Papal Basilica Of St. John Lateran: Mother And Head Of All Churches

The Papal Basilica of St. John Lateran, or alternatively the Archbasilica of the Most Holy Savior and Saints John the Baptist and John the Evangelist, is the cathedral church of the Bishop of Rome, the Pope. The oldest of Rome’s four great basilicas and mother church of the entire Catholic world, St. John Lateran holds a unique place in the religious landscape of Christianity. For pilgrims, a trip to this basilica is an opportunity to experience the official throne of papal authority and the universality of the universal Church. Though dwarfed by St. Peter’s in the common imagination, St. John Lateran is really the Pope’s actual cathedral, the place from which he exercises his ministry as Bishop of Rome. The religious significance of St. John Lateran is expressed in its motto: “Omnium urbis et orbis ecclesiarum mater et caput” (Mother and head of all city churches and of all world churches). The title speaks of the basilica’s original role as the chief papal seat before moving to Avignon, and later to the Vatican.

The dedication of the basilica to Christ the Savior and his two co-patrons, St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist, gives a complete spiritual symbolism where the salvific work of Christ is associated with the two Johns’ prophetic testimony. The Evangelist, upon whose breast Christ leaned at the Last Supper, and the Baptist, precursor of the Lord, both incarnate the prophetic and contemplative dimensions of Christian life, inviting pilgrims to witness to the Gospel and to be at rest in Christ’s presence.

The architectural wealth of the basilica includes the massive baldacchino above the main altar, which contains relics of the heads of St. Paul and St. Peter. This placing of the apostolic relics above the altar indicates the foundation of the teaching authority of the Church in the apostles’ testimony. The basilica baptistery, aside from the church building, symbolizes ancient adult baptism and reminds one of the significance of the initiation sacrament in Christian life. The octagon form of the baptistery represents the eighth day of creation to indicate the new life in Christ after baptism. Standing in this sacred site, it is easy to imagine the early Church’s catechumens descending into the baptisms waters and emerging as new beings in Christ, their white vestments symbolizing the purity of their newly born souls.

The most famous religious draw of St. John Lateran is the Holy Stairs, or Scala Sancta, located directly across from the basilica. Traditionally, these are the steps Christ processed in his trial before Pontius Pilate, brought to Rome by St. Helena in the 4th century. Pilgrims ascend the steps on their knees, praying upon each step, in a poignant act of devotion that binds them both physically and spiritually with the Passion of Christ.

The spots of blood on the marble, said to be Christ’s blood, remind us of His agony on our account. Upstairs, the world vanishes, and the pilgrim is enveloped in the Passion of Christ and participates in His suffering and shares his own suffering and his own adversity with His. At the top of the stairs, the St. Lawrence Chapel is where one may go for reflective contemplation after this intense spiritual experience. The basilica continues to be a thriving center of Catholic life in Rome with ongoing liturgies, confessions, and spiritual direction available.

The Lateran Palace, next to it, houses the offices of the Vicar of Rome, who in the name of the Pope rules the diocese, offering a tangible connection between the spiritual authority of the papacy and the care of souls of the local Church. The St. Francis of Assisi statue in the piazza in front of the basilica calls to mind the Church’s commitment to the poor and the vulnerable, a commitment that was born in the Gospel and given expression in the social teaching of the Church. For pilgrims, St. John Lateran offers a profound experience of the Church as mother and teacher, where one’s faith is fed and from which the faithful are sent out to be witnesses to the Gospel in the world.