2015-11-20 12:38:00

Wall covering Holy Door removed at Basilica of St. Mary Major


(Vatican Radio) The Holy Door at the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major Basilica was unveiled on Thursday evening, after being hidden behind a wall of bricks since the Jubilee year of 2000.

The ceremony – called the Recognitio -  was led by the Archpriest of Saint Mary Major, Cardinal Santos Abril y Castelló.

Also present for the event were the Master of Ceremonies of St. Peter’s Basilica, Mons. Guido Marini, who received the documents and objects of the Recognitio ceremony, and Archbishop Rino Fisichella, President of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelisation.

The Holy Door will be opened by Pope Francis at an evening Mass on January 1, 2016, the Solemnity of Mary Most Holy, Mother of God.

Holy Doors will also be at the other major basilicas of Rome: St. John Lateran, St. Peter’s, and St. Paul’s Outside the Walls.

For the Jubilee Year of Mercy, Pope Francis has also asked for Holy Doors to be established at Rome’s Sanctuary of Our Lady of Divine Love, and the Diocese of Rome’s Caritas Hostel on Via Marsala.








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