August 5th: On the Feast of the Dedication of St. Mary Major: Andre Bocelli Sings the Ave Maria & Rose Petals Fall Like Snow

And for your convenience, here is  a link to contact the Curator!

http://www.papalartifacts.com/contact-us/

And Rose Petals Fall Like Snow on This Feast Day

A Brick from the Holy Door of St. Mary Major

In 2008 Father Kunst purchased a series of holy year bricks from a Roman citizen selling them on auction. They belonged to the man’s grandmother who had recently died at 104 years of age. The man’s grandfather worked at the Spanish embassy at the Vatican. On one of the bricks is written the notation that it was intended as a gift to his grandfather and his family.

The bricks are from all the major basilicas in Rome.

Please scroll down to reach Andre Bocelli’s Ave Maria.

Holy Year Bricks

The bricks used to seal the Holy Year Doors between Jubilees at the four major basilicas in Rome.

Great pomp and ceremony is connected to these bricks. In earlier times, the pope would literally take a hammer to smash through the bricks. Crowds gathered to watch this ceremony and to collect pieces of the bricks as souvenirs or relics of the Holy Year. This practice, however, became dangerous as people were killed attempting to grab the bricks.

Eventually that practice ended and the bricks are now removed in advance and distributed to people working at the Vatican.

Holy Year bricks are quite prized, ornate and large with symbols of the papacy on them.

The inscription on this brick reads:

VINCENTIUS
SRE CARDINALIS VANNUTELLI
EP OSTIEN ET PRAENEST
PATR BAS LIBERIANAE ARCHIP
ITERATA VICE
APERUIT ET CLAUSIT
AN JUBILAEI MCMXXV

Notes

Vincenzo Vannutelli (Genazzano 5 December 1836—
Roma 9 Iuglio 1930) was the Cardinale Legato who
opened and closed the holy door. Pope Leone XIII
elevated him to the rank of cardinal in the consistory
of 23 June 1890.

Holy Door

There are four major basilicas in Rome, each having a Holy Door. They are St. Peter’s, St. Mary Major, St. John Lateran and St. Paul Outside the Walls. These doors are normally sealed shut from the inside and cannot be opened until the Holy Year. Holy Doors are sealed shut with Holy Year Bricks. Upon opening the door at the start of the Holy Year, great ceremony is attached to the removal of these bricks.

Pilgrims flock to Rome during these Jubilees that occur every twenty-five years.

Holy Year

In the Catholic tradition a holy year or Jubilee is a great religious event, a year of reconciliation and forgiveness. It dates to biblical times and was evident even in the Law of Moses where it was celebrated every fifty years.

Holy years are marked with much pomp and ceremony by the Vatican. There are specific Holy Doors at each of the four main basilicas, and they are marked by the Holy Year bricks which are ceremoniously removed before the pope can walk through the Holy Door to signify the start of the Holy Year.

Ave Maria was sung as part of a massive prayer gathering in honor of persecuted Christians in July 2015.

About the Basilica of St. Mary Major

The history of the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major in Rome, Italy dates back to the 4th century, when construction began on a temple at the top of Esquiline Hill, one of the Seven Hills of Rome. According to legend, Pope Liberius (352–366) had a vision of the Virgin Mary on August 5, 358, who told him to build a church on the spot where it would snow that night, despite it being summer. In the morning, snow was found on the hill, marking out the perimeter of the future basilica. In remembrance of this miracle, white flower petals are dropped from the ceiling of the basilica’s Pauline Chapel every August 5, an event known as “snowing”. The basilica is also known as Our Lady of the Snows.