The Eternal City, Rome, is one of the most influential and famous cities in world history. Within Rome lies a tiny country known as The Vatican. St. Peter’s Basilica, the famous gardens of the Vatican, the Sistine Chapel and the Vatican Museums comprise this small area. This is the home of the Holy Father, or the Pope.
The Holy Father is the successor of the first pope, St. Peter, and is the head of the Catholic Church. While hundreds of years ago popes had a great deal of secular power, in recent centuries the power of the popes lay in spiritual areas. Though only the commander of a small force, the Swiss Guard, the moral influence of popes on world affairs is immense. Vatican City itself is a fascinating place. Victoria Parker has written an insightful account about the Catholic Church in an interesting book entitled "The Vatican and Other Christian Holy Places."
After a brief summary of the founding of Christianity, Parker begins writing about St. Peter’s Basilica. Stunning pictures accompany her writing about the great Basilica. Included in these photographs is a picture of the High Altar over St. Peter’s Tomb. The dome over the High Altar is one of the greatest works of art ever created by mankind.
Parker next tells readers about the residence of the popes in the Vatican, and the roles of cardinals within the church. A picture is shown of Pope John Paul II blessing an immense crowd in front of St. Peter’s at a Sunday audience.
Next, the author takes readers to the Sistine Chapel. Here the marvelous paintings and frescoes of Michelangelo can be seen. Quite simply, the Sistine Chapel is the greatest work of art ever created, and its biblical figures and ideas demonstrate the consequences of choosing for or against God. Parker continues by writing of the Vatican treasures in various museums and archives. Some of the most famous letters in the history of the world lie in these invaluable museums and archives.
Feast days and festivals come next in the story of the Vatican. Parker concludes the book by detailing holy places in Jerusalem and neighboring cities such as Bethlehem. The Marian apparitions at Lourdes are mentioned toward the end of the work, as are the many cures that have occurred at Lourdes. The book concludes with a description of Pope John Paul II. Throughout the book, the author always explains the significance of buildings, persons and concepts in clear, understandable language.
This is a very useful book to understand the Vatican and the many treasures in its museums and archives. As well, readers will get a sense of power, majesty and workings of the Vatican.
One word of caution is needed in understanding the Marian apparitions mentioned in the text. Since books are usually written over a period of several years before the publication date, there was still some debate in the church about the authenticity of the alleged apparitions of Our Lady in Medugorje. Because of this, I feel we can give Parker the benefit of the doubt for including the section on Medugorje. It was not an act of bad faith. However, the Catholic Church has not approved these apparitions as authentic. Hence they cannot be compared with valid Marian apparitions such as Guadalupe, Lourdes or Fatima. The Church is quite careful before declaring an apparition authentic for fear of misleading the faithful.
Having said that, I still feel that this book can be highly recommended. The pictures are interesting and the writing is simple, yet comprehensive. I hope you get a chance to either read the work yourself, or encourage younger children to read the book.
