Catholic Mass and Tourism

Your first sentence tells you how long the mass is. It's close to an hour. Unlike most American churches, many churches in Europe are tourist attractions. Worshippers are always welcome during mass. However, some churches will turn tourists away during mass. It may depend on the size. We were blocked from entry in San Gimignano during mass. il Duomo in Florence holds visitors off until the early masses are over. But, there is an area roped off for worhsippers that tourists cannot enter. It's right under the dome. We were able to enter larger churches in Siena and Assisi without difficulty. Wear appropriate attire. The doors are monitored and you could be turned away.

Thanks Larry. Also, I didn't mean to come across as a moron when I asked how long Mass was, I was just wondering if it is around, say, 40-45 minutes or something. Sometimes there are things worth seeing right in the general area of the Mass itself, right? So what I meant was, would there maybe be a 15 minute window or something to see those things before the next Mass.

Anyway, thanks again.

We have found that in the large churches services during the weekdays, including marriages and baptisms, are often held in side chapels. So if you behave as normal ie quietly and with respect, there should be no problem in looking around. If there are any no-go areas you will usually see warning notices and/or they will be roped off.

This may not be the case for the smaller churches and I'm afraid you have to play it by ear.

BTW marriages in Italy have to be held in public, which means in effect that the service should be open to the general public. But!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks Linda.

Oh, I should mention that most of the churches we are visiting will be on Monday, but I had planned to visit San Giovanni in Laterano, Santa Maria Maggiore, St. Peter in Chains, and San Clemente on Sunday. Does that change things?

I have to ask since you specifically said, "during the weekdays".

From my own experience, and I'm Catholic, some churches bar tourists during Mass times, but sometimes large churches will admiit tourists during Mass. Be quiet and respectful. You should not intrude in the actual area where Mass is being held. Weekday Masses are usually pretty small and last about half an hour. Sunday Masses, particular in the cathedrals are longer and sometimes include extra prayers and special music.

In Florence last year a man (I'm assuming Canadian based on the maple leaf tags on his stuff) at the small Mass in the lower chapel of San Mineato walked in and up the aisle with his wife. They said down, chatted a bit took some pictures and then he changed his camera battery, consulted his tour book then noisily trudged back out.Your best bet would be to visit the churches between 13:15 and 18:00

First, a man NEVER wears a hat in a Catholic church. This would be your first show of respect for the traditions and the sanctity of the church. And no, please don't do those touristy things you mentioned during the Mass, unless the Mass is in a segregated area away from the crowds, as in St Peters. In small churches, you would be intruding. The Mass is a sacred rite, and the majority of Italians are devout and are there to worship, which is the purpose of having the church. I approach any church with the utmost respect of its traditions, remaining quiet, repectful and appropriately dressed and consider it a priveledge to be allowed to visit. PS: I ALWAYS leave a donation, so we all can continue to be enriched by visiting these wonderful houses of God.

Ben

We have never tried to visit on a Sunday so cannot help I'm afraid. San Clemente lower church/excavations are open from 12 on Sundays so looks like no problem there.

http://www.basilicasanclemente.com/italiano/infoexcavations.htm

Definitely check general opening hours as well because we have been caught more than once by lunchtime/siesta closing.

"First, a man NEVER wears a hat in a Catholic church. This would be your first show of respect for the traditions and the sanctity of the church. And no, please don't do those touristy things you mentioned during the Mass, unless the Mass is in a segregated area away from the crowds, as in St Peters."

Ummm... I hope you know I was making a joke. I was making fun of the very idea...

One more question:

For a normal sightseer (not a pilgrim, not someone who is going to climb the steps on their knees), are the Holy Stairs near San Giovanni in Laterano worth seeing? Even if it will make the day's itinerary difficult to plan?

The current plan is that we arrive at our hotel around 10-10:30 AM, take the Metro to Termini, visit the National Museum of Rome, then visit Santa Maria Maggiore, take the bus from Santa Maria Maggiore to San Giovanni in Laterano. Arriving at San Giovanni at this time would almost certainly mean the Holy Stairs building is closed (12-15:30 timeframe). So we would just see the church itself, and be on our way to San Clemente.

If the Holy Stairs are a "must see", we would probably have to rearrange the itinerary. We would likely take the Metro directly to San Giovanni instead of Termini, see the church (this timeframe would then collide with Mass times...argh) and Holy Stairs, then take the bus to Santa Maria Maggiore and then the National Museum of Rome.

Are the Holy Stairs really worth the trouble for a non-Pilgrim? Thanks.

Not on my to-do list but then that's just my taste.

