Lenten Station At Saint Laurence's In Panisperna. Thursday, The First Week In Lent.

Roman Text is taken from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal.

Italic Text, Illustrations and Captions, are taken from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia,
unless otherwise stated.

Indulgence of 10 years and 10 Quarantines.

Violet Vestments.

Church of San Lorenzo in Panisperna in rione Monti, Rome.

Photo: March 2010.

Source: Own work.

Author: LPLT

This file is licensed under the 

Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Station at Rome was established by Pope Gregory II, in the old Church of Saint Laurence in Panisperna, erected to the glory of the heroic Deacon, on the very spot where he suffered martyrdom.

The Church reminds the Catechumens that, since the coming of Jesus, it is no longer the race of Israel, alone, that has the promise, but that all can enter the Church by Baptism and partake of the Eucharistic bread of the children of God.

If the heathen will solemnly deny the evil deeds of his fathers and practise the Christian law of Penance and Charity (Epistle), his Prayer will be granted, as was that of the woman who belonged to the accursed race of Canaan, but whose faith was great (Gospel).

Let us seek in the Eucharist the strength required to observe Lent. For it is our Fasting, in conjunction with the sacrifice of Jesus, that will obtain for us salvation (Secret, Communion, Postcommunion).

Saint Laurence's Martyrdom, 
by Pasquale Cati (1589), 

in the Church of San Lorenzo in Panisperna, Rome.

Photo: March 2010.

Source: Own work.

Author: LPLT

This file is licensed under the 

Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

(Wikimedia Commons)

San Lorenzo in Panisperna, or San Lorenzo in Formoso, is a Church on Via Panisperna, Rome, Italy. It was built on the site of Saint Laurence' Martyrdom.

Panisperna most probably refers to the tradition of the Poor Clares (in the adjacent Convent) of distributing bread and ham (pane e perna) on 10 August, Lawrence's Feast Day, in remembrance of his distributing funds from the Church to the poor. "Formoso" refers to Pope Formosus who built the first attested Church here.

Tradition states that the first building was constructed during the reign of Emperor Constantine I, only 100 years after the martyrdom of Saint Lawrence, though the first written evidence is from 1300, when Pope Boniface VIII rebuilt the Church and annexed an Abbey to it. That Abbey was given to the Benedictines in 1451, and then had the Poor Clares settled in it by Cardinal Jacopo Colonna in 1896, who also restored the Church and Monastery.

English: The Chapel of Saint Brigid 
in the Church of Saint Laurence in Panisperna, Rome.

Italian: Chiesa di San Lorenzo in Panisperna, 
Cappella di Santa Brigida.

Photo: 1996.

Source: Own work.

Author: Torvindus

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Franciscans now serve the Church. In the 5th-Century, this Church was one of Rome's Stational Churches and was visited by the Pope on its Titular day,  the Thursday of the First Week in Lent. Recent Popes have revived this ancient custom.

The present Church is a result of a re-building by Carlo Rainaldi in 1575–1576, under Pope Gregory XIII. It was at this time that it became known as 'in Panisperna' rather than 'in Formoso', and that the present Facade was built. 

A new Outer Portico was added in the 17th-Century, then restored and decorated with images of Saint Lawrence and Saint Francis of Assisi in 1893–1894 by Pope Leo XIII, who, in 1843, had been ordained Bishop in this Church. Pope Leo XIII also added a steep flight of steps, in front of the Church, leading to a tree-lined Courtyard. There is a modern bronze statue of Saint Bridget of Sweden, here.

A Mediaeval house is preserved, next to the Church, with an exterior staircase, one of the few such houses to have been preserved in Rome.

Entrance door of the Church of San Lorenzo in Panisperna, Rome.

Photo: March 2010.

Source: Own work.

Author: LPLT

This file is licensed under the 

Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Church has a single Nave with three Chapels on each side.

South side

Includes a painting of Saint Clare of Assisi (1756) by Antonio Nessi, and a Ceiling fresco of Glory of Saint Lawrence by Antonio Bicchierai.
Contains the Tomb of the brothers, Saint Crispin and Saint Crispinian, with a painting by Giovanni Francesco Romano.
Painting of the Immaculate Conception by Giuseppe Ranucci.

North side

Painting of stigmata of Saint Francis by Niccolò Lapiccola.
Chapel of Saint Bridget, where she was buried before her body was moved to Sweden. She had used to beg for alms for the poor outside this Church, and prayed before the Crucifix by the High Altar. Now, a martyr, named Victoria, lies underneath the Altar in the Chapel. 

The painting of Saint Bridget Praying before the Crucifix is by Giuseppe Montesanti and was painted in 1757.
Includes an 18th-Century Crucifix of the Roman School.

Under its Porch is a Chapel containing the oven, said to have been used for Saint Laurence's Martyrdom. A Late-16th-Century fresco of the Martyrdom of Saint Laurence stands behind the High Altar (by Pasquale Cati, a mediocre pupil of Michelangelo). The Crucifix, by the High Altar, is from the 14th-Century.

Lenten Station At Saint Mary Major, Rome. Wednesday Of Ember Week In Lent.

Roman Text is taken from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal.

Italic Text, Illustrations and Captions, are taken from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia,
unless otherwise stated.

