#St. Peter's Basilica

[chasingrainbowsforever]

Stained Glass Window above the Altar at St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican City

Photography by ConspiracyofHappiness on Flickr

#stained glass #doves #St. Peter's Basilica #brown gold

[famousinuniverse]

St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican City: The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican, or simply Saint Peter's Basilica, is a church of the Italian High Renaissance located in Vatican City, an independent microstate enclaved within the city of Rome, Italy. Wikipedia

#St. Peter's Basilica #Vatican City

[hopefulkidshark]

St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican City: The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican, or simply Saint Peter's Basilica, is a church of the Italian High Renaissance located in Vatican City, an independent microstate enclaved within the city of Rome, Italy. Wikipedia

#St. Peter's Basilica #Vatican City

[dramoor]

“Honor our mother the Virgin Mary, and arm yourselves with the Rosary, because the name of the Virgin Mary drives away darkness and crushes evil.”

~St. Charbel

(Photo © Daniel Ibanez, Chapel of the Choir, St. Peter's Basilica)

#saints #St. Charbel #Virgin Mary #Theotokos #churches #honor #pray the rosary #Christian art #St. Peter's Basilica

[emaadsidiki]

Easter Blessings & Vatican Sunset ⛪☀️

#Easter #Happy Easter #Vatican #Enclave #Rome #Italy #Vatican City State #Sunset #St. Peter's Basilica #Vatican City

[deadpresidents]

Pope Benedict XVI lying in state inside St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican, January 3, 2023.

#Pope Benedict XVI #Benedict XVI #Popes #Papal History #Papal Funerals #Funeral of Pope Benedict XVI #Vatican #St. Peter's Basilica #History #Death of Pope Benedict XVI #Pope Emeritus #Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI #Joseph Ratzinger

[downfalldestiny]

St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican 🇻🇦 !.

#St. Peter's Basilica #Vatican #downfall #downfalldestiny #Speechless #magical world #magic moments #magic destinations #beautiful places #Voyage

[pedroam-bang]

The Young Pope (2016)

#2016 #film #series #TV show #television #The Young Pope #Jude Law #Lenny Belardo #Pius XIII #Diane Keaton #Sister Mary #Silvio Orlando #Cardinal Voiello #Ludivine Sagnier #Esther #Cecile De France #Sofia #St. Peter's Basilica #Vatican #Vatican City #Rome #Italy

[mioritic]

Bottom right panel from the Door of the Sacraments, depicting the Eucharist

St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican City

Designed by Venanzo Crocetti, inaugurated 1966 under Pope Paul VI

Seen and photographed on 27.01.2023

#venanzo crocetti #vatican #vatican city #christianity #catholicism #st. peter's basilica #1966 #my photo

[theroamingnumeral]

St. Peter's Basilica

#St. Peter's Basilica #rome #italy #vatican city #photography #photographers on tumblr #architecture #mine

[isaari]

Tips for seeing celebrations with the Pope at St. Peter’s in Rome: by Ivan Saari

Disclaimer:  I am not an authority nor do I hold any office authorized to speak on behalf of anyone but myself.  These opinions and reflections are my own based on my own experiences.

I recently (2022) spent many consecutive days in Rome.  Since it included time over the Easter celebrations at the Vatican, I did some research on attempting to discover the process to obtain tickets for mass.  While there were some helpful sites, I met many people that had little idea of the process and how to navigate it.  Despite my research, I learned many things along the way.  I share them here.  Hopefully it assists people that are looking for what I was; there are no guarantees that what happened with my own experience will be the same in the future though.

I followed the process three times, for Palm Sunday, Easter Sunday, and the Feast of the Divine Mercy.  Lessons I learned capture each of these three occasions.

Requesting:  you will find fax numbers and processes online.  I used an email address to request tickets and submitted the form required. 

I used address:  [email protected]

The form looked like this:

...

The email response looked like this:

Acquiring tickets:

I printed out the email/letter from the Prefecture (at a print shop in Rome, easily done for 0.5 euro).  I brought that to the Bronze Door of the Vatican to the Swiss Guards as outlined in instructions. 

I did this on the day before the scheduled mass, two days before the scheduled mass, and the evening two days before.  I always went after 3 pm but before 7 pm.

Go to the East security gates of the Colonnade.  Go through the security.  Move towards the basilica.  Show the gendarmes (or may be security, and may or may not be uniformed) at the opening/gate to the right your letter.  Say why you are there.  They will let you move along a parallel walk to the Bronze Door.  You will see people going to the basilica stopping on their way to take pictures of the Door and Swiss Guard and you will be on the inside of the barrier from where they are.  Move towards the upper portion of the staircase near the Swiss Guard.  You will be met by a staff member; show them the letter.  In the first instance, I was brought to a side room on the right side.  Inside was a table with boxes containing envelopes.  I gave my letter, they found my envelope and returned my letter and gave me my envelope.  I left the same way I came in.  In the second instance, I was pointed to the same room and went alone with the same outcome.  In the third instance, the staff member took my letter, disappeared to the left and brought back my letter and envelope.  The envelope contained a single sheet of paper which was the “invitation.”

