Notre Dame de Rouen. The façade of the Gothic Church in France. Photographer: Hippo1947. Licence: SHUTTERSTOCK.

Wednesday, 23 March 2016

The Zephyrinus Blog's Annual Spy Wednesday Total Of Pageviews.



Illustration: RECLAIMING THE MIND



Illustration: THE WAR CRY


For those Readers who are interested in statistics, here are The Top-Ten, All-Time, Total of Pageviews for this Blog.

You will note that Ireland has made a dramatic appearance, within the last six months, and has now overtaken China. Let us Pray that Ireland will, once again, become the powerhouse of Priestly Ordinations and, as a Nation, return to The Faith.

Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Chile, Japan, Philippines, Spain, are all making increased daily appearances and remain just outside The Top Ten.

1.
UNITED STATES
169,829
2.
UNITED KINGDOM
57,638
3.
FRANCE
24,877
4.
RUSSIA
20,255
5.
GERMANY
16,971
6.
UKRAINE
13,153
7,
IRELAND
4,328
8.
CHINA
4,015
9.
CANADA
3,703
10.
ITALY
2,739


Lenten Station At The Papal Basilica Of Saint Mary Major (Santa Maria Maggiore) (Sanctae Mariae Maioris) (Our Lady Of The Snows). Wednesday In Holy Week (Spy Wednesday).


Roman Text is taken from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal,
unless otherwise stated.

Italic Text from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia,
unless otherwise stated.


Wednesday in Holy Week.
      Station at Saint Mary Major.

Indulgence of 10 Years and 10 Quarantines.
      Privileged Feria.

Violet Vestments.


File:Santa maria maggiore 051218-01.JPG

English: Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major
(Our Lady of The Snows),
Rome, Italy.
Italian: Basilica Papale di Santa Maria Maggiore.
Latin: Basilica Sanctae Mariae Maioris.
Photo: December 2005.
Source: Own work.
Author: Lalupa.
(Wikimedia Commons)


File:Piazza Esquilino, Santa Maria Maggiore.JPG

The Basilica of Saint Mary Major
(Santa Maria Maggiore)
(Our Lady of The Snows),
seen from the Piazza Esquilino.
Photo: March 2006.
Source: Own work.
Author: Sixtus.
(Wikimedia Commons)


From today, The Stational Celebrations of Holy Week are held in Rome at The Great Basilicas. That of Wednesday is held at Saint Mary Major, the largest and most celebrated Sanctuary Dedicated to The Blessed Virgin, whose sufferings The Church commiserates during these days.

The first Passage, from the Prophet Isaias, bears on The Passion. The Blood that dyes The Saviour’s Garments is His Own Most Precious Blood. Instead of crushing the people in His Indignation, He Suffers and Dies For Them.


File:Lazio Roma SMariaMaggiore2 tango7174.jpg

English: Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore
(Our Lady of The Snows),
Rome, Italy.
Français: Basilique Sainte-Marie-Majeure, Vatican,
située à Rome, Latium, Italie.
Photo: September 2010.
Source: Own work.
Author: Tango7174.
(Wikimedia Commons)


The second Passage foretells the principal features of The Passion, with such remarkable precision, that The Fathers of The Church speak of Isaias as The Fifth Evangelist. It is “The Man of Sorrows” Who “was led as a Sheep to the slaughter and was dumb”. “He was covered with wounds and reputed with the wicked.” “He was bruised for our sins,” “Cut off out of the land of the living, He had the ungodly to guard His Sepulchre and the rich to bury Him after His Death”, “and, by His bruises, we are healed”.

Justifying to the full His Title of Saviour, “He became Obedient Unto Death, even to The Death of The Cross” (Introit), as we are shown it today in the Gospel according to Saint Luke.


File:Santamariamaggiore2b.jpg

English: The Borghese Chapel,
Basilica of Saint Mary Major
(Our Lady of The Snows),
Rome, Italy.
Português: Capela Borghese,
Santa Maria MaggioreRoma.
Photo: 2005.
Source: Photo taken by Ricardo André Frantz.
Author: Ricardo André Frantz (User:Tetraktys).
(Wikimedia Commons)


File:Romamariamaggiore10.JPG

Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore
(Our Lady of The Snows),
Rome, Italy.
Entrance to The Borghese Chapel.
Photo: November 2007.
Source: Own work.
Author: Warburg.
(Wikimedia Commons)


Catechumens and Christian Penitents, alike, “we were, in truth, like sheep that had gone astray, each one having turned aside into his own way”, and Jesus, “having the iniquity of us all laid on Him, has received in return a multitude of disciples” (Second Lesson). During The Easter Festivities, the Souls of men will become reconciled to God in The Sacraments of Baptism and Penance.