Indulgence of 10 years and 10 Quarantines.

Violet Vestments.

Français: Vue arriere de la Basilique Sainte-Marie Majeure de Rome (Santa Maria Maggiore).

English: Basilica of Saint Mary Major, Rome.

Photo: November 2008.

Source: Own work.

Author: LPLT

Permission: You are free to use this picture for any purpose under the conditions specified in the license below as long as you credit its author, LPLT.

This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Spring Ember Week coincides with the First Week of Lent. It was instituted for the purpose of consecrating to God the new Season, and by Fasting and Prayer, to draw down heavenly graces on those who, on Saturday, are to receive the Sacrament of Holy Orders.

The Station on the Wednesday in Ember Week was always held at Saint Mary Major, the greatest and most illustrious of the Roman Churches consecrated to the Blessed Virgin.

English: Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, Vatican.

Français: Basilique Sainte-Marie-Majeure, Vatican, située à Rome, Latium, Italie.

Photo: September 2010.

Source: Own work.

Author: Tango7174

(Wikimedia Commons)

Is it not fitting that on this very day, when the scrutinies for Ordination used to be made, the Liturgical gathering should be made in the Basilica consecrated to her, whom Proclus of Constantinople hails as “the temple in which God became Priest” ? The Gospel also alludes to Our Lady.

English: The Borghese Chapel, Saint Mary Major, Rome.

Português: Capela Borghese, Santa Maria Maggiore, Roma.

Photo: 2005.

Source: Taken by Ricardo André Frantz

Author: Ricardo André Frantz (User:Tetraktys)

(Wikimedia Commons)

The two Lessons, the second of which is read as the Epistle, tell of Moses and Elias, who, before seeing the glory of the Lord, fasted forty days and forty nights. Called to take the place of the rebellious Jews, let us make ourselves worthy of the fruits of Penance, as did the men of Ninive, who listened to the voice of Jonas, and the Queen of Saba, who came from her distant country to learn the wisdom of Solomon (Gospel). We shall participate, then, in the resurrection of the Saviour, symbolised by the Prophet who, after remaining three days in the whale’s belly, was vomited out alive.

Let us pray to God that we may be strengthened in mind by the fruit of good works, while we mortify our bodies by abstinence (Collect).

The Holy Season Of Lent. Are You Ready ?

From TRANSALPINE REDEMPTORISTS

Confidence In Saint Joseph. Example For The Divine Jesus.

From HOLY CARD HEAVEN

Confidence in Saint Joseph.

Example for the Divine Jesus.

Confiance en Saint Joseph

à L'exemple du Divin Jesus.

Lenten Station At The Basilica Of Saint Anastasia. Tuesday, The First Week In Lent.

Roman Text is taken from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal.

Italic Text, Illustrations and Captions, are taken from Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia,
unless otherwise stated.

Indulgence of 10 years and 10 Quarantines.

Violet Vestments.

English: Basilica di Sant'Anastasia al Palatino, Rome, Italy.

Česky: Bazilika sv. Anastázie na Palatinu, Řím, Itálie.

Photo: April 2011.

Source: Own work.

Author: Karelj

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Station is at the old Church which, in the 4th-Century, was the only Parish in the centre of Rome and in its wealthy quarter. Built at the foot of the Palatine Hill, this Church, which owes its name to the Chapel of the Resurrection (Anastasis) at Jerusalem, was also consecrated to Saint Anastasia.

Saint Anastasia was put to death under the Emperor Diocletian at Sirmium in Illyria (now Mitrowitz). Tradition seems to say that this "title", mentioned in a Synod in 499 A.D., recalls the house of this holy Martyr in Rome (?). It is more than likely, however, that it concerns but a simple identity of name between the Roman foundress of this Basilica and the titular Saint.

Lent is the time when "God is near to us and eager to forgive us, if we put aside our evil thoughts and forsake the way of sin" (Epistle). To do so, we must cast sin out from our hearts, as Jesus cast out the sellers from the Temple (Gospel), and receive the teaching of Christ with the simplicity of children of God. Then, He will be able to cure our Souls, as He healed the lame and the blind who came nigh unto Him.

Casting out the vainglorious wisdom of the world, let us profit by the holy Season of Lent, so that, "chastening our bodies by mortification, our Souls may be filled with holy desires" (Collect).

Interior of the Basilica of Saint Anastasia, Rome.

Photo: June 2007.

Source: Own work.

Author: Lalupa

(Wikimedia Commons)

Santa Anastasia is a Basilica Church in Rome.

Santa Anastasia was built in the late 3rd-Century - early 4th-Century, possibly by a Roman woman named Anastasia. The Church is listed under the titulus Anastasiae in the Acts of the 499 A.D. Synod. Later, the Church was entitled to the martyr with the same name, Anastasia of Sirmium.

The Church was restored several times: Pope Damasus I (366 A.D. - 383 A.D.); Pope Hilarius (461 A.D. - 468 A.D.); Pope John VII (705 A.D. - 707 A.D.); Pope Leo III (795 A.D. - 816 A.D.); Pope Gregory IV (827 A.D. - 844 A.D.). The current Church dates back to the 17th-Century restoration commissioned by Pope Urban VII.

