CT News
Feb. 27, 2026 : St. Peter’s Basilica has inaugurated new Stations of the Cross — 14 large oil paintings by Swiss painter Manuel Dürr — for Lent as part of celebrations marking the 400th anniversary of the church’s 1626 consecration.
The basilica first built at Emperor Constantine’s order in 326 over the tomb of the Apostle Peter stood for 12 centuries. In 1506, Pope Julius II ordered its demolition to raise a new church from the ground up.
The St. Peter’s Basilica known today was consecrated on Nov. 18, 1626, by Pope Urban VIII, capping a long project that drew on the genius of artists and architects including Michelangelo Buonarroti, Gian Lorenzo Bernini, and Carlo Maderno.
Four centuries later, the largest church in Christendom is commemorating the anniversary with a new artistic Stations of the Cross, inaugurated Feb. 20, featuring 14 paintings installed for Lent.
The initiative, the result of an international competition for the basilica's 400th anniversary, blends tradition and modernity and can be viewed every Friday throughout Lent.
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