Roma Day 4

We began day 4 with Mass at Sts. Cosmas and Damian in the Forum which is the motherhouse of the TOR Friars who run Franciscan University. Following Mass we went down to the crypt to see the tomb of Sts. Cosmas and Damian. We also got to see the largest nativity scene in Rome which is housed in the Church.

We then began on a tour of the Roman Forum which is a collection of many different ruins including triumphal arches, the entrance to the Roman sewers, one of the earliest Christian churches, the Arch of Augustine, the Church of St. Lawrence, and the Tomb of Julius Caesar. We then headed up Palatine Hill which houses the beautiful Uzzia Gardens along with ruins of the house of Caesar Augustus, the seat of the Roman government, and the emperor's private stadium. We then got to see the Circus Maximus which is where the chariot races were held. It's where Ben Hur would've raced if he existed.

The tour ended in front of the Colosseum so Ari and I took the opportunity to go inside. There's not much about the Colosseum that you can't see from pictures except the sense of actually being there, in this place where the first martyrs gave their lives. I had recently finished reading The Story of a Soul which is the autobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux. In this St. Therese recounts going on a pilgrimage to Rome with her father and sister. She tells how she and her sister had their hearts set on kissing the ground where the martyrs died but when they got to the Colosseum the tour guide wouldn't take them down to ground level because it's unsafe. But she and her sister just couldn't leave without paying tribute to the martyrs so after the tour they just took off and ran down to the ground and kissed it and they thought their father was going to be furious but he couldn't decide if he should be angry or proud so he didn't say anything! Having read that story before going to Rome really helped me to understand the Colosseum better and to really comprehend that the martyrs died here. It wasn't a particularly emotional experience but it was a deep one. I particularly appreciated the simple cross that was erected in honor of the martyrs. The best way I can describe the experience is as simply deep which is in fact an oxymoron and I can't really explain it but if you've ever experienced it you know what I mean.

After that we bought pizza from a street vendor and ate our lunch outside the Colosseum before heading back to my favorite place - Vatican City! We had decided to climb the cuppola which is the dome of St. Peter's basilica. You can climb up to the roof of St. Peter's and from there climb halfway up the dome and see the inside of St. Peter's from halfway up the dome and then continue the climb until you're almost at the top of the dome and then go out on a terrace and look out across Rome. So we began the climb. We got up to the roof and were like wow that wasn't so bad. Then we started climbing the dome. That was a bit more difficult. But we made it and got to walk around the inside of the dome. Ari was very excited cuz we got to touch the mosaics. Turns out those baby cherubs could beat you up. They look tiny from down below but then you get up next to them and find out they're huge! We then continued our climb which ended with a spiral staircase that was so narrow it didn't even have a railing, just a rope you have to cling to!

And then . . . we were there!!!! On the dome of St. Peter's!!!!! It was absolutely incredible! I'll let the pictures speak for themselves:

As we had walked out onto the terrace it had occured to us that we should have said a Rosary on the way up. But it worked out for the best because we found two little seats up on the terrace and we said a Rosary looking out over Rome! And there was a beautiful little breeze and it was so marvelous!

By the time we finished our Rosary we had to book it down to the Basilica so we wouldn't miss our tour. However, we did make a brief stop on the roof of St. Peter's to see the statues of the Apostles (which are huge by the way) and to marvel at the fact that there is a legit souvenire shop on the roof of St. Peter's Basilica. Cuz St. Peter's is just that cool.

We arrived just in time for our "detailed tour of St. Peter's Basilica" with Fr. Kirby from the seminary. You have no idea how insane St. Peter's is! We saw so much while we were still just in the vestibule! For example: the doors leading into the Church (which are ginormous) have a whole bunch of carvings in them of Biblical stories. And then there are the Jubilee Doors which only the Pope is allowed to open. At one end of the vestibule is a statue of Constantine and at the other a statue of Charlemagne, two defenders of the Church guarding the Church.

We then went inside the actual Basilica. The first thing Fr. Kirby pointed out to us were the statues. There's a row of statues along the bottom of the wall, near the floor, and another row along the top of the wall, closer to the ceiling. When St. Peter's was built they put a lot of thought into proportion and so the statues on top are actually several feet taller than the statues on the bottom so that when you look at them from the ground they appear to be the same size. The statues in the bottom row are 8 - 10 feet tall and the statues in the top row are 10 - 17 feet tall. Another example of the giant statues in St. Peter's are the cute little cherubs holding the Holy water. Yeah, they're not so cute and little. If they stood up straight they'd be six feet tall. They could beat you up man. Also, there's writing up around the ceiling of the Basilica. Well in order for this writing to look normal sized to us on the ground each letter has to be six feet tall! A full grown person could stand inside the O with their arms and legs stretched out and fit perfectly inside it!

