Dominican Jubilee in Rome

Very Rev. Bruno Cadore, Master of the Order of Preachers, preaches at the Jubilee Mass in Rome.

This year, the Order of Preachers (Dominicans) celebrate the 800th year of our founding.  For a brief history of the Order, the Dominican friars of the Province of England have an excellent summary.  The Jubilee will be celebrated mostly at the local level, as a thanksgiving to God for the Order and a supplication for the grace necessary to continue our mission.  For the events in the Province of St. Joseph, you can see our Provincial Jubilee website.  For events around the world, see the Jubilee Website of the Order.

You can follow us on social media on Twitter at @Dominican_Order or on Facebook at OrdoPraedicatorum.

Here in Rome, the Jubilee began with Mass at Santa Sabina on the Feast of All Saints of the Order of Preachers (Nov 7 in the Ordinary Form of the Roman Rite).  Santa Sabina is the priory where, by long tradition, the Master of the Order lives.  The Basilica was originally given to St. Dominic in 1220.  Mass was celebrated by the Master of the Order, Fr. Bruno Cadore, OP.  Present were friars from all over the world, as well as Dominican sisters and nuns, and members of the Third Order.

Here is a slideshow of pictures from the Mass.

La Galleria Borghese

La Galleria Borghese

The Borghese Gallery is one of the best art museums in Rome.  It began originally as the art collection of Cardinal Cardinal Scipione, who was the son of Hortensia Borghese and the nephew of Pope Paul V.  As the Borghese Gallery website explains:

Cardinal Scipion was drawn to any works of ancient, Renaissance and contemporary art which might re-evoke a new golden age. He was not particularly interested in medieval art, but passionately sought to acquire antique sculpture. But Cardinal Scipione was so ambitious that he promoted the creation of new sculptures and especially marble groups to rival antique works. Cardinal Scipione's collection of paintings was remarkable and was poetically described as early as 1613 by Scipione Francucci.

The museum houses one of the best collections of statutes by the famed sculptor Bernini.  It also houses several paintings by Caravaggio.  The Gallery is situated in the beautiful Borghese park on a hill at the northern end of Rome.  You can go through the museum in under 2 hours.  If you ever go, I strongly recommend going with a written guide or buying an audio guide.  The works of art are not well marked or described.

Here are some pictures of some of the art that can be found in La Galleria Borghese:

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.

Feast of San Clemente

For the last several decades, our Basilica of San Clemente in Rome has organized a procession with the relics of St. Clement through the neighborhood--complete with fireworks and a band.  Unfortunately, we were rained out, so the procession stayed indoors and the fireworks were cancelled.

But the Band still came:

The celebrant for the Mass was H.E. Matteo Maria Zuppi, an auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Rome.

Pictures from the Basilica and the Mass are below:

Visiting Rome (Part IV) - Where to Stay

When I lived in Chicago, lots of people I knew would visit the city.  I was invariably asked the same question: "what's a good hotel at which I can stay?"  I always had to answer the same way, "I have no idea.  I live in Chicago, so I never stay in hotels here."  The same is true in Rome.  If you want to know a good hotel in Rome, don't ask someone who lives there, ask people who have traveled there.

Even so, I do usually ask people where they stay when they come to Rome--more the neighborhood than the particular hotel.  I find that the Americans tend to be in one of two places.  The first is up by the Spanish Steps or perhaps near the Via Veneto (which is where the American Embassy is located).  This is a very nice place to stay.  There are some beautiful neighborhoods and streets, and you are very close to the center of Rome and to the Metro line.  The second is over by Termini Station, near Vittorio Emanuele park, which is about the closest Rome gets to a "Chinatown".  My impression is that it tends to be cheaper, but the neighborhood is perfectly fine otherwise, although not as scenic as the Piazza di Spagna, and it is more on the outskirts of the tourist areas.

To give you a better idea when you are choosing a hotel, below is a map of Rome.  The dark area in the center is where you will spend most of your tourist time, particularly east of the river.  With a few major exceptions (such as St. Paul Outside the Walls or the Catacombs), you won't need to go outside this area, especially if it is your first time in Rome.  Therefore, I would recommend that when you are booking a hotel, see how close it is to this area.  The more in the center of this area it is, the more convenient it will be for you while touring the major sites of Rome.  Also, just about anywhere in this area will be fairly safe to stay.  Rome is a large, urban city with all the risks of crime that come with that, but other than pickpockets and Gypsies, the tourist area is fairly safe.

When people think of places to stay, they normally think of hotels.  But there are two other options to consider.  The first is an apartment.  There are lots of apartments in Rome that you can rent out.  The advantage of this is that they often have a kitchen.  Dining in Roman restaurants is a bit expensive, unless all you want is pizza.  Some of these apartments have multiple rooms, so if you are a large family or a group of several couples, an apartment may be a most cost-effective option.  It also has the advantage of being more in the city, giving a better sense of how the people here actually live.