Renewing at Mass The Mysteries of The Passion of Our Lord, let us Pray “to be delivered by His Merits from the power of the enemy and to obtain The Grace of His Resurrection” (First and Second Collects, and Secret).

Mass: In nómine Jesu.


File:Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore7.JPG

English: The Coffered Ceiling of Saint Mary Major
(Our Lady of The Snows),
Rome, Italy.
Magyar: A főhajó aranyozott kazettás mennyezete.
Date: 2008-08-27 (original upload date).
Source: Transferred from hu.wikipedia; transferred to Commons 
Author: Original uploader was Kit36a at hu.wikipedia
(Wikimedia Commons)


The following Text is from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia.

The Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major (Italian: Basilica Papale di Santa Maria Maggiore, Latin: Basilica Sanctae Mariae Maioris), or Church of Santa Maria Maggiore, is the largest Catholic Marian Church in RomeItaly.

Other Churches in Rome, Dedicated to Mary, include Santa Maria-in-Trastevere, Santa Maria-in-Aracoeli, and Santa Maria sopra Minerva, but the greatest size of the Basilica of Saint Mary Major justifies the adjective (Papal Basilica) by which it is distinguished from the other twenty-five Churches.

According to The 1929 Lateran Treaty, the Basilica, located in Italian territory, is owned by The Holy See and enjoys Extra-Territorial Status, similar to that of foreign embassies. The building is patrolled Internally by Police Agents of Vatican City State, not by Italian Police.

The Church may still sometimes be referred to as "Our Lady of The Snows", a name given to it in The Roman Missal, from 1568 to 1969, in connection with The Liturgical Feast of The Anniversary of its Dedication on 5 August, a Feast that was then denominated "Dedicatio Sanctae Mariae ad Nives" (Dedication of Saint Mary of The Snows). This name for the Basilica had become popular in the 14th-Century, in connection with a legend that the 1911 Catholic Encyclopedia reports thus: "During the Pontificate of Liberius, the Roman Patrician, John, and his wife, who were without heirs, made a vow to donate their possessions to The Virgin Mary. They Prayed that she might make known to them how they were to dispose of their property in her honour".


File:Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore6.JPG

English: Decorated wall murals in the
Basilica of Saint Mary Major
(Our Lady of The Snows),
Rome, Italy.
Magyar: Santa Maria Maggiore, Róma. A főbejárat feletti belső faldíszítés.
Date: 2008-08-27 (original upload date). Taken on 2005.04.22.
Source: Transferred from hu.wikipedia; transferred to Commons 
Author: Original uploader was Kit36a at hu.wikipedia.
(Wikimedia Commons)


On 5 August, at the height of the Roman Summer, snow fell during the night on the summit of The Esquiline Hill. In obedience to a vision of The Virgin Mary, which they had the same night, the couple built a Basilica in honour of Mary on the very spot which was covered with snow.

The legend is first reported only after the year 1000. It may be implied, in what The Liber Pontificalis of the Early-13th-Century says of Pope Liberius: "He built the Basilica of his own name (i.e. the Liberian Basilica) near the Macellum of Livia". Its prevalence in the 15th-Century is shown in the painting of The Miracle of The Snow by Masolino da Panicale.

The Feast was originally called "Dedicatio Sanctae Mariae" (Dedication of Saint Mary's), and was Celebrated only in Rome until inserted, for the first time, into The General Roman Calendar, with "ad Nives" added to its name, in 1568. A Congregation, appointed by Pope Benedict XIV in 1741, proposed that the reading of the legend be struck from The Office and that The Feast be given its original name. No action was taken on the proposal until 1969, when the reading of the legend was removed and The Feast was called "In dedicatione Basilicae S. Mariae (Dedication of The Basilica of Saint Mary)". The legend is still Commemorated by dropping White Rose Petals from the Dome, during the Celebration of The Mass and Second Vespers of The Feast.




