Editing Pope Alexander VI (section)

=== The Jubilee (1500) ===

In the [[Jubilee (Christianity)|Jubilee year]] 1500, Alexander ushered in the custom of opening a [[holy door]] on Christmas Eve and closing it on Christmas Day the following year. After consulting with his Master of Ceremonies, [[Johann Burchard]], Pope Alexander VI opened the first holy door in [[Old St. Peter's Basilica|St. Peter's Basilica]] on Christmas Eve 1499, and papal representatives opened the doors in the other three patriarchal basilicas. For this, Pope Alexander had a new opening created in the ''[[portico]]'' of St. Peter's and commissioned a marble door.{{#tag:ref|"The holy year 1500 definitively ushered in the custom of opening a holy door on Christmas Eve and closing it the following year on Christmas Day. Alexander opened the first holy door in St. Peter's Basilica on Christmas Eve, 1499, and papal legates opened the doors in the other three patriarchal basilicas. For this occasion, Pope Alexander had a new opening created in the portico of St. Peter's and commissioned a door, made of marble, 3.5 meters high and 2.2 wide. It lasted until 1618 when another door was installed in the new basilica. The door, in turn, was replaced in 1950 by the bronze door, which is still in use. In a ceremony strikingly similar in many ways to today's ritual opening of a holy door, Alexander was carried in the gestatorial chair to the portico of St. Peter's. He and the members of his retinue, bearing long candles, processed to the holy door, as the choir intoned Psalm 118:19–20: "Open for me the gate of Yahweh, where the upright go in." The pope knocked thrice on the door, it gave way (assisted from within by workers), and everyone then crossed the threshold to enter into a period of penance and reconciliation. Thus, Pope Alexander, a lover of pomp and ceremony, formalized the rite of opening a holy door and began a tradition that continues, with few variations, to this day. Similar rites were held at the other patriarchal basilicas. Alexander was also the first to institute a special rite for the closing of a holy door. On the feast of the Epiphany, 6 January 1501, two cardinals – one with a silver brick and the other with a gold one – symbolically began to seal the holy door. Basilica workers known as sanpietrini completed the task, which included placing small coins and medals, minted during the holy year, inside the wall."<ref name="holydoors">Allen Duston, O.P., and Roberto Zanoli, 2003, ''Saint Peter and the Vatican: The Legacy of the Popes'', Art Services Intl., {{ISBN|978-0-88397-140-6}}, pp. 158–159.</ref>|group=Note}}{{#tag:ref|"[A]ll the clergy of the city were invited to the opening of the [1500] Jubilee. The pope himself performed this ceremony on Christmas Eve, 1499, having taken pains to settle all the details beforehand with his Master of Ceremonies. The ceremonial observed on these occasions was no modern invention, but, as the Bull of Indiction expressly says, was founded on ancient rites and full of symbolic meaning. According to Burchard, the crowd which assisted at these solemnities numbered 200,000 persons. Although this may be an exaggeration, still it is certain that, in spite of the troubles of the times and the insecurity in Rome itself, the numbers attending this Jubilee were very large."<ref name="rorate-jubilee">{{cite web |url=http://rorate-caeli.blogspot.com/2013/09/oh-catholic-life-was-just-horrible.html |title=How awful was Catholic life under those immoral Renaissance Popes! |publisher=Rorate Caeli |access-date=25 March 2014}}</ref>|group=Note}}

Alexander was carried in the ''[[sedia gestatoria]]'' to St. Peter's. He and his assistants, bearing candles, processed to the holy door, as the choir chanted Psalm 118:19–20.<ref>{{bibleverse|Psalm|118:19–20|NASB}}</ref> The pope knocked on the door three times, workers moved it from the inside, and everyone then crossed the threshold to enter into a period of penance and reconciliation. Thus, Pope Alexander formalized the rite and began a longstanding tradition that is still in practice. Similar ceremonies were held at the other three basilicas.<ref name="holydoors" />

Alexander instituted a special rite for the closing of a holy door, as well. On the [[Epiphany (holiday)|Feast of the Epiphany]] in 1501, two cardinals began to seal the holy door with two bricks, one silver and one gold. ''Sampietrini'' (basilica workers){{#tag:ref|"The permanent group of skilled workers and artisans, in every trade, who with their assistants take care of St. Peter's Basilica."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/dictionary/index.cfm?id=36264 |title=Dictionary: Sampietrini |publisher=Catholic Culture |access-date=25 March 2014}}</ref>|group=Note}} completed the seal, placing specially-minted coins and medals inside the wall.<ref name="holydoors" />