Early Christianity Tour Rome

• Rome
• All Tours
• Italy

Rome Early Christianity Tour – An Exploration of the Underground Church and Beyond

The Crucis Early Christianity Tour explores the very beginnings of the Christian faith with relics of the wondrous Crucifixion of Christ and a spiritual journey through the lives and legacies of the early  martyrs before learning about the build-up and advent of the legalisation of Christianity in 313 AD.

From the birth of Christianity until the Roman Emperor Constantine decriminalised its practice in 313, followers of Christ were persecuted throughout the pagan empire. On the Crucis Early Christianity Tour your Catholic guide will explain why the early Church was persecuted, the secret signs and symbols the early Christians used and the juxtaposition of the pagan culture with the new Christian culture.

The tour will begin with a fascinating journey through the archaeological dig in the house of St Clement (the 4th pope from the 1st Century), before travelling up through the centuries to the excavations of the 4th century Basilica of the legalised Church and finally to the stunning 12th century basilica on street level.

Your guide will allow you to pray before the relics of St Clement and also the relics of Saints Cyril and Methodius, the Apostles to the Slavs. Your expert guide will then explain the symbolism and message of the architecture and magnificent golden mosaics. This explanation sets the scene for the rest of your pilgrimage exploring the notions of suffering, martyrdom and the very crux of our faith – the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus.

Our Early Christianity tour then continues on foot to the Holy Stairs brought from Jerusalem to Rome in the 4th century, the stairs of the Roman Praetoria on which Pontius Pilate judged Jesus. Unfortunately, you wont have chance to climb the stairs on your knees according to the traditional practice but your guide will show you the Holy Steps and also point out what lies at the top of the stairs.

From there our Early Christianity Tour explores the build up to the legalisation of Christianity and the origins of the Cathedral of Rome, St John Lateran. Your guide will explain the significance of Jubilee years and allow you to experience the Holy Doors of this Major Basilica. Venturing inside, your guide will explain the main features including artwork, relics and more golden mosaics.

The spiritual experience of the Crucis Early Christianity Tour climaxes at perhaps the most spiritually important church in the world, where pilgrims can see the most holy artefacts and relics used in the Crucifixion and life of Jesus, absolutely not to be missed by those interested in the life and suffering of the earliest Christians, who lived in the very epicentre of a hostile and brutal world. We recommend early booking for our Early Christianity Tour due to the popularity of the relics and the demand for the places on one of the best tours in Rome.

If you’re interested in the Crucis Early Christianity Tour, also check out our Saints Peter & Paul Rome Tour, running on Friday afternoons, which also includes another of the Holy Doors of the Major Basilicas of the Jubilee Year!

We endeavour that all pilgrims on our guided visits to Major Basilicas will pass through the Holy Doors unless prevented by unforeseen circumstances beyond our reasonable control. Nobody gets skip-the-line access.

To learn more about the Catholic faith, visit Crucis.cc.

Additional information