Traditionally, the Church is connected to the cult of Saint Jerome, who possibly celebrated Mass here. The Saint is depicted over the Altar, by Domenichino.

Ceiling of the Basilica Sant'Anastasia, Rome.

Photo: July 2009.

Source: Own work.

Author: User:Mattes

(Wikimedia Commons)

The current Cardinal Priest of the Titulus S. Anastasiae is Godfried Danneels. Past holders have included John Morton, an Archbishop of Canterbury.

Art and Architecture

The last restoration, after the restoration during the papacy of Pope Sixtus IV, occurred in 1636, when the facade, with, lower, Doric, and, upper, Ionic, order, was reconstructed in 1636, after the cyclone of 1634. The Nave recycles antique Columns. The Ceiling is frescoed with a martyrdom of the Saints (1722) by Michelangelo Cerruti.

English: Statue in Basilica di Sant'Anastasia al Palatino, Rome, Italy.

Česky: Socha v Bazilice sv. Anastázie na Palatinu, Řím, Itálie.

Photo: April 2011.

Source: Own work.

Author: Karelj

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Chapel, to the right, has a painting of Saint John the Baptist by Pier Francesco Mola. While the last Chapel on the right has a fresco of Scenes of the Life of Saints Carlo Borromeo and Filippo Neri by Lazzaro Baldi. 

The right Transept has a painting of S. Toribio (1726) by Francesco Trevisani. The High Altar has a Nativity by Lazzaro Baldi and, below the Altar, is a statue of Saint Anastasia by Ercole Ferrata. It clearly shows the influence of Bernini's Beata Ludovica Albertoni. The left Transept has a Madonna of the Rosary by Baldi. The last Chapel, to the left, by Domenichino, depicts Saint Jerome. The other Chapel has Ss.Giorgio e Publio by Etienne Parrocel.

The Roman Martyrology. 10 March.

Text is taken from The Roman Martyrology: 

The Fourth Edition after The Typical Edition (1956),

approved by Pope Benedict XV (1922).

Edited by Canon J. B. O'Connell.

Published by The Newman Press, Westminster, 

Maryland, United States of America.

The Christian Martyrs' Last Prayer.

Artist: Jean-Léon Gérôme (1824–1904).

Date: Between 1863 and 1883.

Current location: Walters Art Museum,

Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America.

Credit line: Acquired by William T. Walters, 1883.

Source/Photographer: Walters Art Museum.

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Forty Holy Martyrs, whose birthday is commemorated on the previous day.

At Apamea, in Phrygia, the birthday of the Holy Martyrs, Caius and Alexander, who (as Apollinaris, Bishop of Hierapolis, narrates in his book against the Cataphrygian heretics) were crowned with a glorious Martyrdom in the persecution of Marcus Antoninus and Lucius Verus.

In Persia, the passion of Forty-Two Holy Martyrs.

At Corinth, the Holy Martyrs Codratus, Denis, Cyprian, Anectus, Paul, and Crescens, who were slain by the sword, under Jason the Governor, in the persecution of Decius and Valerian.

In Africa, Saint Victor, Martyr, on whose Feast Saint Augustine delivered a discourse about him to the people.

At Rome, Saint Simplicius, Pope and Confessor.

At Jerusalem, Saint Macarius, Bishop and Confessor, at whose instance the holy places were purged by Constantine and Saint Helena, his mother, and adorned with Sacred Basilicas.

At Paris, the death of Blessed Droctoveus, Abbot, a disciple of Blessed Germanus, Bishop.

In the Monastery of Bobbio, Saint Attala, Abbot, renowned for Miracles.

Lenten Station At Saint Peter Ad Vincula (Saint Peter's Chains). Monday, First Week In Lent.

Roman Text is taken from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal.

Italic Text, Illustrations and Captions, are taken from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia,
unless otherwise stated.

Indulgence of 10 years and 10 Quarantines.
Violet Vestments.

English: Church of Saint Peter's Chains, Rome.

Italiano: San Pietro in Vincoli.

Latin: San Pietro ad Vincula.

Photo: December 2005.

Source: Own work.

Author: Lalupa

(Wikimedia Commons)

San Pietro in Vincoli (Italian) (Saint Peter in Chains) is a Roman Catholic titular Church and Minor Basilica in Rome. It is also known as the home of Michelangelo's statue of Moses, part of the tomb of Pope Julius II. Two Popes were elected in this Church: Pope John II (533 A.D.) and Pope Gregory VII (1073).

English: The Chains of Saint Peter in the "Basilica di San Pietro in Vincoli" in Rome.

Italiano: Le catene di San Pietro, conservate nella Basilica di San Pietro in Vincoli a Roma.

Photo: August 2008.

Source: Own work.

Author: Original photo by Raja Patnaik, 
post-processed and uploaded by Alessio Damato

(with permission of the author).

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Station is in one of the most ancient Roman Basilicas, built by the Empress Eudocia, where the chains worn by the Prince of the Apostles, to whom Jesus confided His flock, are kept. In the 5th-Century, it was one of the twenty-five Parishes of Rome. 

English: San Pietro in Vincoli's Apse.

Italiano: Abside di San Pietro in Vincoli a Roma.

Photo: March 2010.