File:Santamariamaggiore19.jpg

English: Interior of The Basilica of Saint Mary Major
(Our Lady of The Snows),
Rome, Italy.
Português: Capela lateral e parte da nave,
Santa Maria MaggioreRoma.
Date: 2005.
Source: Taken by Ricardo André Frantz.
Author: Ricardo André Frantz (User:Tetraktys).
(Wikimedia Commons)


The earliest building on the site was the Liberian Basilica, or Santa Maria Liberiana, after Pope Liberius (352 A.D. - 366 A.D.). This name may have originated from the same legend, which recounts that, like John and his wife, Pope Liberius was told in a dream of the forthcoming Summer snowfall, went in Procession to where it did occur and there marked out the area on which the Church was to be built. "Liberiana" is still included in some versions of the Basilica's formal name, and "Liberian Basilica" may be used as a contemporary, as well as historical, name.

No Catholic Church can be honoured with the Title of Basilica unless by Apostolic Grant or from Immemorial Custom. Saint Mary Major is one of the only four Basilicas that today hold the Title of Major Basilica. The other three are Saint John LateranSaint Peter and Saint Paul-without-the-Walls. (The Title of Major Basilica was once used more widely, being attached, for instance, to the Basilica of Saint Mary of the Angels, in Assisi.) All the other Catholic Churches that, either by Grant of the Pope or by Immemorial Custom, hold the Title of Basilica, are Minor Basilicas.

Until 2006, the four Major Basilicas, together with the Basilica of Saint Laurence-without-the-Walls, were referred to as the five "Patriarchal Basilicas" of Rome, associated with the five ancient Patriarchal Sees of Christendom (see Pentarchy). Saint Mary Major was associated with the Patriarchate of Antioch. In the same year, the title of "Patriarchal" was also removed from the Basilica of Saint Francis, in Assisi.


File:Santa Maria Maggiore (Rome) 02.jpg

English: Cupola over a Side-Altar.
Basilica of Saint Mary Major
(Our Lady of The Snows),
Rome, Italy.
Deutsch: Santa Maria Maggiore Rom,
Kuppel eines Seitenaltars.
Photo: February 2008.
Source: Own work.
(Wikimedia Commons)


The former five Patriarchal Basilicas, with The Basilica of The Holy Cross in Jerusalem and San Sebastiano fuori le mura, formed the Traditional Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome, which are visited by Pilgrims during their Pilgrimage to Rome, following a twenty-kilometres (twelve miles) itinerary, established by Saint Philip Neri on 25 February 1552, especially when seeking The Plenary Indulgence on Holy Years. For The Great Jubilee of 2000, Pope John Paul II replaced Saint Sebastian's Church with The Shrine of Our Lady of Divine Love.

It is agreed that the present Church (Santa Maria Maggiore) was built during the Reign of Pope Sixtus III (432 A.D. - 440 A.D.). The Dedicatory Inscription on The Triumphal Arch, "Sixtus Episcopus plebi Dei" (Sixtus the Bishop to the people of God) is an indication of that Pope's role in the construction. As well as this Church on the summit of The Esquiline Hill, Pope Sixtus III is said to have commissioned extensive building projects throughout the City, which were continued by his successor, Pope Leo I (The Great).

Church Building in Rome in this period, as exemplified in Saint Mary Major, was inspired by the idea of Rome being not just the Centre of the World of The Roman Empire, as it was seen in The Classical Period, but the Centre of The Christian World.


File:Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore 2011 8.jpg

English: Interior of Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore,
(Our Lady of The Snows),
Rome, Italy.
Česky: Vnitřní prostory Baziliky
Santa Maria MaggioreŘím, Itálie.
Photo: April 2011.
Source: Own work.
Author: Karelj.
(Wikimedia Commons)


Santa Maria Maggiore, one of the first Churches built in honour of The Virgin Mary, was erected in the immediate aftermath of The Council of Ephesus of 431 A.D., which proclaimed Mary, Mother of God. Pope Sixtus III built it to Commemorate this decision.

When the Popes returned to Rome after the period of The Avignon Papacy, the buildings of the Basilica became a temporary Palace of the Popes, due to the deteriorated state of The Lateran Palace. The Papal Residence was later moved to The Palace of the Vatican, in what is now Vatican City.

