Posted on 10/17/2014 1:11:56 PM PDT by NYer
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Pope Francis has for the first time allowed the Sistine Chapel to be rented out for a private corporate event, with the proceeds to go to charities working with the poor and homeless.
The concert, to be performed amid the splendour of Michelangelo’s frescoes on Saturday, will be attended by a select group of about 40 high-paying tourists who have signed up to an exclusive tour of Italy organised by Porsche.
But as the unprecedented deal was announced, the Vatican announced that it would limit the number of visitors allowed inside the chapel to the current total of six million, amid fears that the frescoes are being damaged by the breath and sweat of so many tourists.
The Vatican would not divulge how much it will earn from the event, but the five-day tour of Rome arranged by the Porsche Travel Club costs up to 5,000 euros per head, meaning an overall price of 200,000 euros.
Participants are promised “a magnificent concert in the Sistine Chapel, with its ceiling frescoes painted by Michelangelo”.
The concert will be performed by a choir from the Accademia di Santa Cecilia in Rome, which traces its origins back to the 16th century.
They will then sit down to a “gala dinner” in the midst of the Vatican Museums, “surrounded by masterpieces by world-famous artists such as Michelangelo and Raphael”.
“It’s a one-off event and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” a spokeswoman for the Porsche Travel Club told The Telegraph. “It will be the highlight of the trip.”
The Pope is keen to put the Vatican’s incomparable cultural heritage treasures to good use for the benefit of the needy.
Shortly after he was elected in March last year he called for a “poor Church for the poor”.
Monsignor Paolo Nicolini, the administrative director of the Vatican Museums, said firms like Porsche would be asked to make a donation for the use of the Sistine Chapel, with the money then passed onto Catholic charities of the Pope’s choice.
“It is an initiative which will support the Pope’s charity projects. It is aimed at big companies which, through the payment of a fee, can contribute to charity activities,” he said.
Ya know, depending on the acoustics of course, that chapel looks like it might make a helluva disco.
You are mistaken. Only in the Sistine Chapel will you be “”surrounded by masterpieces by world-famous artists such as Michelangelo and Raphael””.
P.S. How can they sit for dinner in multiple museums?
Florence grabbed my heart! What a beautiful city. Thank you for making my point. Tourism takes place after mass, not during it.
Magical!
http://www.porsche.com/international/motorsportandevents/travelclub/tours/rom/
Did y’all sit down in a pew an eat a cheeseburger during your tour/pilgrimage?
“Did yall sit down in a pew an eat a cheeseburger during your tour/pilgrimage?”
Dude, it was Italy. I had a panini. /s
I hope you prayed Grace beforehand.
“I hope you prayed Grace beforehand.”
I hope you pray at all.
What's your idea of prayer?
“What’s your idea of prayer?”
I think you already know.
So now you’re posting a kitsch image of Jesus and the Sacred Heart that atheists use to mock Christ and Christians?
The veil was torn long ago. It always has been and always will be just a building.
From a non-RC it looks hypocritical.
It was probably a translation issue.
Jorge Bergoglio's Children's Mass
“Jorge Bergoglio’s Children’s Mass”
Irrelevant. You seemingly can’t make an actual argument about the issue at hand so you might as well turn to plumbing and throw in the kitchen sink.
Still nothing wrong with it.
How about if he rented it out to Planned Parenthood?
Where do you draw the line?
I thought Papa Humbe Jorge was all anti-business; anti-capitalist. Turns out, he’ll do anything for a buck.
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