Saint of the day August 5: Dedication of the Basilica Santa María la Mayor. Catholic Saints

Every August 5, the Church celebrates the feast of the Dedication of the Basilica of Santa María Maggiore.

Santa María la Mayor is located in Rome (Italy), where it stands out for being the largest temple in the city dedicated to the Mother of God. Likewise, it is recognized as the oldest basilica consecrated to the Virgin in the entire West.

Mary is truly Mother of God

The Basilica of Saint Mary Major was built by order of Pope Sixtus III, shortly after the Council of Ephesus ended, in the year 431. At that council the Virgin Mary was proclaimed Mother of God, leaving behind endless discussions about whether such condition and title corresponded to him.

The basis of such a declaration is that the Virgin Mary is authentically “Mother of God” because she is the mother of Christ fully – the Second Person of the Holy Trinity is a single person with two natures: human and divine, both united in the holy womb. of the maiden of Nazareth. In other words, it is not possible for Mary to be the Mother of Christ and for her motherhood to be reduced to human partiality (as if it were possible to be the mother of only her humanity). Any questioning of divine motherhood, furthermore, leads to countless errors regarding the Person of Jesus himself, compromising Christology and the work of redemption.

By ratifying the divine motherhood of Mary, the council fathers condemned the Nestorian heresy (diphysisism), which held that in Christ there were two radically separate natures and concluded, illicitly, that Mary was only the mother of the man Jesus. This, in the long run, is equivalent to affirming that in Jesus there are “two persons” and not one. Since Mary is Mother of Christ in her unity and fullness, it is perfectly valid to affirm that She is “Mother of God.”

The construction of the temple

Pope Sixtus III chose the Esquiline Hill as the appropriate place for the construction of the Basilica.

Santa María la Mayor, as it is usually called, is full of history and uniquely collects, due to its artistic wealth, countless expressions of filial piety to Mary. Pilgrims and visitors are overwhelmed by its interior and exterior beauty, which invites devotion and to delve deeper into the mystery of human participation in God’s plans. This participation is prefigured in the Virgin: Saint Mary is the “Servant” who became “Mother of God” for the salvation of the human race.

As an expression of this, in the Basilica there is a Marian image with the title of “Virgin Mary, savior of the Roman people”, the Salvation of the Roman People, protector of the city. Her devotees take her out in procession in times of need (for example, her intercession is attributed to the end of one of the plagues that decimated the city of Rome centuries ago) that threaten Rome or the world.

Saint John Paul II, from the beginning of his pontificate, wanted a lamp to be lit under this Marian icon as a sign of his great devotion. For his part, Pope Francis, before and after embarking on an international trip, always goes to the Basilica, leaves a bouquet of flowers at the foot of the Marian image and stops for a moment of prayer.

Santa María de las Nieves

Sometimes the faithful refer to Santa María la Mayor as the Church of “Santa María de las Nieves”, due to a miracle linked to this dedication whose image is in one of the naves of the temple. Likewise, it is called ‘Liberian Basilica’ in memory of Pope Liberius, who consecrated it; or, ‘Church of Santa María de la Cuna’ because, according to tradition, a fragment of the cradle of the Child Jesus is preserved there, brought from the Holy Land by Saint Helena.

In Rome there are four major Basilicas of great historical and spiritual importance. Santa María la Mayor is one of them. The other three are Saint Peter’s Basilica, the Basilica of Saint John Lateran and the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls.