Lenten Station Church on Ash Wednesday

From Santa Sabina, Aventine, view Tiber, l. Vatican, c. Synagouge

In February, Abbot Mark took photographs during his In-service Course in Rome.

It so happens that his views of the Basilica of Santa Sabina were anticipating the Lenten Station Church on Ash Wednesday

Mark’s photos aptly illustrate this article  of ‘The Catholic Traveler _com.

Santa Sabina Pilgrims who travel to Rome during Lent can participate in a beautiful custom that dates back to the fourth century. It’s a custom that began as a way to strengthen the sense of community in the city while honoring the holy martyrs of Rome. The faithful would journey through the streets to visit various churches. As they walked they would pray the Litany of the Saints. The bishop of Rome, that is the Holy Father, would join them, lead them in prayer and celebrate Mass at the church. Though this practice was around for years, Pope Saint Gregory the Great established the order of the churches to be visited, the prayers to be recited and designated this as a Lenten practice. The tradition continued until 1309 when the papacy moved to Avignon. Pope Leo XIII revived the tradition and it was fully restored by John XXIII in 1959. Over the next few weeks, we’ll visit these station churches together. Forty churches in all; a few are repeated. Today, Ash Wednesday,     we begin with Santa Sabina. Not far from Circus Maximus, Santa Sabina is located up on Aventine Hill. Why this church was chosen for the start of Lent is not exactly known. One thought is that because of it’s location, one had to make a strong climb uphill to reach the church, this climb was symbolic of the efforts necessary to climb to spiritual perfection. It could also be that Gregory the Great fell in love with the church when he sought refuge here during the plague, he called it “the gem of the Aventine.” Santa Sabina is one of Rome’s domus ecclesiae, or house churches. During the persecutions, Christians had to meet secretly to celebrate the sacraments. Often they would do so in the homes of the wealthy as they were the one’s who were able to accommodate the faithful. These homes were given the title, or titulus, of the owner. In this case Titulus Sabina. Once Christianity was legal, the houses were converted into churches and most of these churches kept the original name. The former property owners were often saints, Sabina was a martyr, so the Titulus changed to Santa, and now we have Santa Sabina. The basilica was originally built between AD 422-432, rebuilt in 834 and restored in 1914. The architectural highlight of this basilica has to be the cyprus doors. The doors are carved with scenes from the Old and New Testaments. The quality of the carvings vary, some panels are even missing. But what is fascinating is that the doors are original, from the fifth century. That makes these wooden doors over 1500 years old! Also interesting to note is that the crucifixion scene is thought to be one of the earliest surviving depictions of Christ’s crucifixion. One thing that stands out as you enter Santa Sabina is the light. Large windows made of silenite, not glass, let in a lot of light. This was actually quite common in early churches, but we do not see it much today. Many of the windows were covered up over time because of the idea that darkness would be more conducive to prayer and meditation. Four saints are buried here, Pope Saint Alexander, Saint Eventius, Saint Theodulus and, of course, Saint Sabina. Santa Sabina is not only one of our earliest churches, it also has an important history with a holy priest named Dominic. For it was this church that in 1218 Pope Honorius III entrusted to Dominic to establish a friary for his new order, the Dominicans. Though it is no longer the head church for the Dominicans, they do still serve Santa Sabina. If you have the opportunity to visit, find a friar and they will happily show you to Dominic’s cell and give you a peek at an orange tree descended from one planted by Saint Dominic himself. Since the time of John XXIII, the Holy Father typically travels to Santa Sabina to celebrate Mass here each year on Ash Wednesday. The Catholic Traveler _com Lenten Station Churches Santa Sabbina