The Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome are seven ancient and major churches in Rome, central to a religious pilgrimage to the city. The are listed in the following order in the guide by Franzini (1595) : San Giovanni Laterano, St Peter's, San Paolo fuori le mura, Santa Maria Maggiore, San Lorenzo fuori le mura, San Sebastiano, and Santa Croce in Gerusalemme. Rome has for centuries been a beacon for travelers. As the home of the Pope and the Catholic curia, as well as the locus of a many sites and relics of worship related to apostles, saints and Christian martyrs; Rome had long been a destination for pilgrims. Periodically, some were propelled to travel to Rome from the spiritual benefits, including indulgences accrued through a papally sanctioned Jubilee. These indulgences required a visit to specific churches..
The churches include the four patriarchal basilicas:
- St. Peter's Basilica
- Basilica of St. John Lateran
- Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls
- Santa Maria Maggiore
They also include three minor basilicas:
- San Lorenzo fuori le mura
- Santa Croce in Gerusalemme
- Santuario della Madonna del Divino Amore
The last of these was added by Pope John Paul II for the Great Jubilee of 2000, replacing San Sebastiano fuori le mura. However, many pilgrims still prefer the pre-2000 seven basilicas and so also attend St. Sebastian's in addition to the ones required for the indulgence.
During Holy Years, indulgences are granted to those who visit certain churches. In Rome, there are seven such churches. This tradition is related to the work of St. Philip Neri, who devoted much of his time to helping pilgrims and introduced a list of seven basilicas.
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Read more about Seven Pilgrim Churches Of Rome: Guidebooks To Rome
Famous quotes containing the words pilgrim, churches and/or rome:
“A pilgrim I on earth perplext,
with sinns, with cares and sorrows vext,
By age and paines brought to decay,
and my Clay house mouldring away,
Oh how I long to be at rest
and soare on high among the blest!”
—Anne Bradstreet (c. 1612–1672)
“Universities are, of course, hostile to geniuses, which seeing and using ways of their own, discredit the routine: as churches and monasteries persecute youthful saints.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“I am ashamed to see what a shallow village tale our so-called History is. How many times must we say Rome, and Paris, and Constantinople! What does Rome know of rat and lizard? What are Olympiads and Consulates to these neighboring systems of being? Nay, what food or experience or succor have they for the Esquimaux seal-hunter, or the Kanaka in his canoe, for the fisherman, the stevedore, the porter?”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)