The Basilica was restored, re-decorated and extended by various Popes, including Eugene III (1145–1153), Nicholas IV (1288–1292), Clement X (1670–1676), and Benedict XIV (1740–1758), who, in the 1740s, Commissioned Ferdinando Fuga to build the present façade and to modify the Interior. The Interior of Santa Maria Maggiore underwent a broad renovation, encompassing all of its Altars, between 1575 and 1630.

The original architecture of Santa Maria Maggiore was Classical, and Traditionally Roman, perhaps to convey the idea that Santa Maria Maggiore represented Old Imperial Rome, as well as its Christian future.


THE SAINT ANDREW DAILY MISSAL



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Tuesday, 22 March 2016

The Stations Of The Cross During Lent.



The Thirteenth Station.
Jesus Is Taken Down From The Cross
And Laid In The Arms Of His Blessed Mother.
Illustration: THE TRUE MASS

During Lent (a time of Prayer, Mortification, and Alms-Giving),
why not make the effort and go to The Stations of The Cross every week ?
If your Church doesn't bother to have The Stations of The Cross (can you believe it ?),
you can still make a private visit to the Church and Pray The Stations of The Cross, yourself,
or save these Way Of The Cross Illustrations (above) and Pray The Stations in your own home.

Booklets are available (in U.K.) for Praying
The Stations of The Cross from

Soyuz Spacecraft With Gantry Arms Closing Around It To Secure The Rocket.





Illustration: NASA


The Gantry Arms close around the Soyuz TMA-20M Spacecraft to secure the Rocket, as seen in this long-exposure photograph taken on 16 March 2016, at Launch Pad 1, at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan.

Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani).

Lenten Station At The Basilica Of Saint Prisca. Tuesday In Holy Week.


Roman Text is taken from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal,
unless otherwise stated.

Italic Text from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia,
unless otherwise stated.


Tuesday in Holy Week.
      Station at Saint Prisca's.

Indulgence of 10 Years and 10 Quarantines.
      Privileged Feria.

Violet Vestments.


File:Santa Prisca-facciata-antmoose.jpg

The Basilica of Saint Prisca,
Rome, Italy.
Photo: February 2006.
Source: s. prisca, afternoon light at flickr.com.
This image was originally posted to Flickr by antmoose at http://www.flickr.com/photos/antmoose/102131372/
(Wikimedia Commons)


The Lenten Station is at the Church of Saint Prisca, of whom Saint Paul speaks: “Salute Prisca and Aquila, my helpers in Christ Jesus, and the Church which is in their house”. This was one of the twenty-five Parishes of Rome in the 5th-Century A.D.

The Epistle, Gradual, Offertory and Communion are a perfect adaptation of the passages in The Old Testament to Christ Persecuted. He is “The Meek Lamb that is carried to be a Victim”, and which God, by a striking revenge on them (Epistle), “delivers from the hand of the sinner” (Offertory). The Gospel of Saint Mark describes The Death of Christ. The Introit and the Collects show that The Church, which continues The Saving Work of Christ, revives The Mysteries of His Passion (Collect) and “Glories in The Cross of Our Lord Jesus Christ, in Whom is our Salvation, Life and Resurrection” (Introit).


File:Ripa - s Prisca interno 1150960.JPG

English: Interior of the Basilica of Saint Prisca,
Rome, Italy.
Italiano: Roma, Santa Prisca: Interno.
February 2010.
Source: Own work.
Author: Lalupa.
(Wikimedia Commons)


Like the Catechumens, who formerly were Baptised, and Public Penitents, who were reconciled, at Easter, The Faithful are about to participate, by their Easter Confession and Holy Communion, “in The Mysteries of Our Lord’s Passion in such a manner as to deserve to obtain pardon” (Collect).

“May our healing Fasts, in union with The Sacrifices of Christ” (Secret), “purify us from all remains of our old nature, and enable us to be formed anew unto holiness” (Prayer Over The People).

Mass: Nos autem.



