Seven Churches Visitation

The Seven Churches Visitation also known as Visita Iglesia is an ancient pious Roman Catholic Lenten tradition to visit seven churches on the evening of Holy Thursday. On Maundy Thursday of Holy Week, following the Mass of the Lord's Supper, the Blessed Sacrament, is reserved on the Altar of Repose in the church for Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. During the Seven Churches Visitation or Visita Iglesia, the faithful visit several churches – sometimes seven, sometimes fourteen, sometimes no set number depending upon the particular practice – to pray before the Blessed Sacrament in each church.

History

The tradition of visiting seven churches on Holy Thursday probably originated in Rome, as early pilgrims visited the seven basilicas as penance.[1][2]

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The Via Francigena was an ancient pilgrim route between England and Rome. It was customary to end the pilgrimage with a visit to the tombs of Sts Peter and Paul. In 1300 Pope Boniface VIII declared the first Holy Year, granting a special indulgence to those, who meeting the requisite conditions, visited St. Peter's Basilica and the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls. Over time the number of prescribed churches increased to seven.

The tradition of visiting all seven churches was started by Saint Philip Neri around 1553.[3][4] He and a few friends would gather before dawn and set out on their "Seven Churches Walk". These pilgrimages were designed to be a counterpoint to the raucous behavior of Carnival.[5] The Walks became very popular and began to attract others.

Practice

After the Mass of the Lord's Supper, during which Christians remember Jesus Christ's last meal with his Apostles on the night that he was arrested, the faithful remember Jesus's Agony in the Garden.[6] After the mass, the main and most side altars are stripped; all crosses are either removed or covered; the Blessed Sacrament is placed in a tabernacle on the Altar of Repose, and churches are open late for silent adoration.[2] This is response to request Jesus made to his apostles while they were in the Garden, as recorded in Gospel of Matthew 26:40, "Could you not, then, watch one hour with me?"[6]

Those who practice this visitation leave the church where they attended the Mass of the Lord's Supper and travel to nearby churches to pray before the Blessed Sacrament. This occurs most frequently in urban areas where churches are close proximity making traveling easier. There are no set of prayers given by the Catholic Church except to pray for the intentions of the Pope and recite the Lord's Prayer, Hail Mary and Gloria Patri. People also opt to pray the Stations of the Cross.

Philip Neri, drew up an itinerary in order to combine conviviality and the sharing of a common religious experience by discovering of the heritage of the early Saints. In modern times, pilgrimages are often arranged by parish organizations and co-ordinated with other parishes in the area.[1][7]

In the Philippines

Altar of Repose, Manila Cathedral, the Philippines, 17 April 2014.

In the Philippines, the tradition is known as Visita Iglesia (English: Church Visit). The general practise is to visit seven churches either on Maundy Thursday or Good Friday and recite the Stations of the Cross in them. The pious and able would double the number of churches to fourteen, while the infirm and elderly usually visit only one or a handful. Until the 1970s, people recited all fourteen stations in one church, but the more recent custom is to pray two stations at each church.

Some of the more devout carry a cross to and from different churches, while others consider the custom an opportunity for sightseeing. An offering is usually made at each church and to the poor as a form of almsgiving. To accommodate the faithful, many Catholic churches during Holy Week remain open until midnight.

Similarly, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines has set up "Visita Iglesia Online", whch is among several websites that let Overseas Filipinos and the infirm perform the rite, as well as hear recordings of the Pasyon, an 18th-century epic poem centred on the life of Christ.[8] While traditionally done on Maundy Thursday, after the Mass of the Last Supper, it is now common to perform Visita Iglesia on any day during Holy Week.[9][10]

Other countries

India

In India, the custom is to visit fourteen churches, one per Station of the Cross. This is traditionally performed on Maundy Thursday evening, but the pilgrimage is more often performed on the morning of Good Friday or on any day of Lent. Usually, whole families would participate, customarily fasting for the duration of the rite, but nowadays it is also undertaken by parish devotional groups.

Singapore

In Singapore, the visiting of churches occurs shortly after the evening Mass of the Last Supper. Prayers at each church consist of seven repetitions of the Lord's Prayer, Ave Maria, and the Gloria Patri. Due to the new trend of late Mass times (sometimes 7 or 8 pm) to allow for more churchgoers, eight churches are the maximum number visited (even in the city area, where these are closer to each other than in outer residential areas) before these close at midnight. A festive atmosphere exists, with the sale of drinks, hot cross buns and other local snacks like the traditional kueh ko chee. Observant Catholics have a 'Last Supper' meal in anticipation of the next day's fast.

United States

Corpus Christi, Buffalo, interior

In the US, Holy Week observances in a particular area often reflect the traditions of the immigrant population who settled there.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Hill, William. "Join the 7-church visits", Diocese of Pittsburgh, April 11, 2014
  2. 1 2 Finelli, Jay. "The Seven Churches", ipadre.net, April 1 2010
  3. ↑ Schneible, Ann. "Visiting the Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome", Zenit, November 12, 2012
  4. ↑ "Charlotte pilgrims follow tradition of the Seven Churches Visitation", Catholic News Herald, Diocese of Charlotte, April 20, 2014
  5. ↑ "St. Philip's 'Picnic'", The Pontifical Congregation of the Oratory
  6. 1 2 "Holy Thursday". CatholicCulture.org. Retrieved 30 March 2015.
  7. ↑ McGrath, Carolee. "Teens make Holy Thursday pilgrimage to seven churches in diocese", Catholic Communications, Diocese of Springfield, April 3, 2015
  8. ↑ Visita Iglesia Online, Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines
  9. ↑ Sandoval, Thessa. "Visita Iglesia in Toronto", Philippine Canadian Inquirer, April 16, 2014
  10. ↑ "11 Main Must Visit Churches This Week For Visita Iglesia", Manila Livewire, April 30, 2015
  11. ↑ Boudreau, Andrienne. "One Night, Seven Churches", Buffalo Rising, April 17, 2014
  12. ↑ Lewis, Lisa Holzenthal. "A Good Friday Tradition: The Nine-Church Pilgrimage", Louisiana Folklore Miscellany, 2000
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