Source: Own work.

Author: Goldmund100

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Epistle (of the day), alluding to the penitents about to be reconciled at Easter and to the Catechumens preparing for Baptism, says that the Lord is the Shepherd who comes to seek His lost sheep. And the Gospel tells of the separation that this Shepherd will make for ever between the sheep and the goats, or between the good, who repent and give themselves up to works of Charity, and the sinners (this Prophecy was spoken by Jesus to His Apostles on the Mount of Olives, on the evening of the Tuesday preceding His death). 

Let us ask God to prepare us by “this Lenten Fast” (Collect) “to be loosened from the bonds of our sins” (the Prayer over the people) by virtue of the power of Peter, who was delivered from his chains.

English: Basilica of Saint Peter's Chains,

Rome, Italy.

Italiano: San Pietro in Vincoli,

Roma, Italy.

Photo: 3 April 2013.

Source: Own work.

Author: sailko.

(Wikimedia Commons)

San Pietro in Vincoli (Saint Peter in Chains) is a Roman Catholic Titular Church and Minor Basilica in Rome, Italy, best known for being the home of Michelangelo's statue of Moses, part of the tomb of Pope Julius II.

Also known as the Basilica Eudoxiana, it was first rebuilt on older foundations in 432 A.D. – 440 A.D., to house the Relic of the Chains that bound Saint Peter, when he was imprisoned in Jerusalem, the episode called the Liberation of Saint Peter.

The Empress Eudoxia (wife of Emperor Valentinian III), who received them as a gift from her mother, Aelia Eudocia, consort of Valentinian II, presented the Chains to Pope Leo I. Aelia Eudocia had received these Chains as a gift from Iuvenalis, Bishop of Jerusalem.

According to legend, when Pope Leo, while comparing them to the Chains of Saint Peter's final imprisonment in the Mamertine Prison in Rome, the two Chains miraculously fused together. The Chains are kept in a Reliquary under the High Altar in the Basilica.

English: The interior of San Pietro in Vincoli, Rome.

Deutsch: San Pietro in Vincoli, Gesamtansicht des Innenraums.

Photo: 20 May 2012.

Source: This file was derived from:

SPIV_small.jpg 

Author: SPIV_small.jpg: Philippos. Derivative work: Rabanus Flavus.

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Basilica, consecrated in 439 A.D., by Pope Sixtus III, has undergone several restorations, among them a restoration by Pope Adrian I, and further work in the 11th-Century. From 1471 to 1503, in which year he was elected Pope Julius II, Cardinal Della Rovere, the nephew of Pope Sixtus IV, effected notable rebuilding. 

The front Portico, attributed to Baccio Pontelli, was added in 1475. The Cloister (1493–1503) has been attributed to Giuliano da Sangallo. Further work was done at the beginning of the 18th-Century, under Francesco Fontana, and there was also a renovation in 1875.

English: The internal Courtyard of Saint Peter ad Vincula

(Saint Peter's Chains),

Rome, Italy.

Italiano: vista di parte del cortile interno.

Photo: 21 June 2008.

Source: Own work.

Author: Costanza spaggiari.

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Titulus S. Petri ad vincula was assigned on 20 November 2010, to Donald Wuerl. The previous Cardinal Priest of the Basilica was Pío Laghi, who died on 11 January 2009.

Two Popes were elected in this Church: Pope John II in 533 A.D., and Pope Gregory VII in 1073.

Next to the Church is hosted the Faculty of Engineering of La Sapienza University. This is named "San Pietro in Vincoli" per antonomasia. The Church is located on the Oppian Hill, near Cavour metro station, a short distance from the Colosseum.

Basilica of San Pietro in Vincoli.

18th-Century lacunar ceiling, frescoed in the centre

by Giovanni Battista Parodi,

portraying the Miracle of the Chains (1706).

Photo: 26 December 2009.

Source: San_Pietro_in_Vincoli_-_ceiling,_Rome.jpg

Author: San_Pietro_in_Vincoli_-_ceiling,_Rome.jpg: Maros M r a z (Maros).

Derivative work: Alberto Fernandez Fernandez.

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Interior has a Nave and two Aisles, with three Apses divided by antique Doric Columns. The Aisles are surmounted by Cross-Vaults, while the Nave has an 18th-Century Coffered Ceiling, frescoed in the centre by Giovanni Battista Parodi, portraying the Miracle of the Chains (1706).

Michelangelo's Moses (completed in 1515), while originally intended as part of a massive 47-statue, free-standing funeral monument for Pope Julius II, became the centerpiece of the Pope's funeral monument and tomb in this, the Church of the della Rovere family. Moses is depicted with horns, connotating "the radiance of the Lord", due to the similarity in the Hebrew words for "beams of light" and "horns". This kind of iconographic symbolism was common in early sacred art, and, for an artist, horns are easier to sculpt than rays of light.

