Dedication of St. Peter and Paul
Public Domain
St. Peters is probably the most famous church in Christendom. Massive in scale and a veritable museum of art and architecture, it began on a much humbler scale. Vatican Hill was a simple cemetery where believers gathered at St. Peters tomb to pray. In 319 Constantine built on the site a basilica that stood for more than a thousand years until, despite numerous restorations, it threatened to collapse. In 1506 Pope Julius II ordered it razed and reconstructed, but the new basilica was not completed and dedicated for more than two centuries.
St. Pauls Outside the Walls stands near the Abaazia delle Tre Fontane, where St. Paul is believed to have been beheaded. The largest church in Rome until St. Peters was rebuilt, the basilica also rises over the traditional site of its namesakes grave. The most recent edifice was constructed after a fire in 1823. The first basilica was also Constantines doing.
Constantines building projects enticed the first of a centuries-long parade of pilgrims to Rome. From the time the basilicas were first built until the empire crumbled under barbarian invasions, the two churches, although miles apart, were linked by a roofed colonnade of marble columns.
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Blessed Emmanuel Ruiz and Companions (1804-1860)
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Sts. John Jones and John Wall (c. 1530-1598; 1620-1679)
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St. Gregory Grassi and Companions (d. 1900)
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Our Lady of Mount Carmel
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Assumption of Mary
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St. Adrian of Canterbury (d. 710)
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St. Thomas the Apostle
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Blessed Junipero Serra (1713-1784)
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St. Oliver Plunkett (1629-1681)
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St. Bonaventure (1221-1274)