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Maronite Patriarch Bechara Rai and Pope Benedict XVI January 28, 2013. (Romereports.com) Cardinal Bechara Rai, the Patriarch of Antioch of the Maronites, will be in charge of preparing the texts that will be read during Good Friday's Way of the Cross ceremony, at the Colosseum.    It's a way to thank Benedict XVI for his recent trip to Lebanon, where he called for peace and prayed for all the Christians in the Middle East, who are going through this period of instability.  At this point, two youths from Lebanon will take part in preparing the texts for the ceremony....

ROME (Reuters) - The ancient Colosseum of Rome, where gladiators fought for their lives, is slanting about 40 cm (16 inches) lower on the south side than on the north, and authorities are investigating whether it needs urgent repairs. Experts first noticed the incline about a year ago and have been monitoring it for the past few months, ... Tests have also started to observe the effects that traffic on nearby busy roads may have on the monument. Professor Giorgio Monti, from La Sapienza's construction technology department, warned there may be a crack in the base below the amphitheatre. "The...

The Ivy League of Ancient Roman Gladiator Schools If you got sent back in time 2,000 years to ancient Rome, you probably wouldn't want to choose a career as a gladiator. After all, it was a messy existence, with a fairly low life expectancy. But if you were up to your eyeballs in debt, or wanted a chance at fortune or fame, you could break in at the top, by going to gladiator school. And four different Roman gladiator academies rose above the nearly 100 others, to become the best of the best. At these schools, you'd learn specific fighting...

One of Italy's most popular landmarks, the Colosseum will undergo restoration this year as part of a 40-million euro revamp of historic sites in the capital Rome. The city's mayor Gianni Alemanno announced the restoration on Friday after presenting plans for Rome's latest bid to host the 2020 Olympic Games. "The restoration is part of a larger strategic development plan," Alemanno told reporters in Rome. Rome previously hosted the Olympic Games, officially known as the games of the XVII Olympiad in 1960. Alemanno last year promised to conduct restoration work on the Colosseum beginning in April 2010 to mark the...

Dear Brothers and Sisters,At the end of his dramatic Passion narrative, the Evangelist Saint Mark tells us:  “The centurion, who stood facing him, saw that he thus breathed his last, and said: ‘Truly this man was the Son of God!’” (Mk 15:39).  We cannot fail to be surprised by the profession of faith of this Roman soldier, who had been present throughout the various phases of the Crucifixion.  When the darkness of night was falling on that Friday so unlike any other in history, when the sacrifice of the Cross was already consummated and the bystanders were making haste to...

Pope Benedict XVI led a torchlit procession at Rome's Colosseum on Good Friday, the most sombre day of the Christian calendar commemorating Christ's crucifixion, as tens of thousands of pilgrims looked on. Holding flickering candles cupped in coloured paper, they massed around the ancient Roman arena as the 79-year-old leader of the world's 1.1 billion Roman Catholics carried a simple cross during the first and last portions of the Way of the Cross procession. At the end, the pope addressed the throng, standing beside a giant cross made up of dozens of flaming candles that had overlooked the solemn observance...

Rome's Colosseum lights up in death penalty protest Jan 06 5:00 PM US/Eastern The Colosseum in Rome was illuminated evening as part of Italy's campaign for a global moratorium on the death penalty following the bungled hanging of Saddam Hussein. Following an initiative by the Italian capital's left-wing mayor Walter Veltroni, the arches of the world-famous 2,000-year-old Roman era stadium were lit up as night fell. In attendance were members of Italy's libertarian Radical Party, whose 76-year-old leader Marco Pannella began a hunger strike on December 26 in support of the moratorium. Italian politicians were unanimous in their revulsion over...

Here we go yet again. This time we were off for a week in Italy - Rome, Venice, and Milan with our Rick Steve's Travel Guides in hand. Of all the places we've been so far, the books paid off handsomely in Italy. And next to the Swedes up in Kiruna, the Italians are some of the nicest Europeans we've met to date. No wonder so many Americans were there at the same time as we were. We land in Rome in the evening and catch a cab to the hotel. What can you say about Italian cab drivers? After...

This Good Friday at night, in the Roman Coliseum, the place where numerous Christians  suffered martyr in the first centuries of the Church, became again this year the Via Dolorosa, were thousands of faithful lead by Pope Benedict XVI meditated on the destructive power of sin and the saving power of Christ’s Cross. The meditations and prayers of the Way of the Cross were prepared this year by the Vicar General of his Holyness for the City of the Vatican, Archbishop Angelo Comastri. At the onset of the way, the text of the prelate was read, in which it affirmed that “as we follow...

VATICAN CITY, MARCH 30, 2004 (Zenit.org).- John Paul II plans to preside over all the Holy Week services, including the Easter Vigil celebration and the Easter Sunday Mass. According to the program published today by the Office for the Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff, the services will begin on Palm Sunday this weekend, with the diocesan-level observance of the 19th World Youth Day. At 10 a.m. in St. Peter's Square, the Pope will bless the palms and olive branches and, at the end of the procession, will celebrate the Mass of the Lord's Passion. On Holy Thursday, April 8,...