During the Feb. 18 ceremony, Cardinal Rugambwa was joined by priests from the Diocese of Rome as well as by senior prelates including Cardinals Arthur Roche, Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle, and Robert Sarah. Also in attendance was Sister Raffaella Petrini, the Secretary General of the Governorate of the Vatican City, the first woman to hold the position.
Santa Maria in Montesanto is one of the “twin” churches that sits in Rome’s Piazza del Popolo. The piazza, or square, is one of the main arteries in Rome and is also known as the “Trident,” as it is where the three main streets of Via di Ripetta, Via del Corso, and Via del Babuino intersect.
The Baroque church was constructed in the second half of the 17th century over the site of an earlier church dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary and under the care of the Carmelite Friars.
The original plan was designed by the architect Carlo Rainaldi, under the patronage of Cardinal Girolamo Gastaldi and Pope Alexander VII. Though work was interrupted following the death of Pope Alexander in 1667, it resumed several years under the supervision of Gian Lorenzo Bernini.
Santa Maria in Montesanto was entrusted to the Carmelites until 1825 when Pope Leo XII ordered its restoration and it was subsequently given the little of minor basilica.
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