Anniversary of the consecration of the Lateran Basilica.

The Lateran Basilica is one of the four main basilicas of the Church. It is located in the Lateran Square in Rome, next to the Lateran Palace. The origin of the name Lateran goes back to the time around the birth of Christ. At that time, the Lateran Palace belonged to the Lateran family. Her last offspring was murdered by Emperor Nero. The palace then became the property of the emperor. When Constantine the Great ascended the imperial throne, he donated the entire palace to Pope Sylvester I. It then became the residence of the popes and remained so for almost a thousand years. But in 1308 it burned down, so the Pope moved to the Vatican Palace. The ruins of the burnt palace were removed by Pope Sixtus V in 1586. After the removal of the ruins, they built a new, current palace, but it is much smaller. But the popes have already stayed in the Vatican. By order of Pope John XXIII. there they established a Roman vicariate; The Lateran Palace thus became the seat of the Roman bishopric. The bishop (cardinal) who represents St. Father in charge of the Diocese of Rome.

The Lateran Basilica is the first of all Roman basilicas. Sometimes it is also called the “mother of all churches”. Other basilicas are: Basilica of St. Peter in the Vatican, Basilica of St. Paul on the Ostia Way (fuori le mura – behind the city walls) and the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore . The Lateran Basilica was originally dedicated to the Most Holy Savior. Only later did they. St. to this patronage. John, the apostle  , and St. John the  Baptist. It was originally a five-nave church that was built during the time of Pope Miltiades in 310-314. But this temple was destroyed several times – by Vandals in the 5th century, by an earthquake in the 9th century and by a fire in the 17th century. The current church dates from the 17th century. At that time, Pope Innocent X commissioned the famous architect Borromini to restore the basilica from the ground up. The facade of the temple dates from 1735 and the apse from 1885. The main facade was built from travertine by Alexander Galilei. On the upper railing there are fifteen statues representing Christ, St. John, the apostle, St. John the Baptist and church teachers. Five gates lead to the basilica, one of which is the so-called Porta sancta (Holy Gate), which is opened only during grace (jubilee) years. The basilica is 130 meters long and currently has five naves. It should be noted, however, that Borromini’s reconstruction took away its basilicas style, since every two columns were connected by walls, and he inserted chapels between several double columns. The interior furnishings and decoration are very rich, as they were created over the centuries.

In front of the basilica, there is a statue of St. Francis of Assisi(from 1927), who raises his hands to the Lateran. This gesture recalls the meeting of Francis with Pope Innocent III, who had previously seen him in a dream saving the bursting Lateran Basilica, which was then still the papal temple and represented the entire Church in the dream. Many synods and five general church assemblies (councils) have been held in the basilica over the course of history. In 1929, the so-called Lateran Treaty – agreement between the Vatican State and Italy.

The Lateran Basilica is therefore deeply inscribed in the history of the Church as the venue for many events connected with church and secular life. The anniversary of her consecration was at first a matter only for the Roman Diocese, only later it was extended to the whole Church.