Other works of art include two canvasses of Saint Augustine and Saint Margaret by Guercino, the monument of Cardinal Girolamo Agucchi, designed by Domenichino, who is also the painter of a Sacristy fresco depicting the Liberation of Saint Peter (1604). The Altarpiece on the first Chapel to the left is a Deposition by Cristoforo Roncalli. The tomb of Cardinal Nicholas of Kues (died 1464), with its Relief, Cardinal Nicholas before Saint Peter, is by Andrea Bregno. Painter and sculptor Antonio Pollaiuolo is buried at the left side of the entrance. He is the Florentine sculptor who added the figures of Romulus and Remus to the sculpture of the Capitoline Wolf on the Capitol. The tomb of Cardinal Cinzio Passeri Aldobrandini, decorated with imagery of the Grim Reaper, is also in the Church.

Artist: Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475–1564).

Title: Moses.

Date: 1513-1515.

Current location: San Pietro in Vincoli, Rome.

Source/Photographer: Prasenberg (transferred from en.wikipedia to

Commons by User:Leoboudv using CommonsHelper).

(Wikimedia Commons)

In 1876, archaeologists discovered the tombs of those once believed to be the Seven Maccabean Martyrs, depicted in 2 Maccabees 7–41. It is highly unlikely that these are, in fact, the Jewish Martyrs that had offered their lives in Jerusalem. They are remembered each year on 1 August, the same day as the Miracle of the fusing of the Two Chains.

The third Altar, in the left Aisle, holds a mosaic of Saint Sebastian from the 7th-Century. This mosaic is related to an outbreak of plague in Pavia, in Northern Italy. It would only stop if an Altar was built for Saint Sebastian in the Church of S. Pietro in Vincoli in that city. Somehow, this story also became accepted in Rome. Hence the Altar.

Lenten Station For The First Sunday In Lent. The Papal Arch-Basilica Of Saint John Lateran.

Roman Text is taken from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal.

Italic Text, Illustrations and Captions, are taken from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia,
unless otherwise stated.

Indulgence of 10 years and 10 Quarantines.

Semi-Double.
Privilege of the First Class.
Violet Vestments.

Papal Arch-Basilica of Saint John Lateran.

Archibasilica Sanctissimi Salvatoris et Sanctorum Iohannes Baptistae et Evangelistae in Laterano. Omnium urbis et orbis ecclesiarum mater et caput.

English: Main façade of the Arch-Basilica of Saint John Lateran (Rome) by Alessandro Galilei, 1735.

Italiano: Facciata principale della Basilica di San Giovanni in Laterano (Roma), 

progettata da Alessandro Galilei (1735).

Français: Façade principale de la basilique Saint-Jean-de-Latran (Rome) 

par Alessandro Galilei, 1735.

Photo: 2006/09/07.

Source: Own work.

Author: Jastrow

(Wikimedia Commons)

Originally, the forty days of Lent were counted from this Sunday. The Liturgical gathering of the "Station" takes place today, as it has since the 4th-Century, at Saint John Lateran, which is the Patriarchal Basilica of the Bishops of Rome. At its first consecration, it was dedicated to "Saint Saviour", a name which calls to mind the Redemption accomplished by Our Blessed Lord.

Immediately after His baptism, Our Lord began to prepare for His public life by a fast of forty days in the mountainous desert which stretches between Jericho and the mountains of Judea. [Tradition tells us that Our Lord took shelter in the grotto on the highest peak of all, known as Mount of the Quarantine.] It was there that He was tempted by Satan, who wished to discover whether the son of Mary was in reality the Son of God (Gospel of the Mass of the day).

As in the case of Adam, Satan addresses his first attack to the senses.Our Lord is hungry and the tempter suggests to Him that He should turn stones into bread. In the same way, he tries, during these forty days, to make us give up on our fasting and mortification. This is the concupiscence of the flesh.

English: Basilica of Saint John Lateran, Vatican. 

With its length of 400 feet, this Basilica ranks 15th among the largest Churches in the world.

Français: Basilique Saint-Jean-de-Latran, Vatican, située à Rome, Latium, Italie. Avec sa longueur de 121,84 mètres, cette Basilique se classe au 15è rang parmi les plus grandes églises au monde.

Photo: September 2010.

Source: Own work.

Author: Tango7174

(Wikimedia Commons)

The devil had promised our first parent that he should be as God. Now, he takes Our Lord to the pinnacle of the Temple and tries to induce Him to let Himself be carried by the angels through the air, amidst the applause of the crowds below. Satan tempts us by pride, which is opposed to the spirit of prayer and meditation on God's word. This is the pride of life.

Finally, just as he had promised Adam a knowledge which, like that of God Himself, should enable him to know all things, so Satan assures Jesus that he will make Him ruler over all created things if He will fall at his feet and worship him. In the same way, the devil seeks to attach us to temporal goods, when we ought, by alms and works of Charity, to be doing good to our neighbour. This is the concupiscence of the eyes, or avarice.

Since the sword of the Spirit is the word of God, Our Lord made use of the 90th Psalm against Satan, and this is the theme of the whole Mass and is found again and again in the Office of The Day. "His truth shall cover thee with a shield," says the Psalmist. This Psalm is, therefore, the ideal Psalm for Lent as a special time of warfare against the devil.

English: Basilica of Saint John Lateran, Vatican. 
The Choir and Apse. 
The mosaics in the dome are a 19th-Century rebuilding of Jacopo Torriti's works, 

dating back to the 13th-Century.

