Has anyone attended mass while in Italy? Is it possible to take mass in St Peters? If not, do you know of other historic churches in Rome (and somewhere around Bellagio) where we can attend a mass?
We usually skip mass when we're on vacation, but given where we'll be our first Sunday in Italy (Rome)I'd like to take advantage of our location!! Thanks for your input.
Hi Lisa,
Hopefully a few others can chime in with their experiences, but from what I've heard/witnessed, it depends on the church. Generally, if the mass is closed to tourists, someone will be posted at the door, but will let you in if you say you are there for mass. It can help to have a letter from your priest (assuming you are Catholic).
Other churches are far more relaxed. We (heretical nonbelievers) stumbled by accident into an English mass in Santa Maria in Trastevere. We took a seat in the back and decided to stay and observe the service, taking our photos afterwards. No one seemed to mind, and we saw tourists and faithful alike wandering in and out during the entire thing. Might have helped that it was a Thursday evening instead of Sunday.
When I was last in Rome I attended mass at Santa Maria Vittoria. It was Sunday, and I was looking to attend mass and it happened to be the first church I saw where mass was on. It was only afterwards that I discovered that it was a historic church. There is probably a better way of finding times etc, but I do not know how.
Thank you all for your responses. We'll shoot for St Peters or the Pantheon.
Lisa,
I'm just back from my 5th trip to Italy and we usually go to Mass several times a week while we're there--- we even bought two little Italian Mass books at the religious supply store on the street behind the Duomo in Florence. My experience in the bigger towns and cities is that there will often be a guard of sorts at the door. You just need to indicate you are there for Mass--- by saying it in Italian or making the Sign of the Cross. Do a google search for Santa Susanna American Catholic church in Rome. They have tons of very useful information for Catholics travelling in Rome. There is Mass in the Pantheon at 10:30 on Sunday mornings that I found particularly lovely.
Lisa....
We attended mass at Santa Susanna in Rome one week night last October. The mass was in English.
Lisa,
It is possible to go to mass at St. Peter's. I did it a few years ago. I believe Sunday mass is at 10am and afterwards people gather in the piazza where the Pope addresses the audience. I remember there were a lot of people trying to go to mass and you had to go through the metal detectors, so I would recommend you get there early. Also make sure you follow proper dress code (shoulders and knees covered) or they will not let you in. Hope this helps.
Hi Lisa,
Below is a link to the Vatican's website and a listing of the Vatican's mass times, as well as mass times for other churches in Rome:
http://www.vatican.va/faq/index_en.htm
I was in Rome about a month ago and attended the 4 pm Sunday mass at the Vatican. It is held towards the back of the cathedral and is blocked off from the tourists milling around St. Peter's. You just have to let the guards know that you are there for mass and they will let you in.
Enjoy your trip!
When the Pope is in town on Sundays he comes to the window of his apartment at noon and prays the Angelus with the gathered crown and gives a short reflection in several languages then a blessing to the crowds.
We went to Sunday mass in Venice at St. Marks at 10:30, very nice. In Rome we went to a late afternoon (17:00-ish) mass at St. Peter's on a Friday, we happened to be in there when we saw it starting so just went over and attended. This actually made our decision about Sunday mass easier, we had been debating about trying to go to St. Peter's or the Pantheon but since we were able to go to a mass at St. Peter's when we were on the Friday, on the Sunday we went to the 10:30 mass at the Pantheon. We found that if we wandered in to a church and a mass was starting or had just started, if we wanted to attend, no problem. They do ask that you don't act like a tourist during mass, no photos or anything.
When we were in Rome mid May, we attended Mass at Sta Maria Maggiore (St Mary Major). It is near Termini. The mass times were 7, 8, 9, 10, 12N. I think the 10am mass is a traditional Latin mass (i.e., long). It is one of the 4 major basilicas and named after Mary, so I thought that was nice that we could hear mass there.
