Gran Madre di Dio (Great Mother of God) is a cardinal's

titular church In the Catholic Church, a titular church () is a Churches in Rome, church in Rome that is assigned to a member of the Holy orders in the Catholic Church, clergy who is created a Cardinal (Catholic Church), cardinal. These are Catholic churches in ...

in Rome. Its current holder is

Angelo Bagnasco Angelo Bagnasco (; born 14 January 1943) is an Italian Cardinal (Catholicism), Cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Genoa, Archbishop of Genoa from 2006 to 2020. He was President of the Conferenza Episcopale It ...

, Archbishop of Genoa, who was created a cardinal on 24 November 2007. The church was established as a titular church in 1965. The monumental temple was built by

Pope Pius XI Pope Pius XI (; born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, ; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939) was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 until his death in February 1939. He was also the first sovereign of the Vatican City State u ...

in 1931, in memory of the celebrations held to commemorate the 1,500 anniversary of the

Council of Ephesus The Council of Ephesus was a council of Christian bishops convened in Ephesus (near present-day Selçuk in Turkey) in AD 431 by the Roman Emperor Theodosius II. This third ecumenical council, an effort to attain consensus in the church th ...

, which established the dogma of the divine motherhood and her perpetual virginity of Mary, in the patristic tradition and popular devotion since From the Church. It was built between 1931 and 1933 by architect

Cesare Bazzani Cesare Bazzani (1873–1939) was a prominent and prolific Italian architect and engineer. Active from 1911 until his death in 1939, Bazzani designed major municipal works in several cities. Works * National Central Library (Florence), Bibli ...

, built by Clemente Busiri Vici. It is the seat of the parish of the same name, erected by Pius XI on 1 December 1933, the year of Jubilee extraordinary redemption, in the Apostolic Constitution "Quo perennius" .

Description

''Exterior'' The main entrance is preceded by a portico with a triangular pediment supported by two columns with Corinthian capitals and side pillars. Within the pediment is the coat of arms of Pope Pius XI; There are also two side entrances that open into two bodies of curvilinear factory, placed at the side of the porch. Two small lateral bell towers, each topped with flank the large dome resting on an octagonal drum and is topped by a lantern, also octagonal. In the drum they are opened eight large rectangular windows, one per side. ''Interior'' Della Vittoria - Gran Madre di Dio 09

The church has a Greek cross plan. semicircular apse has five arched windows, above which, within a frame, is the inscription SANCTA MARIA MATER DEI ORA PRO NOBIS (Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us). In the apse there is a fresco of the painter Federico Morgante.

List of Cardinal Protectors

Agnelo Rossi Agnelo Rossi (born Aniello Rossi; 4 May 1913 – 21 May 1995) was a Brazilian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church and dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals. Biography Aniello (later changed to "Agnelo") Rossi was born on 4 May 1913 in Joa ...

22 Feb 1965 appointed - 25 Jun 1984 appointed Cardinal-Bishop of Sabina e Poggio Mirteto * Angel Suquía Goicoechea 25 May 1985 appointed - 13 Jul 2006 died *

24 November 2007 appointed - present

References

Pope Paul VI established it as titular church

External links

Gran Madre di Dio
{{Authority control Roman Catholic churches completed in 1933 Titular churches Rome Q. XV Della Vittoria 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy