Tourists are now forbidden from sitting on the Scalinata di Trinità dei Monti, better known around the world as the Spanish Steps. A police regulation has been introduced this northern summer instructing visitors against “sitting down by consuming food or drinks on a historical heritage property, Read more
Posts Tagged ‘Rome’
All roads do not lead to Rome…some lead to Rom
Monday, July 22nd, 2019An elderly person was on a mission to see the Pope and decided to make his way there by car. He was surprised when his GPS told him he had arrived, despite no signs of any of the famous buildings or architecture. He was in Rom a the small town in North-Rhine Westphalia. He had Read more
Solutions needed for whole Church, not just Rome
Thursday, April 4th, 2019
Cardinal Reinhard Marx of Munich, visited La Croix for an interview. A member of Pope Francis’ advisory council of cardinals, he reflects on the crisis that the Church is currently experiencing. How to do you see the crisis that the Catholic Church is experiencing today? Since Vatican II, we have asked ourselves how the Church Read more
Will the summit on abuse bring meaningful changes in Rome?
Thursday, February 21st, 2019
“So much is at stake this week (in Rome) …I hope something important comes from it.” This is what Anne Barrett Doyle, the co-director of BishopAccountability.org, said to reporters at the Foreign Press Association in Rome two days before the Vatican summit on the protection of minors in the church is scheduled to begin. But Read more
Vatican owes Rome €5 billion
Thursday, November 22nd, 2018
The Vatican owes Rome some 5 billion euros. The Court of Justice of the European €Union (CJEU) ordered Italy to recover the ICI property tax that the catholic Church never paid to the Italian government. The European judges have decided to rule out a 2012 decision of the European Commission and a 2016 judgment of Read more
Seagulls outnumber doves in Rome
Thursday, September 6th, 2018The seagull population in Rome has grown in recent years to the tens of thousands, according to some experts. Their physical dimension has grown, too, as they gorge on the smorgasbord of trash, snack on handouts from complicit tourists and snatch sandwiches from unsuspecting pedestrians. A species with a taste for pigeons, bats, starlings and Read more
Little known treasures buried under St Peter’s Basilica
Monday, October 16th, 2017
Pope Pius XI’s will stated he wanted to be buried as close as possible to what tradition has considered to be the tomb of St. Peter. Pius XII then began the excavations under St. Peter’s Basilica, in order to fulfill the last will of his predecessor. With that single gesture, he also showed confidence in Read more
Belgian hospitals euthanasia group summoned to Rome
Monday, October 9th, 2017The board administering Belgian hospitals sponsored by the Brothers of Charity has been summoned to Rome. The board – made up mainly of lay members – recently decided to allow euthanasia in the Catholic hospitals it oversees. After appeals from the religious order, board members have been asked to explain their decision to Church authorities Read more
Confiscated Mafia houses may accommodate refugees, migrants
Thursday, August 31st, 2017
Rome authorities are looking into whether refugees, migrants and other homeless people can be accommodated in houses confiscated from the mafia. City officials are mapping the confiscated real estate to see if any of it is suitable for temporary housing. The first census of 200,000 potentially available apartments is due by the end of October, Read more
The city under the city of Rome
Monday, June 12th, 2017
ROME – When most people think of Rome they picture the majestic Colosseum or the countless churches and basilicas sprawled across the city, but deep underground there is another Eternal City that tells the tale of the first pioneers of the Christian faith. The Catacombs of Domitilla, a vast web of tunnels and tombs used Read more