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Scala Sancta

April 11, 2024

The Scala Sancta (English: Holy Stairs, Italian: Scala Santa) are a set of 28 white marble steps located in an edifice on extraterritorial property of the Holy See in Rome, Italy proximate to the Archbasilica of Saint John in Laterano.[1] Officially, the edifice is titled the Pontifical Sanctuary of the Holy Stairs (Pontificio Santuario della Scala Santa), and incorporates part of the old Papal Lateran Palace. Replica stairs flank the original staircase, which may only be climbed on one's knees. The Holy Stairs lead to the Church of Saint Lawrence in Palatio ad Sancta Sanctorum (Chiesa di San Lorenzo in Palatio ad Sancta Sanctorum) or simply the "Sancta Sanctorum" (English: Holy of Holies), which was the personal chapel of the early Popes.

Scala Sancta

According to Catholic Church tradition, the Holy Stairs were the steps leading up to the praetorium of Pontius Pilate in Jerusalem on which Jesus Christ stepped on his way to trial during his Passion. The Stairs reputedly were brought to Rome by Saint Helena in the fourth century. In the Middle Ages they were known as Scala Pilati (the Stairs of Pilate).[2]

For centuries, the Scala Sancta has attracted Christian pilgrims who wish to honour the Passion of Jesus Christ. Since the early 1700s, the Holy Stairs have been encased in wood for protection, but were briefly exposed in 2019 following restoration work.[3][4]

History edit

According to Catholic Church tradition, the Holy Stairs were the steps leading up to the praetorium of Pontius Pilate in Jerusalem on which Jesus Christ stepped on his way to trial during his Passion.[5]

Medieval legends claim that Saint Helena, mother of Emperor Constantine the Great, brought the Holy Stairs from Jerusalem to Rome circa AD 326.[6] In the Middle Ages, they were known as "Scala Pilati" ("Stairs of Pilate"). From old plans it appears that they led to a corridor of the Lateran Palace, near the Chapel of Saint Sylvester, and were covered with a special roof. In 1589, Pope Sixtus V had the Papal Lateran Palace, then in ruins, demolished to make way for the construction of a new one. He ordered the Holy Stairs be reconstructed in their present location, before the Sancta Sanctorum (Holy of Holies), named for the many precious relics preserved there. The chapel also houses an icon of Christ Pantocrator, known as the "Uronica", that was supposedly begun by Saint Luke and finished by an angel. This celebrated icon of Santissimi Salvatore Acheiropoieton ("not made by human hands"), on certain occasions, used to be carried through Rome in procession.[7]

The Scala Sancta may only be ascended on the knees. For common use, the staircase is flanked by four additional staircases, two on each side, constructed circa 1589.[8] In 1724, Pope Benedict XIII covered the marble stairs in wood for their protection, since the marble had been significantly worn away by the many pilgrims ascending the stairs over time. The stairs remained covered until 2019, when the protective wood covering was removed and the marble exposed following restoration work. When the stairs were reopened on 11 April 2019, pilgrims were permitted to ascend the exposed marble stairs on their knees for the first time in almost 300 years.[3] The stairs remained exposed and open to the public between April 2019 and July 2019, and then were again covered in wood.[4]

Decoration edit

 
A fresco at Scala Sancta

The decoration of the Scala Sancta was one of the major renovations of the pontificate of Pope Sixtus V, led by Cesare Nebbia and Giovanni Guerra and occupying a crew of artists to decorate frescoes including Giovanni Baglione, Giacomo Stella, Giovanni Battista Pozzo, Paris Nogari, Prospero Orsi,[9] Ferraù Fenzoni, Paul Bril, Paulo Guidotti, Giovanni Battista Ricci, Cesare Torelli, Antonio Vivarini, Andrea Lilio, Cesare and Vincenzo Conti, Baldassare Croce, Ventura Salimbeni, and Antonio Scalvati. Numerous preliminary drawings by Nebbia for these frescoes are extant, though it is not known with certainty who painted each fresco.

