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Lenten Station Church
Palm Sunday in Lent
St. John Lateran

Marvin Lanahan


San Giovanni in Laterano - Rome
St. John Latern, April 2002		   
St. John Lateran
Scott E1 (1949)


This is the second visit to Saint John Lateran as we proceed through the list of Lenten Station Churches of Rome. Scheduling a visit to this church on Palm Sunday is also interesting because of the immense grandeur of this Basilica and the number of historical events that have taken place within its walls. St. John Lateran was a place of high grandeur during the early church days. It is a church that exonerates an atmosphere of triumph much like that of a triumphal king going into Jerusalem being fanned with palms and shouts of joy.


▲ Pictured above is the mosaic dome and one of the nave walls of Saint John Lateran.
Notice the huge statues which are on each side of the nave walls.


Looking around this Basilica there are a number of things that one could point to as proof of the grandeur within this church but nothing matches the significance of the very, very large statues of the twelve apostles. Standing in front of any one of the Apolostaic statues one gets the feeling of being very, very small. So, with a little research, let's look at the statues and see how many Vatican stamp links were found for these twelve Church leaders.

Apostle Statues Of St. John Lateran
Petrus San Giovanni in Laterano 2006-09-07
St. Peter		 Paulus San Giovanni in Laterano 2006-09-07
St. Paul		 Thaddeus San Giovanni in Laterano 2006-09-07
St. Thaddeus		 Matthaeus San Giovanni in Laterano 2006-09-07
St. Mathew
Philippus San Giovanni in Laterano 2006-09-07
St. Phillip		 Andreas San Giovanni in Laterano 2006-09-07
St. Andrew		 Johannes San Giovanni in Laterano 2006-09-07
St. John		 Thomas San Giovanni in Laterano 2006-09-07 n2
St. Thomas
Jacobus Major San Giovanni in Laterano 2006-09-07
St. James (Greater)		 Jacobus Minor San Giovanni in Laterano 2006-09-07
St. James Minor		 Bartholomaeus San Giovanni in Laterano 2006-09-07
St. Barthomomew		 Simone a San Giovanni in Laterano
St. Simon


As you can see from below, not many Vatican stamps were found for the various apostles. There are multiple stamps to be found for Peter and Paul but few for others. Occasionally, there is a slim chance to spot an apostle in a scene, such as the 2000 issue of the Calling of Peter and Andrew. For the apostle group picture, which is also hard to find, look at the Holy Door stamps from St Peter's. Perhaps someday the Vatican Post Office will issue a compete set of stamps and issue a set featuring all twelve of the apostles.

Apostle Stamps

St. Peter
#448 (1967)
St. Paul
#449 (1967)
St. Thaddeus
St. Mathew
#55 (1971)

St. Phillip
St. Andrew
St. John
#C58 (1971)
St. Thomas

St. James (Greater)
St. James Minor
St. Barthomomew
St. Simon



Calling of Peter and Andrew
#1156 (2000)		     
The Holy Door in St Peter's
Jesus and the Eleven (Right Panel)
1134 (1999)


Over the years the Vatican Post Office has issued several stamps featuring the St. John Lateran Basilica. Other Stamps of John Lateran found (in addition the the 1949 issue shown above):


918 (1993)
1138 (2000)
V2 (2000)
1349 (2007)
Lateran
Organ
1564 (2014)

References
• George Weigel, "Palm Sunday Of The Lord's Passion - Station at St. John Lateran" Roman Pilgrimage - The Station Churches Basic Books, Copyright 2013, pages 288- 296
• Joseph N. Tylenda, S. J, "S. Giovanni in Lateranio" The Pilgrim's Guide To Rome'sPrincipal Churches The Liturgical Press, Copyright 1993, pages 28-38
• Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran Wikipedia

The exterior photograph of St. John Lateran and the statue pictures are from the Wikipedia article cited above. The two interior photographs, showing a side nave wall and the mosaic dome, are from the photo collection of Marvin Lanahan.