Pyrenees

After a bit of a delay, some more pictures from France.  This is from our trip into the Pyrenees near Toulouse.  The Pyrenees form the natural border between France and Spain.  The mountains were absolutely beautiful.  While there we celebrated Mass for a convent of Benedictine Nuns.  We also had lunch there with another French priest and some others.

Roman Christmas

Here are just a few pictures from Rome.  There are some from St. Peter's square showing the Christmas tree.  There are also some from Piazza Navona.  Piazza Navona is famous at Christmastime for all of its gift stall.  It's usually a busy piazza, but doubly so at Christmas.

Liturgical Pic of the Day

A great photo of one of our priests in New York City.  He is celebrating Mass in the Dominican Rite in thanksgiving for a couple's 10th wedding anniversary.  This is at the high altar of the Church of St. Vincent Ferrer in The City.

The Emerald Isle

From the hills overlooking Dublin

Before going back to the U.S., I took the opportunity to spend a few days in Ireland.  I was mostly in Dublin, but went up with another friar to the Shrine of Our Lady of Knock and to our Dominican Priory (or what the locals there call our "Friary") in Sligo.  It is impressive to realize how long our Dominicans have been in Ireland, and how they continued to survive despite very severe persecution.  For example, the Dominicans have been in Sligo since the 13th century.  But for much of thee last several centuries, religious life was forbidden by the English.  This is the reason that San Clemente fell to the hands of the Irish, so that they might have a place to educate their friars, as it would have been illegal in Ireland.  There were even professional "Priest Hunters" in Ireland until the 18th century, and they were given a higher reward for hunting down and catching a friar.

The Shrine of Our Lady of Knock commemorates the apparition of the Blessed Virgin, St. John the Evangelist, and St. Joseph outside a small country parish near Sligo.  Our Lady said nothing but merely pointed to another image, that of the Lamb on the Altar, seen as a symbol of the Eucharist.  The Shrine remains an important place of pilgrimage for the Irish and was visited by Pope John Paul II on one of his first trips, in 1979.

I also visited Glendalogh, the ruins of an ancient monastic settlement and the home of St. Kevin.  It gives a glimpse of the unique Christian life that flourished in Ireland.  Regrettably, this life was severely threatened by the Vikings, who continually raided the Monastic communities. And of course, these same peoples eventually invaded England as the Normans, whose brutal tyranny marked religious life in Ireland for 800 years.

The pictures from my trips to Ireland are below.

Glendalough

Knock and the Shrine of Our Lady of Sligo

Dublin

Pentecost, the Pantheon, and Rose Petals

One of the great liturgical events in Rome each year is on Pentecost at the Pantheon.  The Pantheon was originally a pagan temple, built in first century or so.  It is unusually in that the dome of the building is open--there is a large hole at the top of the ceiling to let in sunlight (and also rain, wind, and the occasional snow).

The feast of Pentecost recalls the event detailed in the Acts of the Apostles, occurring 50 days after Our Lord's Resurrection:

When the time for Pentecost was fulfilled, they were all in one place together. And suddenly there came from the sky a noise like a strong driving wind, and it filled the entire house in which they were. Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire, which parted and came to rest on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim.

Acts 2:1-4

The feast is often referred to as the "Birthday of the Church", and focuses especially on the coming of the --Holy Spirit, as promised by Christ.  The symbolism of the day is the color red--originating from the description of the tongues of flame.  Say what you will about the Romans, but they love a good spectacle.  So, this event of Pentecost is given firmer form here in Rome when thousands of red rose petals are dropped down from the hole of the Pantheon (fittingly enough, by Roman firemen, I'm told) after the main Mass of the day.  

I was not able to attend this year, but I did see it last year.  Here are my pictures form Pentecost 2012 at the Pantheon:

Shrine of Our Lady of Pompeii

Bartolo Longo, son of a wealthy Italian family in the 19th century, was a "priest" in a satanic cult, a practicer of new age "magic" who reveled in debauchery, seances, and demonstrating against the Pope and the Church.  These did not make him happy.  Through the advice of friends, he came into contact with a Dominican priest, who reconciled him to the faith of his childhood.  He even became a Third Order Dominican, taking the name "Rosario".

A year or so later, while in the Church of SS. Salvatore in the city of Pompeii (outside where the ruins are), he had a mystical experience. There he had a vision of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who spoke to him saying "Se propaghi il Rosario, sarai salvo!" ("If you propagate the rosary, you will be saved!")  At this point he saw clearly his mission: to spread the devotion of the Rosary.

