headermask image

napolicefalupalermo napoli forcellanapoli centro storicoDon't enterLa Spezia Ex Grand Hotel d'ItalietritticoTimelessFrecce TricoloriGaleria Vittorio Emanuele - ItaliaMilano - Italia

Google
 

category archive listing Category Archives: Religion

Italian Program for European Day of Jewish Culture Announced

I’m always fascinated to learn about Jewish heritage in Italy. So, here’s a Jewish cultural event that will be going on this fall.
September 7 marks the European Day of Jewish Culture, and, according to Ruth Ellen Gruber’s blog Jewish Heritage Travel, “Italy is consistently probably the most enthusiastic country that takes part.” This year’s theme for [...]

Italy’s Newest Saint Venerated

On April 24, the new tomb of Padre Pio was unveiled in the Puglian city of San Giovanni Rotondo. The new tomb now features the exhumed body of Italy’s most recent homegrown saint, who died in 1968 and who was canonized by Pope John Paul II in 2002. According to Ian Fisher’s San Giovanni Rotondo [...]

Jewish Resources in Italy

Just in time for Passover, I’ve found a great resource for all things Jewish in Italy. JewishItaly.org has links and info to synagogues, kosher stores, Jewish museums, and more. If you are Jewish or just interested in Jewish culture and history, you can also browse JewishItaly’s list of towns that can claim Jewish heritage or [...]

Papal Basilicas of Rome: San Giovanni in Laterano

San Giovanni in Laterano (St. John Lateran) gets no love. Literally. Although it is the basilica dedicated to the Bishop of Rome (i.e., the Pope), the Vatican hasn’t even created a website for it (else we couldn’t find it)! Nevertheless, San Giovanni proves important this time of year as it is the site of the [...]

Papal Basilicas of Rome: Santa Maria Maggiore

 
Continuing with with Rome’s Papal Basilicas, today we will profile Santa Maria Maggiore.
Santa Maria Maggiore
Address: Via Liberiana, 27 (Esquilino)
Phone: 06-483-195
Web: http://www.vatican.va/various/sm_maggiore/index_en.html
Getting There: Metro Line A (Termini) or B (Termini or Cavour); Buses 16, 27, 70, 71
History: The largest church in Rome dedicated to the Virgin Mary, Santa Maria Maggiore has maintained its paleo-Christian foundations, which date [...]

Papal Basilicas of Rome: San Paolo Fuori Le Mura

Many tourists to Rome, both Catholics and non-Catholics, know very little about the papal basilicas outside of St. Peter’s. While St. Peter’s is the “mother church,” three others - San Paolo Fuori Le Mura, San Giovanni in Laterano, and Santa Maria Maggiore - make up Catholicism’s patriarchal basilicas. Each of the four have a “holy [...]

Art Teacher in Your Pocket

Art history junkies take note: learning about Italian art is easy with Jane’s Smart Art Guides. Order a CD set - or, even better, download the MP3s to your iPod - and you can learn more about St. Peter’s Basilica, Rome’s Santa Maria del Popolo, or the Fra Angelico fresco cycle in Florence’s San Marco [...]

Holy Week Calendar

Palm Sunday - April 1 - marks the beginning of Settimana Santa, or Holy Week, in Rome. Here’s a brief schedule for attending services over which Pope Benedict will preside. More info is available on the Vatican website.
Sunday, April 1 - Palm Sunday
St. Peter’s Square, 9:30 a.m.
Monday, April 2 - Holy Monday
St. Peter’s Square, 5:30 p.m.
Thursday, [...]