A major restoration was completed in 2007 and funded largely by the Getty Foundation.[5] In early 2018, a restoration of the frescoes began, causing the Scala Sancta to be closed for over a year.[3]

Scala Sancta in the Catholic Church edit

Climbing the Holy Stairs on one's knees is a devotion much in favour with pilgrims and the faithful. Several popes have performed the devotion,[5] and the Catholic Church has granted indulgences for it.[10] Pope Pius VII on 2 September 1817 granted those who ascend the Stairs in the prescribed manner an indulgence of nine years for every step. Pope Pius X, on 26 February 1908, conceded a plenary indulgence as often as the Stairs are devoutly ascended after Confession and Holy Communion. On 11 August 2015, the Apostolic Penitentiary granted a plenary indulgence to all who, "inspired by love", climbed the Stairs on their knees while meditating on Christ's passion, and also went to Confession, received Holy Communion, and recited certain other Catholic prayers, including a prayer for the Pope's intentions. Those who were physically impeded from climbing the stairs could obtain the plenary indulgence by meditating on Christ's passion while at the Stairs and completing the other conditions.[11]

As part of the ceremonies opening the Holy Year in 1933, Cardinal Francesco Marchetti Selvaggiani, Vicar of Rome, led a crowd of hundreds in mounting the steps on their knees.[12]

Between April 2019 and July 2019, pilgrims were permitted to ascend the stairs kneeling on the original uncovered marble steps for the first time in almost 300 years. As a result, visitor numbers during this time increased threefold from the usual, and long lines formed at the entrance.[4]

Visitors edit

Scala Sancta

Martin Luther climbed the steps on his knees in 1510. As he did so, he repeated the Our Father on each step. It was said, by doing this work one could "redeem a soul from purgatory." But when Luther arrived at the top he could not suppress his doubt, "Who knows whether this is true?"[13]

Charles Dickens, after visiting the Scala Sancta in 1845, wrote: "I never, in my life, saw anything at once so ridiculous and so unpleasant as this sight." He described the scene of pilgrims ascending the staircase on their knees as a "dangerous reliance on outward observances".[5][14]

Copies of the Scala Sancta edit

Imitations of the Scala Sancta were erected in several locations and indulgences were often attached to them:

Notes edit

  1. ^ www.vatican.va 1 October 2022 at the Wayback Machine Stampa della Santa Sede: Zone extraterritoriali vaticani, 3 April 2001 (Italian). Retrieved 24 March 2014.
  2. ^ Oliger, Livarius. "Scala Sancta (Holy Stairs)." The Catholic Encyclopedia 29 November 2021 at the Wayback Machine Vol. 13. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 31 December 2022   This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  3. ^ a b c Brockhaus, Hannah (11 April 2019). "Rome's 'Holy Stairs' uncovered for the first time in 300 years". Catholic News Agency. from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 5 June 2019.
  4. ^ a b c "Unveiling Rome's Scala Santa". wantedinrome.com. 12 February 2020. from the original on 22 February 2020. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
  5. ^ a b c d Moore, Malcolm (14 June 2007). "Steps Jesus walked to trial restored to glory". The Telegraph (UK). from the original on 30 April 2020. Retrieved 24 March 2014.
  6. ^ Nickell, Joe (2007). "Other Crucifixion Relics". Relics of the Christ. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky. pp. 96–97. ISBN 978-0-8131-2425-4.
  7. ^ Ewart Witcombe, p. 372.
  8. ^ a b Grendler, Paul F. (2009). The University of Mantua, the Gonzaga, and the Jesuits, 1584–1630. Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 9780801897832. from the original on 30 October 2023. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
  9. ^ Baglione, Giovanni. Le vite de ̕pittori, scultori, architetti, ed intagliatori, dal pontificato Gregorio XIII del 1572 fino a’ tempi di Papa Urbano VIII nel 1642. 18 January 2023 at the Wayback Machine (1733), page 188.
  10. ^ Lea, Henry (1896). A History of Auricular Confession and Indulgences in the Latin Church. Vol. 3. Philadelphia: Lea Bros. pp. 457–458. ISBN 1-4021-6108-5.
  11. ^ Apostolic Penitentiary (11 November 2018). "The Holy Stairs: Pontifical Shrine of the Scala Santa, Rome: Decree". Santuario della Scala Santa e Sancta Sanctorum. from the original on 4 June 2019. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
  12. ^ "Pope Blesses Entire World" (PDF). New York Times. 2 April 1933. Retrieved 24 March 2014.
  13. ^ Brecht, Martin; Martin Luther, His Road to Reformation 1483–1521, Fortress Press, 1981; p.103
  14. ^ . www.gutenberg.org. Archived from the original on 3 August 2021. Retrieved 21 March 2022.
  15. ^ Gigli 1994, p. 23.
  16. ^ Gigli 1994, p. 35.
  17. ^ "Shrine of Holy Stairs – Campli". Official Website of the Teramo Province. from the original on 14 March 2017. Retrieved 13 May 2009.
  18. ^ "Kreuzberg Bonn – made by kirasystem | © kreuzberg-bonn e.v. | impressum | datenschutz". from the original on 28 November 2019. Retrieved 11 May 2009.

