“A Roma, o mangi la minestra o salti la finestra.”
In Rome, you either eat the soup or jump out the window.
Buongiorno, fratelli e sorelle dell'Eterna Città! Oggi è domenica 26 luglio, festa dei Santi Gioacchino e Anna, genitori della Beata Vergine Maria e nonni di Gesù Cristo. La Chiesa celebra i nonni proprio oggi, nella sesta edizione della Giornata Mondiale dei Nonni e degli Anziani, indetta da Papa Francesco nel 2021 e proseguita da Papa Leone XIV, che per quest'anno ha scelto il tema 'Non ti dimenticherò' (Isaia 49,15). Il Santo Padre si trova in questi giorni nella residenza estiva di Castel Gandolfo, dove trascorre una meritata pausa dopo un primo semestre 2026 denso di eventi: dal Conclave che lo ha eletto il 8 maggio 2025 alla lettera per il 250° anniversario degli Stati Uniti, fino alla crisi con la Fraternità San Pio X. A Roma, questo giorno cade nella terza ondata di calore dell'estate, con temperature che restano sopra i 35°C e il Comune che mantiene aperti i rifugi climatici. Il bollino arancione è ancora attivo, ma la vita della città continua — le fontane dei nasoni sgorgano, le passeggiate serali lungo il Tevere si riempiono, e i ristoranti di Trastevere e Testaccio aprono le loro terrazze sotto le stelle. Buongiorno e buona domenica, Roma!
Rome — Pope Leo XIV has released his message for the sixth World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly, celebrated today, Sunday July 26, choosing as his theme the words of the prophet Isaiah: 'I will not forget you' (Isaiah 49:15). The message, published by the Dicastery for the Laity, the Family, and Life, emphasises that God's love for every person never fails, not even in the frailty of old age. It is also a message of comfort and hope for all grandparents and the elderly, especially those who live alone or feel forgotten. The Pope invited families and ecclesial communities throughout the world to celebrate the day with a Eucharistic liturgy in their cathedral churches, and to find ways to honour the elderly in their local contexts. The date coincides with the feast of Saints Joachim and Anne, the maternal grandparents of Jesus. Pope Leo XIV is spending the rest of July at the papal retreat in Castel Gandolfo after a whirlwind first half of 2026 that included a historic visit to Lampedusa and the publication of his book on peace and disarmament. The World Day, instituted by Pope Francis in 2021, is celebrated every fourth Sunday of July and has become an increasingly important occasion for the Church to highlight the role of grandparents in transmitting the faith across generations.
Rome — Civil Protection teams have deployed water cannons outside the Colosseum and Roman Forum to spray tourists queuing in the searing heat, as Rome endures its third major heatwave of summer 2026 with temperatures again pushing toward 40°C. Video footage captured the moment visitors, many visibly exhausted, were cooled by the fine mist while waiting to enter Italy's most visited monument. The city has kept its network of climate shelters — air-conditioned public buildings, libraries and community centres — open around the clock, and the Health Ministry has maintained elevated heat alerts across the Lazio region. Rome's 2026 Heat Plan, unveiled by Mayor Roberto Gualtieri earlier this month, includes new tree-planting initiatives, de-paving of asphalt surfaces, and the expansion of green corridors designed to lower temperatures in the hottest neighbourhoods. The Appia Antica Regional Park remains under its highest wildfire-risk classification, with open flames, barbecues and cigarette disposal banned across the ancient parkland. Despite the brutal conditions, the city's summer cultural season continues undimmed: the Colosseum's Troy and Rome exhibition has drawn record visitor numbers, and nightly guided tours of the Colosseum's underground chambers, launched on July 14, are running every Tuesday and Thursday through the end of September.
Rome — French Catholics attached to the traditional Latin Mass but loyal to Rome are expressing deep sadness after the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) consecrated four bishops on July 1 without papal approval, prompting the Vatican to declare the group in schism and excommunicate six SSPX bishops. The consecrations, carried out in Switzerland despite Pope Leo XIV's explicit letter asking the society to 'turn back', represent the most serious rupture between Rome and the traditionalist movement since the four illicit consecrations by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in 1988. The new bishops include American Michael Goldade, whose consecration was widely covered in Catholic media. French traditionalist Catholics — a significant and vocal community, particularly in Paris, Toulouse and the south-west — are now rallying behind Pope Leo XIV ahead of his planned visit to France from September 25 to 28, which will include a prayer vigil with young people at the Stade de France and a Mass at the Place de la Concorde expected to draw up to 500,000 faithful. The Vatican's response has been firm but measured, with Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re calling the consecrations 'a wound in the body of the Church'. The episode has overshadowed what had been a period of cautious optimism for traditionalist Catholics hoping for greater accommodation under the new American pope.
Rome — Rome's Colosseum has extended its opening hours for the summer season with guided night tours of its underground chambers, launched on July 14 and running every Tuesday and Thursday evening through the end of September. The tours, available in English, Italian and Spanish, offer visitors a chance to explore the hypogeum — the labyrinthine network of tunnels, animal cages and mechanical lifts beneath the arena floor — in the cooler temperatures of a Roman summer evening, when the ancient stone glows amber under specially designed lighting. The initiative is part of a broader push by the Colosseum's archaeological park to diversify the visitor experience and reduce the punishing midday queues that have plagued tourists during this summer's record heatwaves, when temperatures on the Colosseum's cobblestones have been measured at over 55°C. Night-time visits offer a dramatically different perspective on the 2,000-year-old amphitheatre: the shadows of the vaulted corridors, the echo of footsteps on ancient brick, and the view up through the arena floor to the night sky above. Tickets are limited to small groups and must be booked in advance through the park's official website. The night tours complement the Colosseum's ongoing Troy and Rome exhibition, which continues to draw record crowds despite the extreme summer heat.