Sant'Achille, Modern church in Rome, Italy

Sant'Achille is a red-brick church in Rome's Monte Sacro Alto district, designed by architect Giorgio Guidi and consecrated in 1973. Its cylindrical bell tower stands in front, and the modest entrance bears a 1996 fresco of the Good Shepherd with the Psalm 23 inscription. The interior has a fan-shaped plan converging toward the altar, with a Mascioni pipe organ (opus 961, 1973) in the apse.

The parish was established on 21 October 1957 by a decree of Cardinal Vicar Clemente Micara and entrusted to the Third Regular Order of Saint Francis of Assisi. It was named for Saint Achille because 1957 marked the centenary of the birth of Pius XI, born Achille Ratti, who promoted the creation of over fifty parishes in Rome. The current church, designed by architect Giorgio Guidi, was consecrated on 11 March 1973 by Cardinal Vicar Ugo Poletti.

The church is named after Saint Achille, a soldier martyred in Rome, but the name also honours Pius XI, born Achille Ratti, whose centenary fell in 1957 when the parish was set up; a plaque by the entrance records the patron and this reason. The Third Regular Order of Saint Francis of Assisi, which runs the parish, placed a statue of the saint holding a martyr's palm in the atrium.

The entrance on Via Gaspara Stampa, 64, is modest and marked by a 1996 fresco of the Good Shepherd. The liturgical hall fans out toward the altar, so most seats face it directly. The old rectangular structure beside the church, used for worship before 1973, stands alongside the cylindrical bell tower.

The church is named after Saint Achille, a soldier martyred in Rome, but the name also honours Pius XI, born Achille Ratti: 1957, the year the parish was founded, was the centenary of his birth. A plaque beside the entrance records the patron saint and this reason for the dedication.