I almost forgot we were still in the middle of a series on the Archbasilicas! St John Lateran is the oldest of the four patriarchal basilicas in Rome, and the cathedral of the Bishop of Rome, the pope. It was consecrated in 324 by Pope Sylvester I. As the cathedral of Rome, it stands as the cathedral of the world, the seat of all Christianity. The faithful of Rome are very blessed to have it as their cathedral! It has been the site of five Ecumenical councils and was the home to every pope from Miltiades the African to the time of Clement V’s move to Avignon.

The cathedra (Lat. “throne, teacher’s chair”) of the cathedral, it is quite literally the seat of Christianity in the world.

A close look reveals that papal imagery is found everywhere in the Lateran Basilica:

A rare find, a bearded angel:

St. Bartholomew holds up his skin, peeled off at his martyrdom: