The basilica of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere was built in the 5th century, then rebuilt by Pope Paschal I around 820 and again by Cardinal Sfondrati in 1599. The statue of St Cecilia is by Carlo Maderna. Her exposed neck shows the cuts made by the unsuccessful axeman who struck her three times. Her hands show three fingers and one in witness to the Christian faith in the Trinity and unity of God. A copy of the statue was placed in her sarcophagus in the catacombs of St Callixtus.
This was one of my favourite places as a student in Rome. The gregorian chant sung by the community of sisters was quite rare in Rome at that time. Their chaplain was a rather serious but kindly Monsignore who was always pleased when clerical students assisted at the Mass.
Another St Cecilia's is, of course, the Benedictine community in Ryde which has also resolutely kept up the tradition of Gregorian Chant. Please remember both communities in your prayers.
7 comments:
Goodness, Father Tim certainly knows how to awake memories from the past !
Santa Cecilia in Trastevere was one of MY favourite Roman churches.
The remarkable thing about this church is its very great age.
The seventeenth century facade and narthex suggest a building of no great age, but the campanile is clearly medieval.
Inside, the Baroque renovation continues along the nave of what is in fact a medieval building.
The most obvious medieval feature is the late thirteenth century baldachino.
The second most obvious is (I think,) The Last Judgement by Cavallini.
The apse contains ninth century mosaics from the church built by Paschal I.
Beneath the church much earlier remains have been found, but I suppose that this applies to most sites in the centre of Rome.
I remember the Benedictine nuns.
Their convent is next door to the church, I think.
This church is venerable enough to be included in the recent excellent book :
Ancient Churches of Rome From the Fourth to the Seventh Century by Hugo Brandenburg (Brepol, 2005).
When I was studying the history of art and architecture, many years ago, we were told that the sculpture of St. Cecilia was by a certain Stefano Maderno ..
It's also one of my favorites.
If you haven't read it, get hold of Dom Prosper Gueranger's The Life of St. Cecilia. The author convincingly rescues her life from the realm of legend, a fact of which more recent scholars seem to be unaware. Chapters XV through XXXVIII trace the history of her relics and basilica from her martyrdom through the 19th century. It makes fascinating reading. The sculpture by Maderno, for example, was done as a record in stone of how her body looked when discovered in the catacombs on Wednesday, the 20th of October, 1599.
"The workmen having removed the marble slab which covered it, a cypress coffin was seen inside.... There was no appearance of a lock, and the upper lid was not even fastened with nails. It was very thin, and opened and closed by means of a groove. For some time [Cardinal] Sfrondato and his assistants were uncertain how to open this sacred coffin, which they were sure contained the body of St. Cecilia. Finally, the cardinal himself discovered the proper means and with trembling hands respectfully removed the frail obstacle which concealed the virgin's body from his eyes.
"It was a solemn moment. After eight centuries of obscurity and silence, Cecilia appeared once more to the faithful of Christ, in the ineffable majesty of her martyrdom....
"All were eager to see more closely the mortal remains of the spouse of Christ. Sfrondato with profound veneration raised the veil, and exposed to view the treasure confided to the tomb by Urband and Pascal. The martyr was clothed in her antique robe, upon which the glorious marks of her virginal blood were still apparent; at her feet was the linen stained with the purple of her martyrdom. She was lying upon her right side and seemed to be in a profound sleep. The neck still bore the marks of the lictor's sword; her head by a mysterious and touching curvature was turned toward the bottom of the coffin.
"The body was found perfectly entire, whilst the graceful and modest figure of the saint, preserved so miraculously after so many centuries, vividly recalled the martyr breathing her last sigh upon the pavement of her caldarium."
Sorry.
I meant "eighteenth century facade" ( c. 1725, I think).
"Father Forgive Me for I have sinned." I can't believe I was in Trastevere this past April and I did not go to the Church. It just absolutely escaped my mind. It took forever to get the right bus to get there, we were hungry, we ate, we walked back to Rome and I'm so sad now because I didn't know I was so close and missed it.
Many thanks indeed for that reference, Lee. I knew that Maderno had based his sculpture on her re-discovered body but did not know any of the details except that the marks of the executioner's blows were visible. I did not know of Gueranger's work. He was a remarkable man whose scholarship deserves a "second spring".
The Acts if St Cecilia are spurious c5 legends with no historical veracity. Beyond the fact that she existed and occupies an honoured place in the Roman Canon, almost nothing is known about her. The honour loaded on her as patron saint of music etc is purely accidental.
Your confidence is impressive. Most people limit themselves to saying that there is no contemporary evidence to support the Acts. You clearly don't feel it worth bothering to find out what Gueranger had to say.
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