Français: Basilique Saint-Jean-de-Latran, Vatican, située à Rome, Latium, Italie. Chœur et abside. La mosaïque du dôme est une réfection du XIXè siècle de l'œuvre de Jacopo Torriti 

remontant au XIIIè siècle.

Photo: September 2010.

Source: Own work.

Author: Tango7174

(Wikimedia Commons)

Again, the eleventh verse, "He hath given His angels charge over Thee, to keep Thee in all Thy ways," recurs in Vespers like a refrain during the whole season. We find the entire Psalm in the Tract, which reminds us of the old custom of singing Psalms during certain parts of the Mass.

Some of its verses make up the Introit, with its verse, the Gradual, the Communion and the Offertory, which last was formerly composed, in today's Mass, of three verses instead of one, following the order of the threefold temptation as recorded in the Gospel.

Side-by-side with this Psalm, the Epistle, certainly dating from the time of Saint Leo, sounds one of the characteristic notes of Lent. There, Saint Paul borrows a text of Isaias: "In an accepted time, have I heard thee, and in the day of salvation have I helped thee." "Behold," says the Apostle, "now is the acceptable time. Behold, now is the day of salvation" (Epistle and First Nocturn).

The decorated ceiling of the Basilica of Saint John Lateran, Rome.

Photo: March 2010.

Source: Own work.

Author: Grenouille vert

(Wikimedia Commons)

On this, Saint Leo comments: "Although there is no season of the year which is not rich in divine gifts and in which we, by God's grace, do not find immediate access to His mercy; nevertheless, at this time when the return of the day on which we are redeemed summons us to fulfill all the duties of Christian piety, the Souls of Christians must be stirred with more zeal for spiritual progress, and possessed of a very great confidence in almighty God.

In this manner, with pure Souls and bodies, shall we celebrate this mystery of the Lord's Passion, sublime beyond all others. True, we ought always to be in the Divine Presence, just as much as on the Easter Feast. But, because this spiritual vigour is the possession of only a few, while, on the other hand, the weakness of the flesh leads to any very severe observance being relaxed, and on the other, the varied occupations of this life share and divide our interest, it necessarily happens that the dust of the world soils the hearts, even of Religious themselves.

Cloisters at Saint John Lateran.

Photo: August 2006.

Source: Own work.

Author: Kodiak

(Wikimedia Commons)

This divine institution has been planned with great profit to our salvation, in a manner that the exercises of these forty days may help us to regain the purity of our Souls, making up, in a way, for the faults of the rest of the year, by fasting and pious deeds.

However, we must be careful to give no-one the least cause of complaint or scandal, so that our general behaviour may not be inconsistent with our Fasting and Penance. For it is useless to reduce the nourishment of the body unless the Soul departs from sin" (Second Nocturn).

In this "acceptable time" and in these "days of salvation", let us purify ourselves with the Church (Collect), "in Fastings

Every Parish Priest celebrates Mass for the people of his Parish.

Basilica Of Saint Nicholas, Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Basilica of Saint Nicholas,

Amsterdam, Netherlands.

By: joe daniel price.

Collection: Flickr.

Courtesy: Getty Images.

Basilica of Saint Nicholas,

Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Photo: 5 December 2011.

Source: Own work.

Author: Christoph Braun.

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Basilica of Saint Nicholas (or Sint-Nicolaasbasiliek, in Dutch) is located in the Old Centre district of Amsterdam, Netherlands. It is the city's major Catholic Church.

Officially, the Church was called Saint Nicholas-inside-the-Walls, i.e. the oldest part of the Amsterdam defence works. The architect, Adrianus Bleijs (1842-1912), designed the Church, basing himself on a combination of several revival styles, of which Neo-Baroque and Neo-Renaissance are the most prominent models.

English: Basilica of Saint Nicholas,

Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Nederlands: Amsterdam - Voorburgwal en Nicolaaskerk.

Date: Between 1890 and 1905.

Source: Original image: Photochrom print (color photo lithograph).

Reproduction number: LC-DIG-ppmsc-05775 from Library of Congress,

Reproduction by Photoglob AG, Zürich, Switzerland

or Detroit Publishing Company, Detroit, Michigan.

Author: Unknown.

Permission: "Photographs in this collection were published before 1923 

and are therefore in the public domain.".

(Wikimedia Commons)

The facade is crowned by two Towers, with a Rose Window in between. The centre of this window is formed by a bas relief depicting Christ and the four Evangelists, made in the Van den Bossche and Crevels workshop in 1886. A sculpture of the Patron Saint of both the Church and the city of Amsterdam was placed in a niche in the upper section of the gable top.

English: Flag of Amsterdam.

The official city motto is Valor, Resolution, and Mercy. 

The three X's, saltires (St. Andrew's crosses), are taken to represent these

even though the X's are older than the motto.

A popular tradition also links the X's to the

three threats to the city: Water, Fire and Pestilence.

Deutsch: Flagge von Amsterdam.

Polski: Flaga Amsterdamu.

Plattdüütsch: Flagg vun Amsterdam.

Nederlands: Vlag van Amsterdam.

Date: 24 January 2006.

Author: This work has been released into the public domain 

by its author, reisio. This applies worldwide.