He eventually founded a Confraternity of the Holy Rosary. As part of that activity, he wanted an image for the new Confraternity. So, he acquired an icon of the Blessed Virgin giving the rosary to Sts. Dominic and Catherine of Siena.  That image was given to him by a Dominican nun, who had purchased it in a junk shop in Naples.  Longo himself was not too found of the image, which he described in his journal this way:

Not only was it worm-eaten, but the face of the Madonna was that of a coarse, rough country-woman ... a piece of canvas was missing just above her head ... her mantle was cracked. Nothing need be said of the hideousness of the other figures. St. Dominic looked like a street idiot. To Our Lady's left was a St. Rose. This I had changed later into a St. Catherine of Siena ... I hesitated whether to refuse the gift or to accept ... I took it.

The image was restored a number of times, and come to be known simply as Our Lady of Pompeii.

Eventually, at the urging of his Bishop, Longo built a new church, a shrine dedicated to the Rosary.  Soon after, miracles began being reported, particularly with the icon of Our Lady of Pompeii.  A larger church was built, and enlarged again after Longo's death.  That church is now known officially as the Pontifical Shrine of the Blessed Virgin of the Holy rosary of Pompeii, or as it is better known, simply the Shrine of Our Lady of Pompeii.

Bartolo Longo was beatified by Bl. Pope John Paul II in 1980.

The Shrine is located just outside the archaeological site at Pompeii, and is worth a visit.  While we were there, an Italian Bishop was visiting with some Capuchin friars in tow, and we were able to pray the Rosary with them.  Unfortunately, the main sanctuary was under construction during our visit, but here are a few pictures:

Naples

The city of Naples is about 140 miles to the south of Rome.  But they are very different places.  As most Italians will tell you, Naples is louder and more energetic, più vivace, as the Italians would say.  The people also have a great deal more piety than you see in Rome.  And the Pizza in Naples is much, much better than the Pizza in Rome.  On the negative side, it is one of the most corrupt in Italy.  There is a general stereotype among Italians that Neapolitans are not trustworthy.  One is constantly warned before going to Naples to beware of robbers, thieves, and pickpockets.  That corruption is extremely evident in the city government.  As is widely known, the company with the contract for garbage collection in Naples is a mafia run organization.  In order to punish the city for anti-Mafia activity, the company seems to collect the contract fees, but not the garbage.  It is therefore one of the dirties cities in Europe, with mounds of uncollected and rotting garbage lining the streets.  Also, most Italians are very aware of the importance of tourism and keep the historic areas clean.  There is a level of graffiti in Naples--even on the churches in the historic city center--that you do not see in other cities in Italy, at least in the tourist areas.  It is very sad, because there is a great amount of beauty in the city.

The city of Naples (or Napoli, in Italian) is ancient, and has pre-Roman roots.  Its name comes from the Greek:  Neo Polis, the "new city".  It was originally a Greek settlement, and only much later came under the control of the Roman Empire.  After the collapse of the Roman Empire, it eventually formed part of the Two Kingdoms of Sicily, and was the seat of government in the Kingdom.  The Two Kingdoms ended when the people voted in a plebescite to join the emerging united Italy in the mid 19th century.

Among the things to see there are the Duomo, the Cathedral of St. Januarius (or San Gennaro, in Italian).  He is the most important saint of the city, as his his relic.  St. Januarius was a 3rd/4th cntury martyr under the Diocletian persecution, and his body was brought to Naples after his death.  The church in Naples has preserved not only his bones, but a relic of his blood.  There is a miracle associated with it, in that the blood--which had long since dried--miraculously liquifies.  It usually occurs on his feast day, and its liquefaction is seen as a sign of blessing on the city.  However, there have been times it has failed to liqufy, and disaster has struck.  Every year, the people of Naples gather on the feast to see if the miracle will occur, and therefore whether it will be a blessed year (or not) for the city.

In the pictures below is also one of the greatest carvings I have ever seen, the Christo Velato, or veiled Christ.  It is a carving of Christ in the tomb covered in a linen blanket.  The carving is so delicate, do perfect, it really looks as though it is the body of a man covered in a damp cloth.  Pictures are not allowed in the chapel, so the one below is actually a picture of the post card.

