Sedia gestatoria Sedia gestatoria The gestatorial chair ("sedia gestatoria" in Italian, lit. "chair for carrying") was a ceremonial throne on which Popes were carried on shoulders until 1978, and later replaced outdoors in part with the Popemobile. It consists of a richly adorned, silk-covered armchair, fastened on a "suppedaneum", on each side of which are two gilded rings; through these rings pass the long rods with which twelve footmen ("palafrenieri"), in red uniforms, carry the throne on their shoulders. On prior occasions, as in the case of Pope Stephen III, popes were carried on the shoulders of men. The "sedia gestatoria" is
Religion in Belarus Religion in Belarus Religion in Belarus has been traditionally Orthodox Christianity although there is also a sizeable Catholic minority. The legacy of the state atheism of the Soviet era is evident in the fact that a large part of the Belarusians are not religious. Moreover, other non-traditional and new religions have sprung up in the country after the end of the Soviet Union. According to the most recent data published in 2011 by the Ministry of the Interior, 48.3% of the Belarusians are Orthodox Christians, 41.1% are irreligious (atheists and agnostics), 7.1% are Catholics, and 3.5% are members of other