San Giuseppe Lavatore della Stazione Tiburtina is a 21st century dependent chapel of the parish of Sant'Ippolito, located at the Tiburtina train station which is in the south-west corner of the Pietralata quarter and just north of the Via Tiburtina.
The dedication is to St Joseph the Worker.
History[]
Tiburtina is Rome's second most important train station, and is used by trains running through the city and hence not using Termini. It was opened in 1866, but for most of its existence played a subsidiary role because most main-line train services in Rome focused on Termini.
The chapel here is a descendent of a parish Mass centre opened in 1959 in the nearby Via Teodorico. This seems to have been a rather casual arrangement, which came to an end in the 1970's. However, as a result of private efforts the chapel was re-opened in 1980 and properly consecrated, to the Holy Cross.
It became clear that the main users were railway travellers and workers as well as others associated with the station. As a result, in 1994 the chapel of the Holy Cross was replaced by a new chapel actually on the station premises and dedicated to St Joseph. This tiny chapel was on the east side of the old station, by the subway to the Tiburtina metro station. It was an initiative of the parish, which also wished to provide a pastoral outlet in a place which had developed an unsavoury reputation for seediness and criminal activity.
At the end of the 20th century, the Italian railways had been implementing plans for high-speed train travel between the north and south of Italy (say between Milan and Naples), and a reversal into Termini would have been very inconvenient operationally. So, Tiburtina was re-developed as a large main-line through station. In 2007, the chapel was demolished when construction started on the new station building for these high-speed trains. Very unfortunately, a massive fire in 2011 seriously damaged the new structure but work was completed at the end of that year.
The pastoral outlet given by the chapel was continued by celebrating Masses in the station's former post office, but in 2014 a new chapel was finally consecrated.
Appearance[]
The chapel has no external identity. It is a small windowless room, with whitewashed walls. There is a pierced copper screen behind the altar, on which is hung a crucifix flanked by wooden statues of Our Lady and St Joseph.
Liturgy[]
Mass is celebrated:
Sundays 11:00,
Saturdays 18:00,
First Friday of the month 18:00.
(An early daily Mass on weekdays would be useful.)