Pope Saint John XXIII
(Latin: Ioannes PP. XXIII; Italian: Giovanni XXIII),
born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, 25 November 1881 – 3 June 1963),
headed The Catholic Church and ruled The Vatican City from 1958 until his death in 1963.
In 1953, he was appointed Patriarch of Venice and, accordingly, raised to the Rank of
Cardinal-Priest of Santa Prisca, by Pope Pius XII. As a sign of his esteem, the
President of FranceVincent Auriol, claimed the ancient privilege possessed by French Monarchs and bestowed The Red Hat on Roncalli at a Ceremony in The Elysee Palace.



The following Text is from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia.

Santa Prisca is a Basilica Church in Rome, Devoted to Saint Prisca, a 1st-Century A.D. Martyr, on The Aventine Hill. It was built in the 4th- or 5th-Century A.D., over a temple of Mithras, and is recorded as the "Titulus Priscae" in The Acts of The 499 A.D. Synod.

The Mithraeum, under Santa Prisca, was first excavated in 1952-1959, through Dutch excavations. The original building was erected circa 95 A.D., and served as Trajan’s Town House until his death. One hundred years later, a Member of The Imperial Family took over the building and built a Mithraeum in one part of the Basement, while a Christian Meeting Place was established in the other part.

The original Mithraeum had a Central Aisle, a Niche and Side Benches. Fine frescoes were found on the Mithraeum walls, as well as a stucco Mithras the Bull Slayer, one of the main images of the Mithras cult. Renovations in 220 A.D., yielded a larger central cult room, and the addition of new ones, while the frescoes were covered with new, more elaborate paintings.


File:Ripa - s Prisca abside 1150966.JPG

The Apse of the Basilica of Saint Prisca,
Rome, Italy.
Photo: February 2010.
Source: Own work.
Author: Lalupa.
(Wikimedia Commons)


These paintings were important to the development of understanding the Mithraic cult. Along with the typical bull slaying scene, so common amongst the cult, other paintings depicted different cult rituals. For example, one painting shows a procession of figures, wearing masks and different coloured tunics, holding what has been presumed to be a piece of liturgical equipment. These paintings have been incorporated in the long standing debate about the admittance of women into the cult.

Around 400 A.D., the Christians took over the Mithraeum, destroyed it and built Santa Prisca on top of it. Damaged in the Norman Sack of Rome, the Church was restored several times. The current aspect is due to the 1660 Restoration, which included a new facade by Carlo Lombardi.



His Eminence, Justin Francis Rigali, 
Cardinal Archbishop Emeritus of Philadelphia. 
Currently, Cardinal Priest of the Titulus S. Priscae.


In the Interior, the Columns are the only visible remains of the ancient Church. Also, a Baptismal Font, allegedly used by Saint Peter, is conserved. The Altar in the Crypt contains the Relics of Saint Prisca; the frescoes in the Crypt are by Antonio TempestaAnastasio Fontebuoni frescoed the walls of the Nave with Saints and Angels with The Instruments of Passion. In the Sacristy, is a painting of The Immaculate Conception with Angels, by Giovanni Odazzi, and, on The High Altar, a Baptism of Santa Prisca, by Domenico Passignano.

The Cardinal Priest of the Titulus S. Priscae is Justin Francis RigaliCardinal Archbishop Emeritus of Philadelphia (U.S.). Previous Cardinal-Priests include: Angelo Roncalli (1953), later Pope Saint John XXIII.

Pope Saint John XXIII was the last Pope to use Full Papal Ceremony, some of which was abolished after Vatican II, while the rest fell into disuse. His Papal Coronation ran for the Traditional five hours (Pope Paul VI, by contrast, opted for a shorter Ceremony, while later Popes declined to be Crowned). However, as with his predecessor, Pope Pius XII, he chose to have the Coronation take place on the Balcony of Saint Peter's Basilica, in view of the crowds assembled in Saint Peter's Square, below.




English: Pope Saint John XXIII's Coat-of-Arms.
Polski: Herb Jana XXIII.
Date: August 2007.Source: Own work.
Author: User:mAgul.
(Wikimedia Commons)


Upon his Election, Roncalli chose "John" as his Regnal Name. This was the first time in 500 years that this name had been chosen; previous Popes had avoided its use since the time of the Anti-Pope, John XXIII, during the Western Schism.

