Since childhood, and mostly through history books (some of which were authored by my uncle, a famous historian, the late Dr. J.E. Adetoro), WorId Heritage sites in Rome like the Colosseum, Aurelian Walls, Roman Forum, Trevi Fountain etc, were well-known to me. But surprisingly, until I got here, I had never heard of ‘The Basilica of Saint Mary Major’ (Italian: Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore), which is one of the four major ‘Papal Basilicas,’ as well as one of the ‘Seven Pilgrim Churches’ of Rome. It is also the largest Marian church in the city. As a matter of fact, it is said to be second only to the great Basilica of Saint Peter in The Vatican!
But it gets even more interesting. The Basilica enshrines the venerated image of ‘Salus Populi Romani,’ depicting the Blessed Virgin Mary as the protector of the Roman people, which was granted a Canonical coronation by Pope Gregory XVI on 15 August, 1838.
Said to have been built on the Cispian spur of Rome’s Esquiline Hill, under Pope Celestine I (422–432AD), the Basilica is sometimes referred to as ‘Our Lady of the Snows.’ This is because according to legend, c. 352AD, during the pontificate of Liberius, a Roman patrician, John and his wife, who were without heirs, made a vow to donate all their worldly possessions to the Virgin Mary. They prayed that she might make known to them how they were to dispose off their property in her honour. 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 Holy Virgin, which they had the same night, the couple built a Basilica in honour of Mary on the very spot which was covered with snow!
However, long before the earliest traces of the story of the miraculous snow, the church was called ‘Saint Mary of the Crib’ (“Sancta Maria ad Praesepe”), a name it was given because of its relic of the crib or manger of the Nativity of Jesus Christ, four boards of sycamore wood believed to have been brought to the church, together with a fifth, in the time of Pope Theodore I (640–649AD) (source: Wikipedia).
Mind-blowing!
Traveloque: ‘Tracking Baby Jesus
By Funso Anina
Since childhood, and mostly through history books (some of which were authored by my uncle, a famous historian, the late Dr. J.E. Adetoro), WorId Heritage sites in Rome like the Colosseum, Aurelian Walls, Roman Forum, Trevi Fountain etc, were well-known to me. But surprisingly, until I got here, I had never heard of ‘The Basilica of Saint Mary Major’ (Italian: Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore), which is one of the four major ‘Papal Basilicas,’ as well as one of the ‘Seven Pilgrim Churches’ of Rome. It is also the largest Marian church in the city. As a matter of fact, it is said to be second only to the great Basilica of Saint Peter in The Vatican!
But it gets even more interesting. The Basilica enshrines the venerated image of ‘Salus Populi Romani,’ depicting the Blessed Virgin Mary as the protector of the Roman people, which was granted a Canonical coronation by Pope Gregory XVI on 15 August, 1838.
Said to have been built on the Cispian spur of Rome’s Esquiline Hill, under Pope Celestine I (422–432AD), the Basilica is sometimes referred to as ‘Our Lady of the Snows.’ This is because according to legend, c. 352AD, during the pontificate of Liberius, a Roman patrician, John and his wife, who were without heirs, made a vow to donate all their worldly possessions to the Virgin Mary. They prayed that she might make known to them how they were to dispose off their property in her honour. 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 Holy Virgin, which they had the same night, the couple built a Basilica in honour of Mary on the very spot which was covered with snow!
However, long before the earliest traces of the story of the miraculous snow, the church was called ‘Saint Mary of the Crib’ (“Sancta Maria ad Praesepe”), a name it was given because of its relic of the crib or manger of the Nativity of Jesus Christ, four boards of sycamore wood believed to have been brought to the church, together with a fifth, in the time of Pope Theodore I (640–649AD) (source: Wikipedia).
Mind-blowing!
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