We Dominicans have our own church, the Basilica of San Domenico Maggiore.  The Dominicans arrived there in the 13th century, very early in the life of the Order.  There was a church there, originally dedicated to St. Michael the Archangel.  Eventually it became a priory, and a new larger church built in honor of St. Dominic.  For several years, St. Thomas Aquinas stayed there, and his former cell is now a chapel.  There is a story that here while in prayer, the icon of the crucifix spoke to him saying, "You have written well of me, Thomas, what reward would you have?' St. Thomas replied,"None other than Yourself, Lord." The icon of the crucifix is still in the cell, and some pictures of it are below.

Also buried in the Basilica of St. Dominic is the body of Bishop Luke Concanen, an Irish Dominican and the first Bishop of the Diocese of New York.  Unfortunately, Bishop Concanen was never able to make passage to the U.S., and died in Naples before ever taking possession of his Diocese.  Terence Cardinal Cooke, the former Archbishop of New York, had plaques in honor of Bishop Concanen placed in the church.

Finally, Naples is important historically for its harbor.  It is located in a bay, and when the weather is good, the views of the bay are stunning.  Unfortunately, the weather was not very good when we were in Naples.

Here are the pictures from Naples:

Buona Pasqua!

My very belated collection of pictures from Easter Mass at St. Peter's.  For Masses like this, the Vatican organizes about 150 priests and deacons to help distribute Holy Communion.  You cannot concelebrate, but you do assist at the Mass.  To take part, you have to have a ticket and a letter of good standing.  I have the latter, and was able to get the former.  So, I went down to St. Peter's to distribute communion.  The instructions they give us are two:  We us the Latin phrase (Corpus Christi) rather than Italian or other vernacular, and communion may be given only on the tongue.  Having confronted the crowd of people wanting communion (250,000) and the very limited number of hosts, this is the only way to preserve proper reverence for the Sacrament.

I do not take pictures during Mass--and obviously could not bring my regular camera.  These are just with a phone camera and are either right before or right after the Mass.

7 Churches on Holy Thursday

There is an ancient Roman tradition of visiting the altars of seven churches on Holy Thursday night.  This is actually pretty easy to do in a city of 900 churches.  After the Mass of the Lord's Supper on Holy Thursday evening, the last Mass before the Easter Vigil on Saturday night, the Blessed Sacrament is reserved in a side chapel or altar.  The Mass of the Lord's Supper commemorates especially the institution of the Eucharist, and the Church encourages devotion to the Blessed Sacrament on this day.  There is also a practical aspect--the Church often mixes the symbolic or devotional with the practical.  The altar needs to be stripped and the tabernacle emptied for the Good Friday liturgy. Over the years, the people and parishes added splendor to this, decorating the altar with candles, flowers, and beautiful cloths.  And so developed the custom, especially in Rome and then spreading to other cities, of visiting Christ in the Sacrament at a variety of different altars and churches.

The custom developed of visiting seven churches.  Why seven?  This is probably a confusion with another custom, that of visiting the seven pilgrimage churches of Rome when on pilgrimage there.  The visiting of these seven churches was often associated with a plenary indulgence.

There may have been an indulgence associated with the Holy Thursday custom of visiting churches, but there is no more.  Rather, the Church offers a plenary indulgence for the following in Holy Thursday:

A plenary indulgence is granted [under the normal conditions] for the faithful who piously recite the versus of the Tantum ergo after the Mass of the Lord's Supper on Holy Thursday during the solemn reposition of the Most Blessed Sacrament.

Here were the seven churches I visited this Holy Thursday here in Rome:

Gruyères, Switzerland

If you imagine in your mind a small Alpine village, I would guess that it would look much like the medieval town of Gruyères, about 30 miles from Fribourg.  It is also the town from which gruyère cheese--that perfect ingredient for the most Swiss of dishes, fondue--gets its name.  I went on an absolutely perfect day--still a bit of the winter cold, but by no means freezing.

It has a lovely little village church off the main square.  Like all Swiss churches, it is immaculately clean and well ordered.  Climbing up the hill, it has some incredible overlooks of valley and the Alpine mountains in the distance.

Here are a few of the pictures from Gruyères:

Fribourg, Switzerland

 One of the reasons I started this blog, as I've mentioned before, is to post pictures of places I visit in Europe for friends and family.  Because of my postings following the Pope's election, this blog has gotten a bit of a wider view than I had thought it would.  Still, it's a handy place to post pics.