  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Scala Sancta (Holy Stairs)". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.

References edit

  • Eitel-Porter, Rhoda (1997). "Artistic Co-Operation in Late Sixteenth-Century Rome: The Sistine Chapel in S. Maria Maggiore and the Scala Santa". The Burlington Magazine: 452–462.
  • Gigli, Laura (1994). Guide rionali di Roma (in Italian). Vol. Borgo (IV). Roma: Fratelli Palombi Editori. ISSN 0393-2710.
  • Ewart Witcombe, Christopher L. C. (1985). "Sixtus V and the Scala Santa". The Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians. 44 (4): 368–379. doi:10.2307/990114. JSTOR 990114.
  • Soresini, Giuseppe Maria (1672). De Scala Sancta ante Sancta Sanctorum in Laterano culta opusculum (in Latin). Rome: Ex typographia Varesij.

External links edit

 
Wikisource has the text of the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia article Scala Sancta (Holy Stairs).
 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Scala Santa (Rome).
  • Official website of the Scala Santa
  • "Beggar's Rome" – A self-directed virtual tour of the Scala Sancta and other Roman churches

41°53′13″N 12°30′25″E / 41.887°N 12.507°E / 41.887; 12.507

April 11, 2024
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The Scala Sancta English Holy Stairs Italian Scala Santa are a set of 28 white marble steps located in an edifice on extraterritorial property of the Holy See in Rome Italy proximate to the Archbasilica of Saint John in Laterano 1 Officially the edifice is titled the Pontifical Sanctuary of the Holy Stairs Pontificio Santuario della Scala Santa and incorporates part of the old Papal Lateran Palace Replica stairs flank the original staircase which may only be climbed on one s knees The Holy Stairs lead to the Church of Saint Lawrence in Palatio ad Sancta Sanctorum Chiesa di San Lorenzo in Palatio ad Sancta Sanctorum or simply the Sancta Sanctorum English Holy of Holies which was the personal chapel of the early Popes Scala SanctaAccording to Catholic Church tradition the Holy Stairs were the steps leading up to the praetorium of Pontius Pilate in Jerusalem on which Jesus Christ stepped on his way to trial during his Passion The Stairs reputedly were brought to Rome by Saint Helena in the fourth century In the Middle Ages they were known as Scala Pilati the Stairs of Pilate 2 For centuries the Scala Sancta has attracted Christian pilgrims who wish to honour the Passion of Jesus Christ Since the early 1700s the Holy Stairs have been encased in wood for protection but were briefly exposed in 2019 following restoration work 3 4 Contents 1 History 2 Decoration 3 Scala Sancta in the Catholic Church 4 Visitors 5 Copies of the Scala Sancta 6 Notes 7 References 8 External linksHistory editAccording to Catholic Church tradition the Holy Stairs were the steps leading up to the praetorium of Pontius Pilate in Jerusalem on which Jesus Christ stepped on his way to trial during his Passion 5 Medieval legends claim that Saint Helena mother of Emperor Constantine the Great brought the Holy Stairs from Jerusalem to Rome circa AD 326 6 In the Middle Ages they were known as Scala Pilati Stairs of Pilate From old plans it appears that they led to a corridor of the Lateran Palace near the Chapel of Saint Sylvester and were covered with a special roof In 1589 Pope Sixtus V had the Papal Lateran Palace then in ruins demolished to make way for the construction of a new one He ordered the Holy Stairs be reconstructed in their present location before the Sancta Sanctorum Holy of Holies named for the many precious relics preserved there The chapel also houses an icon of Christ Pantocrator known as the Uronica that was supposedly begun by Saint Luke and finished by an angel This celebrated icon of Santissimi Salvatore Acheiropoieton not made by human hands on certain occasions used to be carried through Rome in procession 7 The Scala Sancta may only be ascended on the knees For common use the staircase is flanked by four additional staircases two on each side constructed circa 1589 8 In 1724 Pope Benedict XIII covered the marble stairs in wood for their protection since the marble had been significantly worn away by the many pilgrims ascending the stairs over time The stairs remained covered until 2019 when the protective wood covering was removed and the marble exposed following restoration work When the stairs were reopened on 11 April 2019 pilgrims were permitted to ascend the exposed marble stairs on their knees for the first time in almost 