(Wikimedia Commons)

The well-known sculptor, Bart van Hove (1850-1914), made the sculpture in 1886. The Crossing is articulated by a large Octagonal Tower, with a Baroque Dome and Lantern and crowned by a Cross. The basis of the ground-plan is the scheme of the classic Three-Aisled Cross-Basilica, i.e. a Nave, two Aisles and a single Transept. The Choir is located, as is usual, at the end of the Nave. In the corners, formed by the Transept and the Nave, two Chapels are located, traditionally devoted to Mary and Joseph.

English: Basilica of Saint Nicholas,

Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Nederlands: 'Kathedraal aan het IJ'.

The Sint Nicolaaskerk (Church of Saint Nicholas)

is located right across the Amsterdam Central Station.

It was built between 1884 and 1887.

Photo: 14 November 2009.

Source: St. Nicolaaskerk, Amsterdam.

Author: Jos van Zetten

from Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Basilica has a collection of religious murals. Above the High Altar, is the Crown of Maximilian I, which is a symbol seen throughout Amsterdam.

Photochrom print by Photoglob Zürich, between 1890 and 1900.

From the Photochrom Prints Collection at the Library of Congress.

More photochroms from the Netherlands.

More photochrom prints [PD]

This picture is in the public domain.

Source: Sint Nicolaaskerk, Amsterdam, 

North Holland, the Netherlands, circa 1895.

Author: …trialsanderrors.

(Wikimedia Commons)

Inside the newly renovated Church, a 19th-Century Sauer Organ can be found, on which concerts are given and Mass is accompanied.

English: The Organ in the Basilica of Saint Nicholas, 

Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Deutsch: Orgel in Amsterdam, St. Nicolaas.

Photo: 24 June 2013.

Source: Own work.

Author: Hans-Jörg Gemeinholzer.

(Wikimedia Commons)

English: Interior of the Basilica of Saint Nicholas, 

Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Nederlands: De Sint Nicolaaskerk is de derde Amsterdamse kerk op rij die werd gewijd aan de patroonheilige van de stad. Sint Nicolaas was schutsheilige van de zeevaarders en werd daarom ook vaak als patroonheilige van havensteden gekozen. Het ontwerp van de kerk is van architect A.C. Bleys; de plechtige wijding volgde op 7 februari 1887. Als rooms-katholieke hoofdkerk van Amsterdam moest het gebouw een bijzondere allure uitstralen. Bleys gaf de kerk een neobarok uiterlijk met twee torens en hoge koepel als blikvangers. De Nicolaaskerk is gebouwd als driebeukige kruisbasiliek met Korinthische zuilen. Ook het interieur doet barok aan en is voor Nederlandse maatstaven ongewoon rijk. Het hoogaltaar is uitgevoerd in verschil- lende kostbare marmersoorten en voorzien van beeld- houwwerk en bronzen reliëfs. De schilderingen in het interieur zijn het werk van J. Dunselman, die er met onderbrekingen dertig jaar aan heeft gewerkt. 

In 1997-2000 werd de kerk gerestaureerd.

Photo: 11 September 2010.

Source: Sint Nicolaaskerk 06.

Author: Minke Wagenaa. from Amsterdam, NL.

(Wikimedia Commons)

High Altar,

Basilica of Saint Nicholas,

Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Photo: 11 September 2010.

Source: Sint Nicolaaskerk 06.

Author: Minke Wagenaa. 

from Amsterdam, NL.

(Wikimedia Commons)

In the 125th year of its existence, Saint Nicholas Church was elevated to Minor Basilica status. That happened on 8 December 2012 during a celebration of Solemn Vespers, attended by ecclesiastical and secular authorities. Mgr. A. Dupuy, Apostolic Nuncio to the Netherlands, read the document which announced the decision.

English: Basilica of Saint Nicholas,

Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Nederlands: Sint-Nicolaaskerk Amsterdam.

Photo: 29 August 2012.

Source: Own work.

Author: Gouwenaar.

(Wikimedia Commons)

Lenten Station At The Church Of Saint Tryphon's (Now At Saint Augustine's), For Saturday After Ash Wednesday.

Roman Text is taken from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal.

Italic Text, Illustrations and Captions, are taken from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia,
unless otherwise stated.

Indulgence of 10 years and 10 Quarantines.
Violet Vestments.

The Church of Saint Augustine, Rome.

San'Agostino, Rome.

Photo: October 2005.

Source: Own Work.

Author: Lalupa.

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Station at Rome was, previously, at the Church of Saint Tryphon, who died a Martyr in the East. This Church having been destroyed, the Station was removed, under Pope Clement VIII, to a neighbouring Church, that of Saint Augustine.

High Altar, 
Sant'Agostino, Rome.

Photo: July 2007.

Source: Own work.

Author: SteO153

Permission: CC-BY-SA-2.5

(Wikimedia Commons)

Saturday is the day of rest, which symbolises the eternal Sabbath (Epistle of the Mass of the day). To reach it, we must, during Lent, struggle by "Solemn Fast" (Collect of the Mass) and by works of Charity (Epistle) against our passions, of which the rough sea and the contrary winds, spoken of in the Gospel, are a figure.

In this hard struggle, Jesus will come to our aid (Postcommunion), as He did to the Apostles and "heal our bodies and our Souls by Fasting." (Collect), as He healed all the sick in the country of Genesareth.

