The Vatican
The Vatican
Introduction
It’s the chair of St. Peter. Isn’t it incredible that the most important feature seems to be a chair! and not the Holy Sacrament, that they located in a side-chapel behind a curtain.
But why is the Cathedra of St. Peter so important, and is such a prime feature of the Basilica? And strange enough, the St. Peters Basilica is not the most important church in Christianity: that honor is going to the Basilica St. John in Rome: the Mater Ecclesiae - the Mother of all Churches. St. John in Lateran is Basilica but also Cathedral. That is the church where the pope is the spiritual leader of Christianity. Today, the Pope is the only monarch on earth (even over a very small country) and at the same time spiritual director of a Religion. On paper, also the Dalai Lama and the Queen of England. Therefore Mussolini signed the famous Pacts of Lateran there on the 11 february 1929, recognizing the Vatican City as the smallest country in the world together with 22 extra-territorial buildings in the City. And for that the Church called him “A man send by God!” At least, that pact saved Rome in its inner walls form the bombardments of World War II. How you could hit the city without bombing also the neutral Holy See?!
But the Holly Father is the last spiritual leader in the world who has also a kingdom: Città del Vaticano - Vatican City. The main church of that state (only 1/8 of Central Park in New York) is the Basilica St. Peter, who is not cathedral!
But what has this to do with the building that the Catholic Church today calls a “Basilica”? In every basilica of the world you will find a baldacchino, a canape or an umbrella. Underneath are the relics of saints. In the Saint Peter we have exactly under the baldacchino of Bernini the tomb of Saint Peter as was discovered in the 1950’s. Let say that I am a christian and have a problem. I can go to the tomb of saint Peter and ask for his intercession by the King of Heaven who has probably no time to listen to my humble request. But saint Peter can intercede for me by the King of heaven, knowing him quite well. And that is exactly the role of the saints in the Catholic Church. We have veneration (not adoration) for them and ask for their help and intercession for our material or spiritual problems. Of course, a priest will ask a small donation (burning a candle, a coin given ....). It is a way of communicating with the Lord who is sitting on his throne in Heaven. The tomb of st. Peter explains also why the baldacchino is not centered under the dome. It is build above the tomb of the first successor of Christ: Peter. And it also explains why it is not build, as most of the churches, towards the east (in the direction of the resurrection of the sun). It is build to the west, over the tomb of St. Peter, who is looking from his tomb to the east.
.... and in 2012, the same happened in the Republican Party: Rick Santorum. He had hardly funding or organization, but won however 11 states in the primaries against his most feared rival Mitt Romney. How he did it? Again: “Basilica”. In the years upcoming to the nomination, he visited state after state and village after village. And everywhere were he went personally, people voted for him. At the end, he couldn’t stand up against the money and organization of Mitt Romney.
And the popes of today are knowing it. Benedict XVI condemned the paedophilia in the Church very strongly in words, but also, in every visits worldwide, he took his time to talk personally to the victims of it. As pope, he would go on ordinary Sundays to one of the parishes in Rome for celebrating the Holy Mess with the locals ... for being in time at St. Peters Square for the Angelus, addressing the pilgrims and the crowd. A bishop has to be the father of his priest and listening to them, otherwise the priest can’t be the father for his congregation. That direct contact is “living Basilica”!!
follow the link for the description of the building.
Footnotes
The concept "Basilica"