On the choice of his name, Pope Saint John said: "I choose John . . . a name sweet to us because it is the name of our father, dear to me because it is the name of the humble Parish Church where I was Baptised, the Solemn Name of numberless Cathedrals scattered throughout the World, including our own Basilica [Saint John Lateran]. Twenty-two Johns of indisputable legitimacy have [been Pope], and almost all had a brief Pontificate. We have preferred to hide the smallness of our name behind this magnificent succession of Roman Popes."


File:Ripa - s Prisca controfacciata 1150963.JPG


English: The Organ in the Basilica of Saint Prisca,
Rome, Italy.
Italiano: Roma, santa Prisca: controfacciata e organo.
Photo: February 2010.
Source: Own work.
Author: Lalupa.
(Wikimedia Commons)


Upon his choosing the name, there was some confusion as to whether he would be known as John XXIII or John XXIV; in response, John declared that he was John XXIII, thus affirming the Anti-Papal status of Anti-Pope John XXIII.

Before this Anti-Pope, the most recent Popes called John were John XXII (1316–1334) and John XXI (1276–1277). However, there was no Pope John XX, owing to confusion caused by Mediaeval historians misreading The Liber Pontificalis to refer to another Pope John between John XIV and John XV.




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Monday, 21 March 2016

"Once More Around The World. I've Still Got Forty Cents."



"Once more around the World.
I've still got Forty Cents."
Cartes anciennes de Germaine Bouret.
Old Cards by GERMAINE BOURET.
Illustration: PINTEREST

First Tenebrae Since Vatican II At Saint Anthony Of Padua, Jersey City. Deo Gratias.



Illustrations (above and below): NEW LITURGICAL MOVEMENT


By Gregory Dipippo.

The Office of Tenebrae of Holy Thursday will be Anticipated on Wednesday, 23 March 2016, at
7:30 p.m., as part of this year’s schedule of Holy Week Services at the historic Downtown Church of Saint Anthony of Padua, Jersey City, New Jersey, located at Monmouth Street. between 6th and 7th.

The Resident Choir, Cantantes in Cordibus, will lead The Gregorian Chant and other musical settings by Allegri. Its Director, Maestro Simone Ferraresi, studied at The Conservatory of Music in Ferrara, Italy, where he earned his Degree with highest honours. At The Academy of Music and Performing Arts, in Vienna, Austria, he studied with World-renowned pianist and musicologist Paul Badura-Skoda.

Maestro Ferraresi specialised in interpretation of classical composers; at The Royal Academy of Music, in London, England, where he was awarded The Diploma of The Royal Academy of Music – the highest award given by The Royal Academy. He was also awarded three special prizes for best performance in the final recital. He is the Founder and Artistic Director of The Ferrara International Piano Festival.

Saint Anthony of Padua Church is Listed on The State and National Registers of Historic Sites. The Church, built in The Victorian Gothic Style, is a pristine example of a Church untouched by modern elements and remains a true example of Roman Catholic aesthetic rarely seen today. The Church Parking Lot is located on 6th Street, between Coles Street and Monmouth Street, and is easily accessible from the Grove Street PATH, the Newport PATH and Light Rail Stop.

Through the generous support of The Very Rev. Canon Joseph Urban, Pastor of Saint. Anthony’s, this is the first time Tenebrae will be available at Saint Anthony’s. We invite everyone to attend this moving Service during the most important and significant week of The Liturgical Year.

Please visit the PARISH WEB-SITE for more information about the other Traditional Services during Holy Week.


Lenten Station At The Basilica Of Saint Praxedes. Monday In Holy Week.


Roman Text is taken from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal,
unless otherwise stated.

Italic Text from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia,
unless otherwise stated.


Monday in Holy Week.
      Station at Saint Praxedes's.

Indulgence of 10 Years and 10 Quarantines.
      Privileged Feria.

Violet Vestments.



Basilica of Saint Praxedes,
Rome, Italy.
Photo: December 2005.
Source: Own work.
Author: Lalupa.
(Wikimedia Commons)


The Lenten Station was originally held at Saints Nereus and Achilleus, but the tottering state of this Church caused it to be Transferred in the 13th-Century to Saint Praxedes. The precious Pillar of The Flagellation, so called, brought over from The Holy Land by Cardinal Colonna at the time of The Fifth Crusade, was placed by him in this, his Titular Church, where it is still kept. In exchange for the iron ring attached to this Pillar, Saint Louis presented the Church with The Three Thorns of The Holy Crown, that are still preserved there. The Relics of many Martyrs, gathered from the suburban Catacombs, were brought into this Church during the Reign of Pope Paschalis I.