Altar and Tomb of Saint Monica of Hippo, 

at Sant'Agostino in Campo Marzio Church, Rome.

Photo: March 2011.

Source: Own work.

Author: Bocachete

(Wikimedia Commons)

Sant'Agostino is a Church in Rome, Italy, not far from Piazza Navona. It is one of the first Roman Churches built during the Renaissance. The construction was funded by Guillaume d'Estouteville, Archbishop of Rouen and Papal Chancellor. The façade was built in 1483 by Giacomo di Pietrasanta, using travertine taken from the Colosseum. It is a fine, plain work of the early-Renaissance style.

The most famous work of art, presently in the Church, is the Madonna di Loreto, an important Baroque painting by Caravaggio. The Church also contains a Guercino canvas of Saints Augustine, John the Evangelist and Jerome; a fresco of the Prophet Isaiah by Raphael; and the statues of the Virgin and Child, by Andrea Sansovino and of the Madonna del Parto (Our Lady of Childbirth) by his pupil, Jacopo Sansovino. The latter sculpture is reputed by tradition to work miracles and was, according to a legend, based on an ancient statue of Agrippina holding Nero in her arms.

In 1616, the 17th-Century Baroque artist, Giovanni Lanfranco, decorated the Buongiovanni Chapel (in the Left Transept) with three canvasses and a ceiling fresco of the Assumption. The Church also houses Melchiorre Caffà's sculpture "St. Thomas of Villanova Distributing Alms", completed by his mentor, Ercole Ferrata. Pietro Bracci designed and sculpted the polychromatic tomb of Cardinal Giuseppe Renato Imperiali (1741).

English: Madonna di Loreto, 
by Caravaggio.

Deutsch: Altargemälde der Cavaletti-Kapelle in Sant' Agostino in Rom, 

Szene: Madonna der Pilger.

Artist: Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio.

Date: 1603 - 1605.

Current location: Church of San'Agostino, Rome.

Source/Photographer: The Yorck Project: 10.000 Meisterwerke der Malerei. 
DVD-ROM, 2002. ISBN 3936122202. 

Distributed by DIRECTMEDIA Publishing GmbH.

Permission: [1]

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Church contains the tomb of Saint Monica, mother of Saint Augustine, and that of Fiammetta, lover of Cesare Borgia and a famous courtesan.

Sant'Agostino was once noted for the presence of a number of courtesans and prostitutes in its congregation.

The Titulus S. Augustini is held by Cardinal Jean-Pierre Ricard since 2006. Furthermore, it is the Station Church of the first Saturday in Lent.

Missa Pro Defunctis. Requiem Aeternam Dona Eis, Domine, Et Lux Perpetua Luceat Eis. Hauntingly Beautiful. Spanish Composer: Cristóbal De Morales (1500-1553).

Text and Illustrations from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia,

unless otherwise stated.

Cristóbal de Morales (1500 – 1553) was a Spanish composer of the Renaissance. He is generally considered to be the most influential Spanish composer before Victoria.

He was born in Seville, Spain, and, after an exceptional early education there, which included a rigorous training in the classics as well as musical study with some of the foremost composers, he held posts at Ávila and Plasencia.

Cristóbal de Morales by Angelo Rossi (dates unknown). 

The original print is from Andrea Adami's Osservazioni per ben regolare il coro dei cantori della Cappella pontificia. Catalogo de' nomi, cognomi, e patria de i cantori pontifici (Rome, 1711).

Date: 18th-Century.

Source: Dějiny hudby II. Renesance, p. 231.

Author: Angelo Rossi.

(Wikimedia Commons)

Cristóbal de Morales.

Officium Defunctorum

& Missa Pro Defunctis.

Available on YouTube at

http://youtu.be/v2PZFB-27hM.

Requiem Aeternam Dona Eis, Domine,

Et Lux Perpetua Luceat Eis.

Latin.

Requiem æternam dona eis, Domine, 

et lux perpetua luceat eis.

Te decet hymnus Deus, in Sion, 

et tibi reddetur votum in Ierusalem.

Exaudi orationem meam; 

ad te omnis caro veniet.

Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine, 

et lux perpetua luceat eis.

Español

Concédeles Señor el descanso eterno, 

y que brillé para ellos la luz perpetua.

En Sion cantan dignamente tus alabanzas.

En Jerusalén te ofrecen sacrificios.

Escucha mis plegarias,

Tú, hacia quien van todos los mortales.

Concédeles Señor el descanso eterno, 

y que brillé para ellos la luz perpetua.

Français

Donne-leur le repos éternel, Seigneur, 

et que la lumière éternelle les illumine. 

Dieu, il convient de chanter tes louanges en Sion; 

et de t'offrir des sacrifices à Jérusalem. 

Exauce ma prière, toute chair ira à toi. 

Donne-leur le repos éternel, Seigneur, 

et que la lumière éternelle les illumine.

English

Eternal rest give to them, O Lord

and let perpetual light shine upon them.

A hymn becomes you, O God, in Zion,

and to you shall a vow be repaid in Jerusalem.

Hear my prayer;

to you shall all flesh come.

Eternal rest give to them, O Lord,

and let perpetual light shine upon them.