– Anastasios
There was a Pope in the past century who experienced great troubles during his Pontificate, at the time of the Second Worl’s War; this Pope was Pius XII, Eugenio Pacelli (1876-1958). On the occasion of the 25th anniversary of his Episcopal consecration (May 12, 1942), he wanted all the gifts that he received to be used for the building of a new church that was to be consecrated to his namesake, Saint Eugenio. On June 28, 1943, the Pope blessed the first stone that is still visible today in the crypt of the church.
In 1951, the church was erected as a parish and declared minor Basilica by Pius XII. Let us remember that the church is situated in quite a new urban area (at the time) in the city of Rome. Also, in 1951, Pope Pius XII consecrated the main altar. At that time the church, covering an area of 3850 meters was under the charge of the diocesan clergy. Nowadays, it is officiated by the priests of the Prelature of the Holy Cross and Opus Dei, better known as Opus Dei.
The parish pastor, don Miguel Díaz was so kind as to answer some of our questions about the area where the church was built: “The territory of the parish embraces the Roman districts of Pinciano, Flaminio and Parioli. It is, overall an area inhabited by families who enjoy a certain financial wealth, even if there is no lack of some uncomfortable situations. They are neighborhoods that have sprung up for some time; this fact, together with the high real estate value of many houses, signifies that there are a large number of senior citizens.” Indeed that part of Rome is considered an area of rich people, with professionals like lawyers, doctors, commercialists, people who usually enjoy high salaries in comparison to the average citizen.
But also what is quite important is to understand the Sacramental life of this church: “In the parish, we strive to offer the opportunity to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation for many hours every day, without the need to wait. Holy Mass is celebrated every day at three different times (on weekdays). To encourage worker participation, a Mass is celebrated at 13.15, during the lunch break, from Monday to Friday. On Sunday, Holy Mass is celebrated 6 times a day. The main Mass is accompanied by the sound of the organ, assisted by a choir of about twenty elements and liturgical service comprising of teenagers. If you look at the national average, by comparison, you can say that there is excellent participation of the faithful. It must be however considered that there are many who do not belong to the territory of the parish and that the term of comparison always remains the universal salvific will of our Redeemer.”
When asked about what visitors should see in his church, who are the notable people that he can mention related with this temple, he replied: “If a pilgrim could visit only one thing of our church, after visiting the Blessed Sacrament, he would do well not to miss the chance to see the last 4 bronze tiles of the Via Crucis by Giacomo Manzù (1908-1991, a famous Italian sculptor). The following people can be associated with our church: the Servant of God Eugenio Pacelli (Pius XII), for whose anniversary the Basilica was built, after having collected large donations around the world for the occasion. The Basilica was visited by Popes Paul VI and St John Paul II; the funeral of St Josemaría Escrivá was celebrated in this church; his body was exposed to public veneration on the occasion of his beatification and canonization. The same occurred with Blessed Alvaro del Portillo: funeral and veneration of the body. Another famous person linked to the parish was Totò (1898-1967, pseudonym of Antonio de Curtis, most popular Italian comedian): the parish celebrated his funeral, a few years after his death.”
Sant’Eugrnio is truly worth a visit from pilgrims all over the world.
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