Among the basilicas and churches included in the Jubilee 2025 Jubilee routes, three are closely linked to the historical presence of the Order of Preachers: the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, on the “Papal Basilicas” route; the Basilica of Santa Sabina, on the route of the Churches of the European Union, “Europe in Rome”; and the Basilica of Santa Maria sopra Minerva, on the route “Women Patrons of Europe and Doctors of the Church”.
In the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, the friars of the Order are responsible for administering the Sacrament of Reconciliation. The Apostolic College of Penitentiaries of Santa Maria Maggiore was created by St. Pius V with the Bull “Pro nostri muneris oficio” of 1st September 1568, entrusting it to the friars of the Order of Preachers. There are 12 ordinary friars and 2 extraordinary confessors, belonging to different Provinces of the Order, and to different nations and languages, to reflect the apostolic and universal character of the Church. “The Liberian Penitentiaries, imitating the spirit of St. Dominic who, as Father, Judge, Master and Friend, reconciled his penitents with God, exercise the ministry of reconciliation in the Papal Basilica of St. Mary Major, fulfilling the Lord’s command: ‘Whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven, and whose sins you do not forgive, they remain unforgiven’ (John 20:23)”, the Basilica’s website highlights.
The Basilica of Santa Sabina on the Aventine Hill, entrusted to the Order of Preachers, is one of the 28 churches and basilicas that are part of the Jubilee Route of the Churches of the European Union, “Europe in Rome”, all of them historically linked to European countries for cultural and artistic reasons or because of a tradition of welcoming pilgrims from a particular European Union state. In the case of the Basilica of Santa Sabina, it is Estonia. “In 1219, Pope Honorius III granted the church and part of the building to St. Dominic of Guzman, founder of the Dominican Order, and since then it has become its seat and an important place of reference for the Estonian community, given the historical presence of the Dominican family near Tallinn, the capital of the Estonian country”, as explained on the official website of the Jubilee 2025.
At Santa Sabina the presence of figures of the Order is evident from the time when the Basilica was entrusted to St. Dominic. St. Dominic himself lived for a time in this place, where his cell, now a chapel, is located. To the right of the entrance facing Piazza Pietro d’Illiria, there is a statue of St. Dominic and, to the left, a fresco depicting the scene of the saint who had returned late to the community and was accompanied by angels so as not to disturb the sleep of his brothers. To the left of this entrance is the portico through which one reaches the famous 5th-century door, which is the oldest piece of wood in Christian art and on which Jesus Crucified was depicted for the first time. To the left of the door is the statue of St. Rose of Lima, who was the first saint of the Americas. Entering the Basilica, and looking towards the main altar, on the right side is the chapel of Saint Hyacinth of Poland and on the left side, the chapel of Saint Catherine of Siena, where the tabernacle of the Blessed Sacrament is also located. The apse is decorated with a fresco depicting Jesus among the Apostles and Saints. The remains of Saint Sabina are preserved under the high altar. In the choir, the friars celebrate the daily liturgical offices, as Santa Sabina is the seat of the General Curia of the Order.
The Basilica of Santa Maria sopra Minerva is one of the basilicas that are part of the Jubilee Route “Women Patrons of Europe and Doctors of the Church”. The Dominican friars have been in charge of the church since 1256 and, “probably for more than 10 years the convent of Santa Maria sopra Minerva remained under the care of the Dominican convent of Santa Sabina, the first one established in Rome, which from the year 1300 became the most important reality present in the Urbe”, reads the official website of the Jubilee 2025. In the Basilica are kept the remains of Blessed Angelico, proclaimed patron saint of artists by St. John Paul II in 1984, and those of St. Catherine of Siena, named Doctor of the Church in 1970, and patron saint of Rome, Italy and Europe.
The friars continue to preach in these basilicas, and with even greater enthusiasm in the Jubilee year, when “pilgrims of hope” from all over the world visit them.