300 years 3 The stairs remained exposed and open to the public between April 2019 and July 2019 and then were again covered in wood 4 Decoration edit nbsp A fresco at Scala SanctaThe decoration of the Scala Sancta was one of the major renovations of the pontificate of Pope Sixtus V led by Cesare Nebbia and Giovanni Guerra and occupying a crew of artists to decorate frescoes including Giovanni Baglione Giacomo Stella Giovanni Battista Pozzo Paris Nogari Prospero Orsi 9 Ferrau Fenzoni Paul Bril Paulo Guidotti Giovanni Battista Ricci Cesare Torelli Antonio Vivarini Andrea Lilio Cesare and Vincenzo Conti Baldassare Croce Ventura Salimbeni and Antonio Scalvati Numerous preliminary drawings by Nebbia for these frescoes are extant though it is not known with certainty who painted each fresco A major restoration was completed in 2007 and funded largely by the Getty Foundation 5 In early 2018 a restoration of the frescoes began causing the Scala Sancta to be closed for over a year 3 Scala Sancta in the Catholic Church editClimbing the Holy Stairs on one s knees is a devotion much in favour with pilgrims and the faithful Several popes have performed the devotion 5 and the Catholic Church has granted indulgences for it 10 Pope Pius VII on 2 September 1817 granted those who ascend the Stairs in the prescribed manner an indulgence of nine years for every step Pope Pius X on 26 February 1908 conceded a plenary indulgence as often as the Stairs are devoutly ascended after Confession and Holy Communion On 11 August 2015 the Apostolic Penitentiary granted a plenary indulgence to all who inspired by love climbed the Stairs on their knees while meditating on Christ s passion and also went to Confession received Holy Communion and recited certain other Catholic prayers including a prayer for the Pope s intentions Those who were physically impeded from climbing the stairs could obtain the plenary indulgence by meditating on Christ s passion while at the Stairs and completing the other conditions 11 As part of the ceremonies opening the Holy Year in 1933 Cardinal Francesco Marchetti Selvaggiani Vicar of Rome led a crowd of hundreds in mounting the steps on their knees 12 Between April 2019 and July 2019 pilgrims were permitted to ascend the stairs kneeling on the original uncovered marble steps for the first time in almost 300 years As a result visitor numbers during this time increased threefold from the usual and long lines formed at the entrance 4 Visitors edit source source source source source source Scala SanctaMartin Luther climbed the steps on his knees in 1510 As he did so he repeated the Our Father on each step It was said by doing this work one could redeem a soul from purgatory But when Luther arrived at the top he could not suppress his doubt Who knows whether this is true 13 Charles Dickens after visiting the Scala Sancta in 1845 wrote I never in my life saw anything at once so ridiculous and so unpleasant as this sight He described the scene of pilgrims ascending the staircase on their knees as a dangerous reliance on outward observances 5 14 Copies of the Scala Sancta editImitations of the Scala Sancta were erected in several locations and indulgences were often attached to them Rome Borgo Santo Spirito the stairs lead to the Church of Santi Michele e Magno 15 16 Ducal palace Mantua Italy 1614 5 by Ferdinando Gonzaga then a cardinal later Duke of Mantua 8 Sacro Monte di Varallo Piedmont Italy Saint Paul Church Campli Italy 42 43 28 5 N 13 41 5 7 E 42 724583 N 13 684917 E 42 724583 13 684917 Pope Clement XIV acknowledged Campli in 1772 with the ownership of the Holy Stairs 17 San Girolamo Reggio Emilia Veroli Italy Basilica of Sainte Anne d Auray France 47 42 17 47 N 2 57 9 27 W 47 7048528 N 2 9525750 W 47 7048528 2 9525750 Kalvarienbergkirche Bad Tolz Germany 47 45 49 N 11 33 21 E 47 76361 N 11 55583 E 47 76361 11 55583 Kreuzbergkirche Bonn Germany 50 42 51 N 7 4 48 E 50 71417 N 7 08000 E 50 71417 7 08000 Clemens August of Bavaria ordered the retrofitting of this church with a Scala Sancta according to the plans of the Baroque architect Balthasar Neumann 18 It was constructed between 1745 and 1751 Frantiskansky kostol Neposkvrneneho Pocatia Panny Marie Malacky Slovakia Church of Our Lady and Saint Charlemagne in Karlov Prague Bohemia Czech Republic 1708 11 Loretto Chapel in Brno Moravia Czech Republic Chapel of the Holy Stairs in the Monastery on the Mountain of the Mother of God in Dolni Hedec Kraliky Eastern Bohemia Czech Republic Pilgrim Chapel of the Holy Stairs in Rumburk