Saints, Sinners and Sunshine
This is a special 6 day programme designed by Revd Jane Roberts.
Visit the Vatican, with its splendid museum and Sistine Chapel; the catacombs where the earliest Christians worshiped in secrecy; follow in the footsteps of some of the greatest Christian saints, and experience the magnificence of St. Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican City. Besides its importance to Christianity Rome is an open-air museum where works of art, remains, and monuments of past millenniums are on permanent display: The Coliseum, Pantheon, Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps are but a few of these marvellous wonders.
Join us to explore this unforgettable, diverse, romantic and majestic city.
The Holy Land Brochure. Booking Form.
Day 1 Sunday 13 March
Sunday Today we gather at the airport to fly to Rome. We have time to relax on the two and a half hour journey before landing in Rome. On arrival, our coach will be waiting to take us on the short journey into the city where we enjoy an orientation tour of the city to get our bearings before checking into the hotel. In the evening, we meet and celebrate the Eucharist before enjoying dinner together as a group. (D)
Day 2 Monday 14 March
After breakfast, we join our guide to start our exploration of Rome, seeing some of its classical sights including the Forum and Coliseum. We have the opportunity to delve into the rich history of the city over the past three millennia whilst also enjoying the appealing architecture of the Spanish Steps and the many fountains in the city. After a break for lunch, we continue our sightseeing after which there is the opportunity to visit the Sant Egidio Community to learn more about the work they do with the world’s poor and underprivileged. We enjoy dinner together in the city and then rejoin the Community for evening worship, before returning to our hotel. (B)
Day 3 Tuesday 15 March
We have breakfast together before starting our exploration of Christian Rome. We begin with a visit to the Lateran Baptistery, dedicated to St John. This is the oldest baptistery in the world, built in the 4th century. Next door is the cathedral of St. John Lateran which we also plan to visit before continuing onto the nearby San Clemente Basilica. Comprising of an early lower church with a later 12th century upper church, this is one of Rome’s most ornately decorated places of worship. We will take the opportunity to see the recent excavations of the lower church with its faded frescoes and the small Mithras temple on which the churches were built of which some still survives. After a break for lunch we continue with a visit to the Pantheon, the 7th century Catholic church and resting place of the painter Raphael. Here we visit the splendid rotunda and dome to enjoy some of the symbolic artwork on display. We proceed on foot to the nearby 13th century Santa Maria sopra Minerva, Rome’s first gothic style church. Later we will be taking the opportunity to visit the Anglican Centre to celebrate the Eucharist together and to enjoy a discussion about ecumenism since the second Vatican council. (B,D)
Day 4 Wednesday 16 March
Wednesday Rome is of course home to the Vatican, the centre of the Holy Roman church and we dedicate today to an exploration of the many churches, chapels and of course, the Vatican museum and Sistine Chapel. We also plan to visit the tomb of Saint Peter, subject to permission being granted.During the day, we hope to enjoy a Papal audience, circumstances permitting. In the evening we enjoy dinner together. (B,D)
Day 5 Thursday 17 March
Our final full day in Rome is dedicated to visiting one of the catacombs of the city - the ancient burial tunnels of the early Jewish and Christian communities and hiding place of sacred relics during the sacking of Rome by the Barbarians. Now well excavated, we retread the steps of our Christian brothers and sisters. Following the catacombs, we take the opportunity to visit The Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls, believed by many to be the final resting place of St Paul after his execution. The rest of the afternoon is left free for some last minute sightseeing in Rome before a visit to the Anglican Church of All Saints in Rome for a celebration of the Eucharist. A farewell dinner will be enjoyed together in a local restaurant. (B,D)
Day 6 Friday 18 March
Day Six - Friday This morning, if time allows, we plan an optional tour to the Castel Sant'Angelo before bidding a fond goodbye to Rome and returning to the airport to fly back to London. (B)
