The Gems of Rome

Throughout our time here in Rome, we have tried to see as many of churches we can and we have visited quite a few. However ever since I bought the Rome pilgrimage book and also started a "must see before leaving" list, we have realized how many more churches we want to see. So Giorgio and I, sometime along with George, Mercedes or Judy, started to visit these churches and other "must see" sights a little before Thanksgiving. One of the things we will miss most about Rome are it's churches!

A church we walk by all the time is San Carlos e Catinari. Finally I walked by one day when they were open so I visited. I really like this church because it has many devotions here to members of the Holy Family.

I have visited Il Gesu many times but this time I went with the pilgrimage book. It was great knowing more about what I was seeing. This is one of my favorite churches in Rome due to the stunning paintings and frescoes in the it.

"Circumcision"

The Trinity over St. Ignatius's chapel

What a holy boy!

Believe it or not but a few days ago was the first time we went to the Trevi fountain on this trip. Little George LOVED the fountain. He enjoyed it more than any playground or park we have been to. I helped him throw a coin into the fountain so he is coming back!

George, Giorgio and I came back to the Trevi the day before Thanksgiving and I was able to take video of Giorgio's excitement.

Mercedes, Judy, Giorgio and I spent a day visiting churches near the Esquiline hill. We first went to San Pietro in Vincoli. This is actually Cardinal Wuerl's titular church.

Michelangelo's Moses

The chains that held St. Peter in a prison in Jerusalem and chains that held him in Rome's Mamertine prison, that miraculously joined together.

Then we visited San Prassede. This church is near Santa Maria Maggiore. The church houses the relics of 2,300 Christian martyrs from the persecution of Nero, including St. Praxedes and Pudenziana, who sheltered Chrisians during the persecution and were ultimately killed themselves.

Part of the column that Christ was tied to when scourged.

After lunch, the four of us visited Santa Maria Maggiore. Little George and I had been here before for mass but we had not really had the chance to explore the church as much as desired. Something I found out while here was that Bernini is buried here. His tomb is to the right side of the altar and there is only a small inscription on the step marking his burial spot.

Relic of Christ's manger.

This icon was painted by St. Luke the Evangelist on the wooden table used by the Holy Family in Nazareth. 

St. Matthew remains are under the altar.

Judy, Mercedes, Giorgio and I then headed up to Piazza della Republica and visited Santi Maria degli Angeli, the last church visited that day. The church is built using part of the Baths of Diocletian.

A brass line  in the floor that when the rays of the sun come in through a small opening in the wall marks noon. This line was how Romans regulated their clocks until 1846.

The Tuesday before Thanksgiving, Giorgio and I walked towards the Lateran to meet George after his drawing class. On our way there, we visited Santi Quattro Coronati. On our way out of the church, an Italian man stopped us and told me how beautiful little George's eyes were and that with those "clear" eyes he was being introduced to true beauty so early in life. What he said is so true and it will be interesting to see if and what kind of impact Giorgio's time in Rome has on him.

Giorgio and I ended up meeting George in the Lateran baptistry, which was built at the time of Constantine. All around the baptistry are frescoes telling about the life of Constantine that I found particularly striking.

After meeting up with Dad, we all went to lunch and then headed towards home stopping at quite a few churches on the way. The first we visited was Santo Stefano Rotando, which is one of Rome's earliest churches.

The church is circular and around the sides are incredibly gruesome frescoes of Jesuits being martyred.

We visited Santi Giovanni e Paolo, a church built where the brothers Sts. John and Paul were martyred in their home and then buried. They were officers of the Emperor Julian who refused to deny the Christian faith. The interior is stunning. My photos do not do it justice because the dimming light.

Next we visited San Gregorio Magno, which is the church from where St. Augustine of Canterbury was sent to convert England to Christianity. This is one of George's favorite churches. The architecture is amazing! The church is also right next to the Missionaries of Charity house.

The last church we visited that day was San Giorgio in Velabro. I had been wanting to visit this church with George and Giorgio since we arrived in Rome because the relics of St. George are here. This also used to be John Henry Newman's titular church.

George and little George with St. George. May they both be saints one day.

We are here for three more weeks so our time to enjoy these gems of Rome is running out! We are going to try to make the most we can with our time!