The Canton of Fribourg in Switzerland is one of the historically Catholic Canton.  (A Canton is roughly--very roughly--the equivalent of a "State" in Switzerland.)  The Cantons are generally divided between those that went for Calvin and those that remained Catholic.  Fribourg, because of its location between two Calvinist Cantons, was not only Catholic but quite adamantly so.  This was probably exacerbated by the violence they suffered at the hands of their Calvinist neighbors.  They still have the custom on Corpus Christi of firing of the town's canons as a warning to those Protestants who might seek to disrupt the Eucharistic procession.

When the Canton of Fribourg built its University, it asked the Dominican Order to run the college of theology, which it does to this day.  In America, we would find it odd for a state university to have a theology faculty run by a religious order, but such things are far more acceptable here.  Currently, our Province of Dominicans has three priests studying theology in Fribourg.

I had planned for some time to go up and visit these brothers.  While in the midst of planning, Benedict XVI announced his retirement.  I decided to take the trip anyway, thinking (and hoping) it likely that the Conclave would not start until I returned.  I turned out to be correct, thank goodness, and returned to Rome the day before the Conclave began.

Like much of Western Europe, the religiosity of the people--both Catholic and Calvinist--had faded greatly.  Nevertheless, the majesty of the Catholic faith--the churches, shrines, monasteries, and statues--remains.  It is amazing to consider how far and how deeply the faith permeated the culture there.

Switzerland is a place of incredible natural beauty, and of great artistic beauty as well.  The pictures below are just from my time in Fribourg.  I plan to upload as well pictures from Gruyere and Lucerne as well.

Habemus Papam!

To be in Rome for a Papal election is a great grace, as spiritually uplifting as it is exciting.  Yesterday certainly proved so for me.

Last night I was assigned to celebrate the conventual Mass at the Basilica of San Clemente—our Priory church—here in Rome.  I had been watching the news, and by the time Mass started at 6:30 Rome time, I knew there was no smoke from the Sistine chimney yet.  But, I knew that the later it got, the more likely we would get smoke.  It usually takes about a ½ hour to say Mass, meaning it would end around 7:00pm, just at the time the next smoke was expected.  But that morning the smoke was 20 minutes early, so I was afraid we’d have a Pope in the middle of my Mass.

I did my best not to rush Mass—at least not to rush it too much!  I think most people were in the Square or watching events on the television, as there were very few of the faithful for Mass.  I ended up concluding Mass in a bit under 30 minutes.  As soon as I finished, I cleaned up after Mass, locked the Basilica, turned out the lights, grabbed my cappa and camera and made for the bus.  It was about 7:05pm in Rome.  Seconds after stepping out of the doors of the Priory, I received a text to my phone.  It was one word, but spoke volumes: “White!”  I began to quicken my pace.

As I got out of our garden and onto the street, I spotted one of my confreres coming off the Tram.  I told him the smoke is white, and that I was grabbing a cab.  He quickly followed.  Fortunately, there is a major taxi stop in front of a hotel down the street and around the corner from us.  The brother and I—neither of us in top athletic form—ran for the taxi stand.  There was, praise God, a line of cabs waiting.  As we climbed in the first I breathlessly exclaimed: “Fumata Bianca!  Andate a San Pietro!”  (White Smoke!  Go to St. Peter’s!).  As I said before, I was never more thankful for crazy Roman cabbies.

The first ballot. . . Black Smoke!

So I took the bus down to St. Peter's Square.  Some sisters from the Community of the Lamb (a wonderful group of sisters) were at the bus stop, and I rode down with them.  We joined up with some American seminarians when we switched buses.

There were lots of people flowing into the square, and the journalists were like vultures descending on the crowds.  The Piazza was much fuller than it normally is on a Tues. at 7:00pm, but it wasn't packed.  I think most people figured the Pope would not be elected tonight.

