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St. Paul's Within the Walls
Rome, Italy
On the corner of Via Napoli and the broad Via Nazionale in central Rome stands the impressive St. Paul's Within the Walls Church. Signs and literature tell the visitor that this in an Anglican-Episcopal congregation. S Maria Maggiore is but a short walk to the southeast, and some distance away on the Babunio is the smaller All Saints Anglican Church, an overseas parish of the Church of England.
Known also as the "American Church," St. Paul's was constructed in 1873 according to the designs of G. E. Street. A brilliant example of romanesque architecture, the building and tower are readily visible from nearby streets. Surrounding the rose window on the church façade is a symbolic mosaic of the four evangelists by George William Breck (1863-1920), and over the entrance is his mosaic of St. Paul preaching the gospel.
The church's remarkable mosaics account for the Italian government's designation of St. Paul's as a national monument. Designed by the preRaphaelite artist Edward Burne-Jones, the mosaics in the apse and choir portray the annunciation. The scenes include Mary at a desert spring outside the town walls; Christ in Glory surrounded by angels, archangels and saints, with streams of living water issuing from His feet; and Christ suspended with arms outstretched before the green-leafed tree of knowledge, with Adam and Eve on each side. On the opposite, or west wall, of the church is Breck's mosaic of the Nativity. In a city of notable landmarks, this is a building truly worthy of its setting.
Sunday liturgies begin in the morning at 8:30 with a Rite I said eucharist, followed at 10:30 by Rite II sung eucharist. The eucharist is celebrated in Spanish at 1:00 P.M. for a growing Latin American community. The church holds a mid-week eucharist on Wednesdays. The one priest on the staff is the rector, who is joined by a lay pastor for the congregation's Latin American ministry. Both have daily office hours. A nursery is...