Bohemia Czech Republic 1767 70 Basilica of Sainte Anne de Beaupre outside Quebec City Canada Sanctuaire du Sacre Coeur et de Saint Padre Pio in Montreal Canada Saint Patrick Saint Stanislaus Kostka in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania United States The National Shrine of the Cross in the Woods in Indian River unofficial locality Cheboygan County Michigan United States Holy Family Chapel of the Congregation of the Sisters of Saint Joseph in Nazareth unofficial locality Kalamazoo County Michigan United States Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto in Lowell Massachusetts United States Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross in Sosnica Lower Silesian Voivodeship PolandNotes edit www vatican va Archived 1 October 2022 at the Wayback Machine Stampa della Santa Sede Zone extraterritoriali vaticani 3 April 2001 Italian Retrieved 24 March 2014 Oliger Livarius Scala Sancta Holy Stairs The Catholic Encyclopedia Archived 29 November 2021 at the Wayback Machine Vol 13 New York Robert Appleton Company 1912 31 December 2022 nbsp This article incorporates text from this source which is in the public domain a b c Brockhaus Hannah 11 April 2019 Rome s Holy Stairs uncovered for the first time in 300 years Catholic News Agency Archived from the original on 12 April 2019 Retrieved 5 June 2019 a b c Unveiling Rome s Scala Santa wantedinrome com 12 February 2020 Archived from the original on 22 February 2020 Retrieved 22 February 2020 a b c d Moore Malcolm 14 June 2007 Steps Jesus walked to trial restored to glory The Telegraph UK Archived from the original on 30 April 2020 Retrieved 24 March 2014 Nickell Joe 2007 Other Crucifixion Relics Relics of the Christ Lexington University Press of Kentucky pp 96 97 ISBN 978 0 8131 2425 4 Ewart Witcombe p 372 a b Grendler Paul F 2009 The University of Mantua the Gonzaga and the Jesuits 1584 1630 Johns Hopkins University Press ISBN 9780801897832 Archived from the original on 30 October 2023 Retrieved 3 December 2020 Baglione Giovanni Le vite de pittori scultori architetti ed intagliatori dal pontificato Gregorio XIII del 1572 fino a tempi di Papa Urbano VIII nel 1642 Archived 18 January 2023 at the Wayback Machine 1733 page 188 Lea Henry 1896 A History of Auricular Confession and Indulgences in the Latin Church Vol 3 Philadelphia Lea Bros pp 457 458 ISBN 1 4021 6108 5 Apostolic Penitentiary 11 November 2018 The Holy Stairs Pontifical Shrine of the Scala Santa Rome Decree Santuario della Scala Santa e Sancta Sanctorum Archived from the original on 4 June 2019 Retrieved 4 June 2019 Pope Blesses Entire World PDF New York Times 2 April 1933 Retrieved 24 March 2014 Brecht Martin Martin Luther His Road to Reformation 1483 1521 Fortress Press 1981 p 103 Pictures from Italy by Charles Dickens www gutenberg org Archived from the original on 3 August 2021 Retrieved 21 March 2022 Gigli 1994 p 23 Gigli 1994 p 35 Shrine of Holy Stairs Campli Official Website of the Teramo Province Archived from the original on 14 March 2017 Retrieved 13 May 2009 Kreuzberg Bonn made by kirasystem c kreuzberg bonn e v impressum datenschutz Archived from the original on 28 November 2019 Retrieved 11 May 2009 nbsp This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain Herbermann Charles ed 1913 Scala Sancta Holy Stairs Catholic Encyclopedia New York Robert Appleton Company References editEitel Porter Rhoda 1997 Artistic Co Operation in Late Sixteenth Century Rome The Sistine Chapel in S Maria Maggiore and the Scala Santa The Burlington Magazine 452 462 Gigli Laura 1994 Guide rionali di Roma in Italian Vol Borgo IV Roma Fratelli Palombi Editori ISSN 0393 2710 Ewart Witcombe Christopher L C 1985 Sixtus V and the Scala Santa The Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians 44 4 368 379 doi 10 2307 990114 JSTOR 990114 Soresini Giuseppe Maria 1672 De Scala Sancta ante Sancta Sanctorum in Laterano culta opusculum in Latin Rome Ex typographia Varesij External links edit nbsp Wikisource has the text of the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia article Scala Sancta Holy Stairs nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Scala Santa Rome Official website of the Scala Santa Beggar s Rome A self directed virtual tour of the Scala Sancta and other Roman churches 41 53 13 N 12 30 25 E 41 887 N 12 507 E 41 887 12 507 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Scala Sancta amp oldid 1203539862, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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