Catholicism in Italy

The History of the Catholic Church in Italy is part of the history of the Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope, curia in Rome, and the Conference of Italian Bishops. In addition to Italy, two other sovereign nations are included in Italian-based dioceses, San Marino and Vatican City. There are 225 dioceses in the Italian Catholic Church, see further in this article and in the article List of the Roman Catholic dioceses in Italy.

The pope resides in the Vatican City, in Rome. Rome, and Italy, have been major centres for Christian pilgrimage since the Roman Empire, and Rome is commonly regarded as the "home of the Roman Catholic Church", since it is where St Peter traveled, ministered, served as bishop, and died.

Owing to the Italian Renaissance, church art in Italy is extraordinary, including the works by Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Fra Carnevale (priest and artist), Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Sandro Botticelli, Tintoretto, Titian, Raphael, Giotto, etc.

Italian church architecture is equally spectacular and historically important to Western culture, notably St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, Cathedral of St. Mark's in Venice, and Brunelleschi's Florence Cathedral (Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore), which includes the "Gates of Paradise" doors at the Baptistery by Lorenzo Ghiberti.

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