believed to be that which Jesus was bound to and flogged upon in Jerusalem.

The church of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme offered more relics. The façade itself is impressive as various saints adorn it.

Inside are various relics of the Crucifixion that St. Helena had brough back from Jerusalem all housed in one display.

They include a plank which is supposed to be part of the cross of the good thief crucified with Jesus and a jar holding the Holy Nail of the Crucifixion.

 

In the cross-like structure are three remnants of the Holy Cross upon which Jesus himself was crucified. They are in the horizontal arms, and the lower vertical arm.

The Sacred Titulus is also here.

This is the label upon which Pontius Pilate inscribed “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews” in Latin, Hebrew, and Greek.

I left Santa Croce in Gerusalemme and found my way to the Scala Santa and Sancta Sanctorum. There is a staircase – 28 steps – referred to as the Holy Staircase. It is said that these are the steps that Christ walked up when he was taken before Pontius Pilate. These too were brought by St. Helena from Jerusalem. The woman did not travel light at all!

Since the steps are holy, no feet may touch them, so they are actually covered by wooden boards. Still, you cannot walk on them. The faithful must climb them on their knees.

Yours truly is not so faithful. I just walked up the “unholy” stairs which are on either side. But I can see myself coming back to Rome for Easter and doing the knee climb on Good Friday . Just a thought. One day.

At the top of the stairs is the Sancta Sanctorum (Holy of Holies) also known as the Chapel of St. Lawrence. According to medieval historians this was Rome’s most venerated sanctuary.

It was built in 1278 by Pope Nicholas III. There is a large iron gate in front of it. Inside, is the Acheiropoeton (picture painted without hands) which is said to have been made by an angel through St. Luke. It sits on the altar. There are also beautiful frescoes on the walls and loads more relics of highly venerated saints. These relics are in the large cage below the altar. The heads of St. Agnes, St. Peter, St. Paul are (? were) in there.

Regardless, there is only so much relic hunting you can do in a day, so I moved on. In the Aventine area are the round Temples of Forum Boarium – the temples of Hercules and Portunus. I’m not sure which of the two this one is.

I guess the obelisk of Santa Maria sopra Minerva was supposed to be somewhat of a joke. The elephant was sculptured by a student of Bernini and Bernini himself designed it although the work is attributed to him. It symbolizes intelligence and piety. The obelisk itself is ancient and was found in the garden of the monastery.

Last but not least, the only way to nourish oneself when doing a mad dash of churches and sculptures is through gelato! Too many choices. I would return to Rome just for gelato. In addition to all the random little hole in the walls, carts, and street vendors, I got gelato from fine institutions such as Tre Scalini (I tried their tartufo), Giolitti (such a long line but I went back twice), and San Crispino (delicious but expensive for the amount given compared to other places).  And I’m pleased to say I didn’t just have vanilla! Oh, and I should mention I visited all these places over the course of the WEEK I was in Rome.

Finally, I toured the wonders around my new home, Trastevere. Nearby is the Torre Argentina where Julius Caesar was murdered in 44 BC. But that is not what really makes it an attraction.

The ancient ruins just happen to be the site of a unique cat sanctuary. Yes, cats. There are feral cats all over Rome. This particular sanctuary appears to be below street level but still very much open and part of town.

I explored the church of San Francesco a Ripa in Trastevere. St. Francis of Assisi lived here when he visited Rome in 1219. His crucifix and stone pillow are kept here. In one of the chapels is Bernini’s Ecstasy of Beata Ludovica Albertoni. It’s beautiful.

Last but not least was the church of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere. I’ve learned so much about St. Cecilia on this trip. She was matyred by beheading in AD 230. This church was built on top of her house. However, I was unable to visit the house below because it was closed for a wedding.

Her body was found in the Catacombs of San Callisto and was reburied here in the 9th century.

The statue of St. Cecilia was sculptured in 1599 by Stefano Maderno and shows her as she lay when her tomb was uncovered in the catacombs. She was apparently still very well preserved.

Speaking of churches built upon houses, I was lucky enough to visit the church of San Clemente. Here you can easily see the different layers of the earlier structures. At the bottom is a Mithraic temple dating to the 3rd century AD as well as ancient Roman buildings and catacombs. Above this is a 4th century church. And at the top, or I should say at street level, is the 12th century church dedicated to the 4th Pope, St. Clement.