In the Epistle, Isaias, typifying Jesus, prophesies His Obedience and the indignities of His Passion. He, likewise, foretells His Triumph, for He has placed His trust in God, Who will raise Him to Life again. Finally, he shows how the Jews were to be confounded. Then the Gentiles, through Baptism, the Public Penitents, by being reconciled, and The Faithful, by their Easter Confession and Holy Communion, will pass from Darkness to The Light, of which Jesus is The Fount.


File:Interior of Basilica di Santa Prassede, Rome.JPG

Interior of the Basilica di Sante Prassede,
Rome, Italy.
Photo: March 2006.
Source: Own work.
Author: Sixtus.
(Wikimedia Commons)


The Gospel tells of the supper, of which Jesus partook in the house of Simon the Leper, six days before the Pasch. While Martha, all activity, served at table, Mary, more loving, went up to Christ, and, breaking the long narrow neck of an alabaster vase, filled with an ointment of great price, poured the contents over His Feet. And Jesus commends her for having thus Anticipated The Embalming of His Body. The indignant protests of Judas lead us to fear the crime into which he will fall as a result of his avarice.



Pope Paschal I,
wearing a Zuchetto and Pallium,
depicted in the Apsidal mosaic at Santa Prassede.
He is presenting a model of the Basilica
to Christ, and wears a Square Halo,
which means he was alive
at the time of the mosaic.
Photo of mosaic: August 2005.
Source: Own work.
Author: Marcus Cyron.
(Wikimedia Commons)


Finally, the presence at the supper of Lazarus, whom Jesus had raised to life, is a forecast of the coming Victory of Christ over Death.

The choice of this Gospel is not without connection with that of The Stational Church: Saint Praxedes and Saint Pudentiana put their house at the disposal of Pope Saint Pius I, just as Mary and Martha received Jesus into their house.

Mass: Júdica, Dómine.



English: Basilica of Saint Praxedes'
Ciborium and Apse,
Rome, Italy.
Deutsch: Santa Prassede, Rom;
Triumphbogen und Apsis.
Photo: 15 February 2013.
Source: Own work.


(Wikimedia Commons)


File:Girolamo Sicciolante - Paus Julius III.jpg

Pope Julius III
(Papacy 1550 - 1555).
One-time Titular of the
Basilica of Saint Praxedes.
Artist: Girolamo Sicciolante.
(After Sebastiano del Piombo).
Photo of Painting: March 2013.
User: Mathiasrex.
Current Location: Rijksmuseum Amsterdam.
Source/Photographer: www.rijksmuseum.nl
(Wikimedia Commons)


The following Text is from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia.

The Basilica of Saint Praxedes ( Latin: Basilica Sanctae Praxedis, Italian: Basilica di Santa Prassede all’Esquillino), commonly known in Italian as Santa Prassede, is an ancient Titular Church and Minor Basilica in Rome, located near the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major. The current Cardinal Priest of Titulus Sancta Praxedis is Paul Poupard.

The Church, in its current form, was Commissioned by Pope Hadrian I around the year 780 A.D., and built on top of the remains of a 5th-Century A.D. structure. It was designed to house the bones of Saint Praxedes (Italian: S. Prassede) and Saint Pudentiana (Italian: S. Pudenziana), the daughters of Saint Pudens, traditionally Saint Paul's first Christian Convert in Rome. The two female Saints were murdered for providing Christian burial for early Martyrs, in defiance of Roman Law. The Basilica was enlarged and decorated by Pope Paschal I, circa 822 A.D.

Pope Paschal I, who Reigned 817 A.D. - 824 A.D., was at the forefront of The Carolingian Renaissance, started and advocated by The Emperor Charlemagne. They desired to get back to The Foundations of Christianity, theologically and artistically. Pope Paschal thus began two, linked, ambitious programmes: The recovery of Martyrs' bones from The Catacombs of Rome and an almost unprecedented Church building campaign. Paschal dug up numerous skeletons and transplanted them to this Church. The Titulus "S. Praxedis" was established by Pope Evaristus, around 112 A.D.

