Christian Rome

Rome is with no doubts the cradle of Catholicism and there are more than 900 churches in town, from the most renowned  to small, hidden, old district’s churches. For sure every single one of them is a shrine of treasures of art, history and faith.
A journey through Christian Rome will allow you to discover places where one can savor the lively history of men and women, popes, saints, and artists who have dedicated their lives to the Church and to spread the Christian message. You will visit the Basilica of St. Paul outside the walls, with its hundreds of portraits of all the popes, impressive mosaics and a fabulous cloister of the Middle Ages, where, according to tradition, the Apostle Paul is buried. Next you will admire the Basilica of St. John Lateran, the oldest basilica in the Western World, with a beautiful eighteenth-century façade and the rich sixteenth-century coffered ceiling of the central nave. You will claim up the Holy Stairs (Scala Santa) which, according to tradition was brought to Rome by St. Helena and climbed by Jesus himself during the Passion.
The charming Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, set on the summit of the Esquiline Hill is also worth a visit. It is the most important of the Roman churches dedicated to the Virgin Mary and is also the best preserved. Its Romanesque-Renaissance bell tower is 75 meters high (the highest in Rome), and the mosaic floor of the cosmatesque masters are marvelous to visit. A tour of Christian is not complete without a visit to the catacombs where the earliest followers of Christ were buried. There are more than 60 catacombs  and thousands of tombs near Rome, but only five are open to the public. The most interesting are the catacombs of San Callisto, Santa Domitilla and San Sebastian in the Appian area.