On Monday 29 June, Rome celebrates Saints Peter and Paul, the city’s patron saints and founders of the new Christian Rome, with a wide range of events, including religious celebrations, cultural events and centuries-old traditions, which transform some of the capital’s most iconic sites into a stage of spirituality and beauty that tells a story spanning a thousand years.
This year's events include the Holy Mass with the blessing and conferral of the pallium on the new Metropolitan Archbishops at 9.30 am in the Papal Chapel of St Peter's Basilica, and the Mass for Saints Peter and Paul (Indulgence) at 10.30 am in the Basilica of Santa Maria ad Martyres, the Pantheon of Rome, described as "the most beautiful relic of ancient Rome" by the French writer Stendhal.
Another evocative appointment is Quo Vadis, a walk-event of two itineraries, called Paul's Route and Peter's Route, which follow the historical sites of the two apostles, arriving in St. Peter's Square. Among these are the Basilica of Santa Pudenziana, the Mamertine Prison, the Basilicas of San Pietro in Vincoli, Santa Francesca Romana, San Sebastiano and San Paolo fuori le Mura.
Among the most ancient of the liturgical year, the feast of the two saints, who have always had great significance for Rome, was particularly rich and scenic. Among the rites still celebrated today are the kissing of the foot of the bronze statue of St. Peter, adorned for the occasion with the red sacred vestment in the shape of a cloak, the procession accompanying the chain of St. Paul, a relic of 14 iron rings kept at the Ostiense basilica, and the historic “infiorata” flower carpet on Via della Conciliazione, with natural paintings composed by the master florists.
Programme still to be finalised.
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