This Church provided the inspiration for Robert Browning's poem, "The Bishop Orders His Tomb at Saint Praxed's Church."



Saint Charles Borromeo
(one-time Titular of the Basilica of Saint Praxedes).
Artist: Giovanni Ambrogio Figino (1548–1608).
(Uploaded by User:Lupo to en.wikipedia).
This Photo: December 2009.
User: Thomas Gun.
(Wikimedia Commons)


The main Altarpiece is a Canvas of Saint Praxedes Gathering the Blood of The Martyrs (circa 1730 - 1735) by Domenico Muratori.

The most famous element of the Church is the 
Mosaic decorative programme. Paschal hired a team of professional Mosaicists to complete the work in the Apse, the Apsidal Arch, and the Triumphal Arch. In the Apse, Jesus is in the Centre, flanked by Saints Peter and Paul, who present Prassede and Pudenziana to God. On the far Left, is Paschal, with the Square Halo of the Living, presenting a model of the Church as an offering to Jesus. Below, runs an inscription of Paschal's, hoping that this offering will be sufficient to secure his place in Heaven.




Saint Praxedes.
Gathering up The Blood of Martyrs.
Artist: Johannes Vermeer (1632–1675).
Date: 1655.
Current location: Private Collection.
Source/Photographer: Mystudios.com
(Wikimedia Commons)



File:Apsis mosaic S Prassede Rome W6.JPG

English: The Triumphal Arch.
Interior of Basilica of Saint Praxedes,
Rome, Italy.
Deutsche: Santa Prassede, Rom;
Triumphbogen (Panorama).
Photo: May 2009.
Source: Own work.
Author: Welleschik.
(Wikimedia Commons)


On the Apsidal Arch are twelve men on each side, holding Wreaths of Victory, welcoming the Souls into Heaven. Above them, are symbols of The Four Gospel Writers: Mark, the Lion; Matthew, the Man; Luke, the Bull; and John, the Eagle, as they surround a Lamb on a Throne, a symbol of Christ's eventual return to Earth.

Though those Mosaics, as well as those in the Saint Zeno Chapel, a Funerary Chapel that Paschal built for his mother, Theodora, are the best-known aspects of the Church, an intriguing and relatively hidden aspect are ancient frescoes. Ascending a spiral staircase, one enters a small room, covered in scaffolding. However, on the wall is a fresco cycle dating, most likely, from the 8th-Century A.D. The frescoes depict, probably, the life-cycle of the Saint of the Church, Praxedes.





Representation of Saint Louis IX, considered to be true to life. 
Early-14th-Century statue from the Church of Mainneville, Eure, France.
Saint Louis IX, King of France (1226 - 1270), presented the Basilica of Saint Praxedes 
with three alleged Thorns from The Holy Crown.
Photo: December 2007.
(Wikimedia Commons)


Santa Prassede also houses a segment of the alleged Pillar, upon which Jesus was flogged and tortured before His Crucifixion in Jerusalem. The Relic is alleged to have been retrieved in the Early-4th-Century A.D., by Saint Helena (mother of The Roman Emperor, Constantine I), who, at the age of eighty, undertook a Pilgrimage to Golgotha, in The Holy Land, to Found Churches for Christian worship and to collect Relics associated with The Crucifixion of Jesus.


File:Roma Santa Prasede BW 1.JPG

English: Basilica of Saint Praxedes.
Italiano: Roma, Santa Prasede.
Photo: May 2007.
Source: Own work.
Author: Berthold Werner.
(Wikimedia Commons)


Among these legendary Relics, retrieved by Helena, which included pieces of The True Cross (now housed in the Church of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme, also in Rome) and wood from Jesus' Crib, was the segment of the Pillar, now housed in Santa Prassede. The authenticity of these Relics, including the Santa Prassede Pillar, is disputed by historians and Christians, alike, due to lack of forensic evidence and the massive proliferation of fake Relics during The Middle Ages.

Among known Titulars of this See, are Lambertus Scannabecchi (later Pope Honorius II, circa 1099), Ubaldo Allucingoli (later Pope Lucius III, 1141), Alain de Coëtivy (1448), Giovanni Maria Ciocchi del Monte (later Pope Julius III), Saint Charles Borromeo (1538-1584), Rafael Merry del Val (1903 - 1930).


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