A middle-aged Italian woman came up to ask to talk.  The Italians rarely have trouble talking with strangers. She said a few interesting things.  I asked if she wanted an Italian Pope.  Her response: "Basta!" (Enough!)  There really is a sentiment among the Italians that their country is broken.  Although not so much in the press, the current political situation in Italy is in absolute turmoil with no clear party ready to run the government.  There is almost a despair among the Italians about their own future, and their inability to be trusted with the workings of the Vatican.  They see their political leaders as corrupt, untrustworthy, and without a concern for the common good of the people.  So, when I asked her who she wanted, she emphastically said an American--"Il Cappuccino " (the Capuchin).  She wanted Cardinal O'Malley.  There remains a great love for the Italians of the Franciscans, especially because of St. Padre Pio, the 20th century priest and mystic.  There is also a sense of the humility and simpleness of the Capuchins, especially O'Malley, that the Italians find very attractive.  It didn't hurt that there was apparently a picture in the Italian Press of Cardinal O'Malley giving bread to the poor.

She also said that her pastor was not in favor of an American Pope.  Why?  Because of the danger of the CIA!  As is often said, the Italians have never heard a conspiracy theory that they're not willing to believe.  The juicer the gossip, the more they want to hear!

She was also Roman and a long-time Papal watcher.  She said that they never elect in the morning, always in the afternoon.  So, if the past is any guide, don't expect white smoke in the morning.

The smoke came much later than was expected.  Fr. Lombardi had thought that it would come around 7:00pm.  It didn't come until about 7:40pm.  I'm not sure if we should expect the same for the remaining days, or whether this was just a first day glitch.

Anyway, here are the pictures of the smoke and the smokestack.  There are also a few of the Loggia, prepared for the new Pope's entrance, and a few of the Piazza.

Vacancy Signs

Like most churches, here at the ancient Papal Basilica of San Clemente in Rome, we keep a prominent portrait of the Roman Pontiff.  Right around 8:00pm, when there See of Peter was vacated, we took down the portrait.  We are a sacramental Church, we live and breath signs and symbols. The vacancy of the office of Pope is reflected in various ways, large and small.  The empty space on the wall is a visible reminder in the church of the empty chair in the Church:

The Caelian Hill & Circus Maximus

It was a chill but sunny day earlier this week, so I made way way over the Caelian hill, at the south end of the Circus Maximus.  I had hoped to get to the ancient Roman baths of Caracalla, a huge structure built by the Emperor Caracalla in the 3rd century.  Unfortunately, however, I arrived too late and the ruins were closed.  Still I managed to grabbed some nice photos.

Just up the street from the baths is the Circus Maximus, now essentially a long, narrow field.  The shape is due to its primary use, which was a stadium for chariot racing.  There are some ruins at the south end, on which there is sporadic work done.  There is a spot over by the Aventine Hill from which one has a very nice view of the Circus and the ruins along the Palatine Hill. 

Below are some pictures from visiting both:

Washington, DC

After the Board Meeting, I went to Washington, DC, in part to assist at our Vocations Weekend in Washington. My sister came up to visit and we made a trip to the National Gallery of Art in Washington. Most of the pictures are from there. Most people don't realize that the National Gallery does permit you to take pictures, but you are not allowed to use a tripod (without advance written permission). The last few photos are from the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial just north of the Art Museum.

New Orleans

At the end of January, I traveled to New Orleans for a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Legal Services Corporation. Because I was coming from Rome, I got there a bit early to adjust to the time.  That gave me a little bit of time to explore the Big Easy, the best description of which is found in the movie Star Wars. (In a twist of irony, as I write this I am listening to HCjr's "O My Nola".)  Most of the pictures below are taken of the Cathedral in New Orleans, dedicated to St. Louis, King of France.  (If you've never read it, I strongly urge reading St. Louis's letter to his son)

Bari

I just realized I forgot to post the pictures from Bari.  After our trip to Calabria and Acri, we drove over the "arch of the foot" that is the Italian boot.  The drive reminded me a bit like long drives in the States.  However, while in the States you often pass miles and miles of corn and soybeans, in Italy you pass miles and miles of olive groves and vineyards.  With the olive trees, they'll often cover the ground with nets, shake the trees (I assume), and catch the ripened leaves in the netting.

Vatican Christmas Creche 2012

I was in St. Peter's square this past weekend, when the crowds were much reduced.  As such, I was able to get some good pictures of the elaborate Christmas Creche in the Piazza.  (I wrote a little about it here.)  You don't get a good sense of dimension here, but the figures are rather small, perhaps about 6 or 7 inches tall, although the whole display is quite large. 

Plaster Casts

In the museum of the Norman Castle in Bari, there is a series of plaster casts on display.  They were casts taken from various important carvings throughout the Apulia (or, in Italian, Puglia) region of Italy.  Here are pictures of some of them: