On Tuesday, the Third Week of Lent we turn to one of the oldest churches in Rome, constructed between 140 and 155 AD. Santa Pudenziana is dedicated to one of the daughters of Pudens, a Roman who was converted and subsequently baptized by Peter in Rome. Typical of the oldest churches in Rome, this is a titular church, meaning it was built over the remains of a Roman home.

One of the most fascinating types of churches in Rome are the titular churches — churches that were once house-churches, and still today...