Pops' Italy Travel Guide, Rome

On one of my trips to Rome I arranged through a friend of mine to have a private tour of the Catholic churches of Rome by two Catholic priests that he knew and were living just outside Rome. We agreed to meet at St. John Lateran's Basilica which is the church of the Bishop of Rome. This is where we learned our first fact. The Bishop of Rome is also the Pope.

It is the oldest and ranks first among the four Papal Basilica's. It was the primary basilica before St. Peters was built. It is not within the Vatican City but is within the city limits of Rome. However it enjoys extraterritorial status as one of the properties of the Holy See. It also claims the title as the mother church among Roman Catholics.

The tour had just begun and we already had learned a lot. From there the priests took us on a tour of churches that were home to religious relics. During the crusades relics were brought back from the Holy Land.

• Santa Maria Maggiore houses the crib that Jesus was born in and a piece of the true cross. It also has the tomb of St. Mathew. It is located on Esquiline Hill. 
• Santa Croce in Gerusalemme houses Doubting Thomas's finger, pieces of the true cross and thorns from the crown worn during the crucifixion. 
• Saint John Lateran's and Santa Santorum house some of the holiest relics. These include the heads of Saint Peter and Paul, the Holy Stairs taken from the Palace of Pontius Pilate, and wood from the table of the Last Supper. On the Holy Stairs we saw many people on their knees praying on the stairs. I asked the priests what they were doing and they said that they walked up the stairs on their knees praying as they went. The priests had done it but it looked too painful for my knees and I opted out. 

Walking from church to church I had time to ask the priests a lot of questions. I am a Catholic and was raised one by my mother. However some things I had a hard time believing. One was the crib that Jesus was born in. I believe Jesus was born in a manger in a pile of hay. The priests told me that if you believe that the church has the real crib then it is the real crib,

We did a lot of walking that day. We ended up walking from St. John Lateran's to Piazza Navona for dinner. After dinner we ended up walking to the Vatican where we said goodbye to our guides. When I said it was a long day, we started at 8 am and left them at 1 am. We walked the entire day except for breaking for something to drink and dinner.  

Although it was a long day this was a once in a lifetime opportunity. I would suggest if you are going to Rome and you are Catholic or know one it wouldn't hurt to ask a local priest. Odds are they may know of someone in Rome to give you the same kind of tour.