Right on the floor inside the entrance to the Basilica is a large purple circle. Fr. Kirby explained to us that this circle is made of porphyri (not sure if I spelled that right) and had been in the front of the Basilica with the Emperor's seat placed on it. Only the Emperor was allowed to enter the circle and anyone else who did could be put to death. Well once the emperors were long gone and they were building the new Basilica they had the circle moved to the entrance so that everyone would have to step through it in order to enter the Church. This symbolizes the fact that in Christ there is no differentiation between rich and poor. In a really cheesy way you could say that in the Church everyone's an emperor!

We then got to see the Pieta! I had never had any special devotion to the Pieta but after seeing the real thing I must say it's incredibly beautiful! Our Lady's face totally captivated me. None of the replicas capture it at all. And there's actually an interesting story behind Our Lady's face in the Pieta. Michealangelo's own mother had died when he was very young and he modeled Our Lady's face on a memory he had of his mother. Many people criticized Michaelangelo for making Our Lady's face too youthful looking being that she would have been older by the time of Christ's crucifixion. However, it turns out that Our Lady's youthful face matches up with theology which holds that physical deterioration is a result of sin and since Our Lady was conceived without sin she would not have been subject to this deterioration and so would not have physically aged past her prime.

There's also another story about the Pieta which I particularly liked. The Pieta was commissioned by a foreign diplomat who wanted to give a gift to the Pope. Michaelangelo was not well known at the time and the diplomat was looking to save a little money so he hired Michaelangelo to do the job. Naturally, the Pieta soon became very famous and other artists started claiming authorship. Michaelangelo was so infuriated by this that he took the Pieta and carved across Our Lady's chest "I was made by Michaelangelo of Florence." Years later Michaelangelo was looking at the Pieta and he saw what his pride had caused him to do and he made a vow never to sign another work of his. And that's why it's really hard to identify pieces that Michealangelo did later in his life cuz he wouldn't sign them. That story totally increased my respect for Michealangelo.

Now, here's the really cool thing about the dome of St. Peter's. You remember the Pantheon? And how it was dedicated to all the gods? Well Michaelangelo was like let's make a dome for the Basilica that's the same size and dimensions as the Pantheon. And everyone was like yeah right you'll never be able to do that, no building could support a dome that big. And Michaelangelo was like watch me! So he built four ginormous columns to support the dome. They're so big you don't even realize they're columns! And he actually had to build two domes an outer one and an inner one which is chained to the outer one for support. When we climbed the cuppola we were actually walking in between the two domes. Which was kinda awkward cuz I was tilted diagonally as I was climbing. So Michaelangelo succeeded in creating a dome the size of the Pantheon. And it even has the hole in the ceiling like the Pantheon! But if you look up into the hole there's actually a spire on top of it and painted inside the spire is God the Father who is directly over the altar which represents Christ and on the front of the altar is a dove symbolizing the Holy Spirit. So the altar is totally Trinitarian!

In front of the altar are the steps leading down to the crypt through which you can see St. Peter's tomb. Around the crypt are 99 candles which symbolize the 99 sheep which the Good Shepherd would leave to search for the one lost sheep.

In the back of the basilica is a beautiful window with a picture of a dove (representing the Holy Spirit of course). But Fr. Kirby then tells us that there is no stained glass in St. Peter's. That window is actually made of very thinly cut alabaster!

I was very excited when Fr. Kirby told us that the body of Pope John the 23rd is actually at one of the side altars in St. Peter's! I had been kinda bummed when he wasn't in the tombs of the Popes cuz he's really cool (he's the Pope who called Vatican II) and I really wanted to see him.

Right after the tour Ari and I took the opportunity to visit a statue of St. Peter in the Basilica which pilgrims traditionally rub the foot of. It's a sign of devotion. And his foot has been rubbed so much that it's actually worn down so it's really smooth.

Following our tour Ari and I got to kinda sorta get pictures with a Swiss Guard. We couldn't actually stand next to him but we could stand a couple feet away from him and take a picture with him in the background. It was kind of awkward but whatever.

We then made a brief stop at the Vatican bookstore where I found a book of novenas! That just totally made my life cuz I love novenas and I'm always looking for new ones and here was a whole book of them! I also got a postcard that has Pope Benedict's picture on it and a quote from him. I'm not using it as a postcard though, I'm using it as a decoration for my room. While I was in the bookstore they had a video on of clips from JPII's funeral and his life and I almost had an emotional meltdown right in the store. I just love our Papa so much and I can't believe he's gone! There were seriously tears in my eyes watching that video. On a happier note they also had children's books in the store called Joseph and Chico which is the story of Pope Benedict and his cat which I just thought was hilarious.

We then headed for Soprani's, a religious goods store which had been recommended to us. On our way there I stopped to buy the latest issue of L'Osservatore Romano - the official newspaper of the Vatican - I felt I couldn't leave Rome without it! We stopped again to pick up some gelatto. Once at Soprani's I pretty much decided to buy the whole store. Everything was SO cheap!!! So I got a lot of stuff for me and a lot of stuff for other people - it was quite exciting! We then headed back to the hotel for dinner and then went to our last Holy Hour in Rome!