In Mary's Greatest Shrine

Though St Peter is Rome's patron saint, my impression is that Rome is a Marian City. On every corner of the street or road you won't fail to see a painting or statue of Our Lady. A handful of churches we have visited there are in her honour. After our one day tour of St Peter's (I strongly recommend you devote a whole day of your itinerary in that glorious basilica!) we paid a visit Mary's greatest shrine - the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore. It's Assumption Day as I write this; an appropriate time for this next series of articles dedicated to Mary, Queen assumed into heaven.

It was a sunny Saturday morning when we rode a bus from the hotel to Stazione Termini where we need to catch another transport going to Santa Maria Maggiore. Thanks to a Filipina co-passenger who offered a seat to Nidz, we learned that the bus we rode from where we were staying will be passing along Via Cavour, a road away from the basilica.

Maggiore is not a surname. It is the Italian equivalent for 'greater' or 'major'. The basilica was named as such to denote that this place is of a greater or higher rank from other basilicas dedicated to Mary like our very own Minor Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Manila. It is the largest Marian church in the world.

There were lots of pilgrims when we arrived especially that it was May, the month of Mary, and a Saturday, a day in her honour. It wasn't as big as St Peter's but it is beautiful in its own right.

We went straight to the main altar where, like in St Peter's, a confessio is located. The only difference though is that here we managed to get down the confessio where pilgrims were either kneeling or taking their seats. There is a huge white statue of Pope Pius IX kneeling as well. Why they were kneeling was a riddle we wanted to find out. A few steps away from Pius IX's statue is a silver urn on top of which is an image of the Christ Child reclining but whose right hand is raised in blessing. I suddenly remembered what I read previously that this basilica has the relics of the wooden crib of Jesus. Pope Pius IX has a great devotion to the Holy Crib and was responsible for this chapel to be set up. I felt as though we were both in Bethlehem witnessing for ourselves Jesus born in a manger. I wanted to sing "Silent Night" or any other Christmas carol.

Gazing at the crib, I thanked God for becoming man, for being born of the Virgin Mary and asked Him to bless us - my wife, the baby we're expecting, and me - as we face a new life as would-be parents. I thanked Mary for being so generous to God and to us. We lit an electric candle afterwards (Interestingly, most churches here don't use wax candles as its fumes seem to affect the work of arts in church. Once you put some coins in the hole a candle bulb will lit accordingly.).

Going up, we saw the main altar where the background is a painting of the Nativity of Our Lord. Once could see Mary, Joseph, and the shepherds all adoring Jesus. There is also another chapel called Cappella Sistina (not to be confused with the Sistine Chapel in St Peter's) where another Nativity scene could be found.

I remembered a 'holy joke' that we once used in a parish programme in honour of Mary years ago:

Question: What is Mary's surname?

Answer: Christmas!

Explanation: If Mary didn't accept God's invitation be His Son's mother, there would be no Christmas!

Indeed had Mary refused God, there would be no Christ who'll save us. Mary's 'yes' to God and God becoming man are both celebrated and affirmed in Santa Maria Maggiore - the 'Christmas' basilica.

Up Next: Fit for a Queen