Vatican

Lightning strikes dome of St. Peter’s Basilica on Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary

Another “bolt out of the blue” hits St. Peter’s on a Catholic feast celebrating a humble prayer and an historic battle!

Diane Montagna

October 7, 2016

© FILIPPO MONTEFORTE / AFP

VATICAN CITY — Rome shook this morning as a massive lightning bolt hit the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica. The strike came on the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, a celebration with origins not only in a humble prayer, but also in an historic battle.
The bolt hit the dome of St. Peter’s at approximately 9:20 am, as a strong rainstorm passed through Rome. Vatican police confirmed the strike. No damage was reported.
Those close to the Vatican, from Swiss guards to local shop owners, felt the shock.
“I was in the shower and heard what sounded like a loud thunder clap which lasted a few seconds and seemed to shake everything. I knew it was storming but it sounded more like an earthquake than a thunderstorm,” a resident close to St. Peter’s told Aleteia.
A local Italian coffee-bar owner added: “Everything shook. I could feel it in my lungs. It was as though the air was suspended for a moment.”
This morning’s strike recalls the “bolt out of the blue” that hit St. Peter’s on February 11, 2013 — the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes — just hours after Pope Benedict XVI shocked the Vatican with his announcement to resign the papal office.

Lightning strikes St Peter's dome at the Vatican on February 11, 2013. AFP PHOTO / FILIPPO MONTEFORTE

Today’s strike also comes on a Marian feast: Our Lady of the Rosary.

Our Lady of the Rosary

Originally called Our Lady of Victory, the feast was instituted by Pope St. Pius V to honor the Blessed Virgin Mary for the Christian victory over the Turks at the Battle of Lepanto.

http://aleteia.org/2016/10/07/lightning-strikes-dome-of-peters-basilica-on-feast-of-our-lady-of-the-rosary/