Attending mass:

Palm Sunday

I arrived at the East security gates of the Colonnade at 6 am.  I was fourth in line.  Prepare for weather and standing.  Bring layers.  I brought a guitalele and played.  Staff were not present yet to deal with a line, people were left to their own.  Do the best you can to maintain your place despite staff moving barriers and the line, or the line getting wide with additional people joining.  The line will eventually stretch towards Risorgmento plaza.  Be patient/flexible.

When staff are ready, at approx.. 7:30, they will begin to let people move to the security gates.  They will do a quick frisk and backpack check as a sort of triage prior to the electronic security channels.  Use your best guess to move to the hopefully fastest line.  When past the security, move (quickly) to the front to find a seat of your choice.  Typically the edge seats are occupied first as they offer the best opportunity for a view of the Pope and procession.  If you wish, pick up a mass booklet as you enter the barricaded seats (it is a word-for-word documentation of the mass, and a nice keepsake).

Once you have your seat, you are in for a wait as all the seats behind you will likely be occupied.  No one asked to see my ticket/invitation but I brought both the letter and invitation in case.  If sitting in a certain spot doesn’t matter to you, you could come much later, but I would recommend by 9 as getting in takes a while.  At 6, the only reason people are there are for mass.  At 9, you will be navigating a lot of people without tickets wondering what the line-up is for etc. 

Organ music begins playing at approx. 9:30.  The hum of the crowd becomes increasingly electric.

The Pope had recently had knee surgery and was brought to the altar by a black SUV.  The process began and all of the choir, dignitaries, guests etc. were seated.  Mass began at 10:30.

After mass, the “Popemobile” picked up the Pope and security and began winding its way through the channels in the crowd.  People typically abandoned their chairs at that point and moved to crowd the railings.  Selfie sticks and standing on chairs were addressed by the Swiss Guard security spread throughout.

Afterwards, I thought I would be able to sit and eat my packed lunch, but we were all moved out by security.  It takes a long time to clear the square and it is a busy time for those wishing to visit the site.

Easter Sunday

This was the same process, but I was able to get a seat at the first “crossroads” of the chair aisles.  You just have to line up early to get such a spot.

Feast of the Divine Mercy

This mass was held in St. Peter’s Basilica (nothing indicate this so I was prepared for an outdoor mass).  I did not go early this time so prime locations were filled but I still got a great seat towards the back that was on the aisle.  There is much security and you cannot move the chairs. 

Bonus

The Pope gives his address from his apartment window at noon.  When you leave the mass, you can linger and watch the window from which he will stand and broadcast.  It is called Urbi et Orbi on certain occasions and I held up my phone with Google Translate activated and the loudspeakers were clear enough that I received a real-time translation of his words.

Please note:  This document focuses on the procedure and navigation I experienced for these occasions.  Its purpose is not to explore Catholicity and religious variables which would influence any visit.

#Pope #Easter #st. peter's basilica #urbi et orbi #seethepope #See the Pope #Pope's mass #Pope mass #Rome #St. Peter's #St. Peters #Easter mass #How to see Pope #seeing Pope #Catholic #Catholic Pope

[eopederson]

Basilica di San Pietro e Città del Vaticano, 2019.

#cityscape #st. peter's basilica #vatican city #2019 #photographers on tumblr

[travelella]

St. Peter's Basilica, Piazza San Pietro, Città del Vaticano, Vatican City

Evgeny Matveev

#St. Peter's Basilica #Piazza San Pietro #Città del Vaticano #Vatican City #Europe #Holy See #Church #Architecture #VaticanArchitecture

[md-taha]

Explore St. Peter's Basilica, the world's largest church.

Explore the captivating allure of St. Peter's Basilica, a timeless architectural masterpiece located in the heart of Vatican City. Beyond being a marvel of Renaissance design, this iconic structure serves as a monumental symbol of both history and Christianity. Immerse yourself in the rich tapestry of its past, and be awestruck by the splendid structures that adorn this sacred space.

#St. Peter's Basilica #St. Peter's Basilica tickets

[leviabeat]

Jon and Drifter

📸 Eric "Drifter" Stablein

#jon larsen #Drifter Stablein #volbeat #volcrew #night of the living dead shirt #sunglasses #black sabbath shirt #rome #vatican city #st. peter's basilica #jon with his ear pierced

[kittyrosacena]

Mama's Snap

#st. peter's basilica #vatican