At the church of St Sebastiano, they could see the arrows that had pierced the side of the great martyr. Gruesome stories of the sadistic torments suffered by early Christians were compiled and repeated, stories that horrified and enthralled Rome's new spiritual tourists. But there was a darker side to the pilgrim boom. Everybody literally wanted a piece of the martyrs. Soon there was a macabre black market in the wizened body parts of the saints, sometimes they just snatched the entire body. The trafficking in body parts appalled Pope Gregory, who believed that contact with the supernaturally powerful bones brought instant death. But Gregory understood the value of relics. He had special boxes made, containing filings from the chains of St Peter, and by sending them to bishops in faraway territories, he strengthened their loyalty to the Pope. Pilgrimage to the Holy City paid rich dividends for the papacy.


在圣塞巴斯蒂安诺教堂，朝圣者们可以看到刺入伟大殉道者们身体里的箭头。这里不停讲述着早期基督徒们遭受到非人虐待的可怕故事，这些故事足以让新一代的罗马精神游客们不寒而栗却又沉醉其中。但是朝圣者们的络绎不绝也有不好的一面。每个朝圣者都想要得到一块殉道者的圣骸。不久之后就出现了倒卖圣人遗骸的黑市，甚至有的时候这些人会直接把圣人的干尸整个抢走。圣骸交易让格里高利教皇不寒而栗，因为他相信接触这些具有超自然力量的骸骨会让人永不超生。但是他也懂得这些骸骨价值连城。他叫人用圣彼得铁链的锉削制作了一些特殊的盒子，并把这些盒子送到遥远地区的主教们手上，加强了他们对教皇的忠诚。当时的圣城朝圣之旅巩固了罗马教皇的地位。