Another thought, why not visit the Basilica of St Maria Degli Angeli e dei Martiri instead. It is also in the Termini area. It was designed by Michaelangelo and built in part of the Baths of Diocletian. More my sort of thing.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Maria_degli_Angeli_e_dei_Martiri#The_basilica

Hmmm... Thanks for the recommendation, Linda. There is a section about it in Rick's book, and it looks interesting. I just wish there was more evidence of the actual baths left there...

We visited many, many churches throughout Italy and never really encountered a problem. Particularly in the larger churches, it is easy to visit other areas and works of art without even getting near the service. Just be as respectful and discreet as I imagine you are by the nature of your post and I think you'll be fine. However, as I recall, many churches were open for visits a few hours in the morning and then again in the afternoon/evening so take that into account when planning your day.

Most churches have a sign posting asking you not to come in during Mass, but it depends, it is unlikely that someone will come after you and kick you out. When I got married in Rome, there were tourists in the church, standing there watching some of the ceremony but I didn't even notice until I watched the video afterwards. I guess my mind was elsewhere!
How intrusive you are depends on you, I wouldn't walk up to the side chapel right next to the altar, filming, while the preist is saying Mass and put coins in the light machine. Being discreet is the key. I imagine in Rome there is little you could do to shock a priest, I imagine they have seen it all regarding tourists.

It was 10 years ago, this month in fact, that I went to Italy for a friend's wedding. It was held in Santa Maria del Popolo Church in Rome. During the wedding ceremony, a small group of tourists came tromping down the side aisle to view the Caravaggio ..... 'us' Americans (bride's side) rolled our eyes, while the Italians (groom's side) didn't notice or pretended not to see it.

I guess when you live in a heavily touristed city, you get used to this stuff. Just be respectful. And since you'll be visiting several churches, dress appropriately (avoid the T-shirts/jeans/ultra casual look).

And for goodness sake, please don't take flash photos during the mass, taking pictures is bad enough, but a flash going off is really annoying. Actual mass times can vary a bit depending on if there are any extra things going on, baptisms, vow renewals, how many announcements, etc. I personally would avoid touring during a mass at a smaller church, but that's us. Some churches are closed to tourists until after the main masses are over.

It really varies by church. We accidentally stumbled into a mass (in English no less!) at Santa Maria in Trastevere on a Thursday night. No one was manning the doors, unless you count the gypsy beggar lady, so we were inside before we realized what was going on. It's a pretty large church, and there were several tourists either looking around or sitting down in the back on chairs. Then there were a number of empty pews, and the actual congregation was all clustered up at the front.

Even though we're not Catholic, we decided to sit and listen for the experience, which was quite interesting and provided a different perspective from just wandering around the church. We saw a number of people coming and going, including those who came in late--like 30 minutes late! to attend the mass. The funniest were a pair of collared priests who came in about two-thirds of the way through, went about halfway down the pews, stayed for not quite 10 minutes, kneeled, crossed themselves, then left before the end of service.

As far as I recall, everyone was polite enough to be reasonably quiet and not take flash pictures while the service was going on, but no one seemed to care that people were traipsing in and out. We waited til the end of mass, then stayed a bit longer to explore the church and take some pictures.

There is something about this in one of RS's books...Sit in on one of the services and admire the church during the sermon (since it probably won't interest you). Also, remember that these are places of worship first and foremost. Unless its a major tourist attraction I usually don't like to take pictures inside churches and instead just soak up the experience being there.

As the world's worst altar boy--long since retired!--and one who also appreciates the in situ art in European churches, I would say that it's well worth attending at least one Mass (usually 45 min to an hour, but a High Mass, with a lot of music, can run considerably longer). The sound of the language, the music, the setting, the tradition, the people-watching...even if you're not Catholic, it can be beautiful. In my experience, churches don't allow tourists to enter during Mass, unless you tell them you wish to attend to worship. Otherwise, yes, avoid those times entirely (St. Peter's is an exception, since many masses can be going on at once in different sections, and there's still room for visitors in other areas).

My friend and I just had the greatest experiences in the past couple of weeks with attending Masses in French and Italian churches. Neither of us are Catholic, but we felt these were cultural experiences not to be missed. We just happened to be in several churches when a Mass was starting so we joined them. The coolest one was at St. Peter's in Rome where they were having a special High Mass for Annunciation Day and as a tribute to a cardinal for his 25 years as a cardinal. The singing and music were heavenly and we were at the high altar right up front under the dove window! It lasted for 90 min. and we enjoyed it very much. We also went to the Gregorian chant Mass at San Giorgio Maggiore church in Venice and it was very cool. Held upstairs in a special chapel with 6 older monks chanting. We also ended up in a couple Orthodox service held in Catholic churches. These were experiences that were spontaneous and not the typical planned tourist activity. Made the trip much more memorable.