If you are a pilgrim to Rome, and coming largely out of religious motivations, I would also recommend staying in a convent.  There are quite a number of sisters' convents that rent out part of their space for tourists and pilgrims.  The rooms tend to be much less expensive than other places.  The rooms are usually very simple, but very clean, and many often provide a simple breakfast.  For pilgrims, the convents will almost always have a chapel where you can pray.  Take note, however, that many do have a curfew, so if you are planning lots of late nights out, make sure you know when they lock up for the night.  There is a website called Monastery Stays that lists a number of these, although I do not know first hand the accuracy of the site.  (UPDATE:  There is also a Booking Monastery website.  Again, I can't confirm the accuracy of the website, so use prudent judgment.)

Just keep in mind that the Italian sense of comfort is rather different than ours.  I find Italian beds much firmer than American beds.  Romans are also used to living in much smaller spaces, so do not expect some grand, large room, and certainly not a spacious bathroom!

Speaking of bathrooms, two quick notes.  In most hotels there will be a cord hanging from the wall inside the shower.  Whatever you do, do not pull it unless it's an emergency.  It is an uncharacteristic Italian attempt at safety, and it signals an alarm in case you fall or something.  Second, that extra bathroom fixture on the floor next to the toilet is not a drinking fountain for very short people.

Visiting Rome (Part III) - The Pope

One of the best reasons to come to Rome is to see the Pope.  Even a fair share of non-Catholics will make an effort to attend a Papal event while in Rome, and it usually is not terribly difficult to do so.  (Although see the really important note at the bottom of this post about the need for tickets to papal events.)  Again, this is written with my fellow Americans in mind, but most is applicable to everyone.

There are already some good resources on the website about papal events:

The first is the Pontifical North American College (usually referred to simply as "The NAC"), which is the American seminary residence here in Rome.  They have a number of resources for pilgrims, and especially their page on Papal Audiences and Events.  One of the other very important pages on that website is the Bishops’ Office for United States Visitors to the Vatican.  The U.S. Bishops keep an office at the NAC explicitly for American pilgrims to Rome and is run by the Alma Mercy Sisters.  They have lots of good and useful links, and it is worth contacting them before you come over.  Be sure to look at the rest of the NAC "Pilgrim Information" pages as well.

Many American Catholics are surprised to learn that there is an American parish here in Rome.  Over the years, many countries have established national churches in Rome both to have a presence in the eternal city as well as to minister to their citizens--whether as pilgrims or as residents--here in Rome.  Many of those are even sponsored by the governments of those places, but obviously not the American one.  The American parish in Rome is the Church of Santa Susanna, and it is staffed by the Paulist Fathers.  Like the NAC, they have a lot of good information for pilgrims as well as information on Papal Audiences and events.  Also, they are one of the places in Rome where you can find a Mass in English.

There is also a private website (i.e., not an official Vatican website) called St. Peter's Basilica that has a lot of good information.  The one caution on this is that it was done a few years ago and does not seem to have been updated in a while, but much of the information is largely still valid.  You can find the website by clicking here.

So, when can you see the Pope?

• Wednesday Audience.  Every Wednesday (except usually in August, when it is at Castel Gandolfo) the Pope makes an address to pilgrims gathered in Rome from St. Peter's Square.  The Papal Audience is usually at 10:30am in the Square, except in the winter when it is moved into the Paul VI Auditorium.  You can just show up and stand with the crowds, if you want. However, if you want a seat, you need a ticket.  The websites above can give you details on how to get those.  Note that when the Audience is indoors (winter), you can only see it with a ticket.
• Sunday Angelus.  There is a long tradition in the Church, sadly largely discarded in the U.S., of praying the Angelus prayer at Noon every day (and usually also at 6:00am and 6:00pm).  (If you go to Ireland, for example, TV broadcast is still suspended each day at Noon to broadcast the Angelus prayer.)  The Pope does this publicly every Sunday at noon from the window of the (former) Papal Apartments.  You don't need a ticket for this, just stand in the square and face north.  It makes for a nice Sunday to attend the main Mass (at 10:30am) at the Altar of the Chair (often celebrated by a Cardinal or Bishop, but not the Pope) and afterwards to go to the square for the Audience.  The 10:30am Sunday Mass at St. Peter's is in Latin with the readings and homily in Italian.

There are also other events throughout the year worth attending, but these all depend on when you are in Rome.  Here are some of the regular annual Papal events, following the order of the Liturgical Year:

• First Sunday of Advent - It has become customary for the Pope to celebrate Vespers (Evening Prayer) with Roman University students on the evening of the First Sunday of Advent.  This is held in St. Peter's Basilica.  usually these tickets are distributed through the schools, but you still may be able to acquire one.
• Dec. 8 - The Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception.  Every December 8, the Pope offers prayers at the statute of the Immaculate Conception near the base of the Spanish Steps.  This event is usually in the evening.  No tickets are required for this, but if you want to get close you need to be there early, and be prepared to stand for a long time.  This event is usually very, very heavily attended, and it is usually a bit cold (so dress warmly!).
• Dec. 25 - Christmas Midnight Mass.  This is usually not at midnight, but about 10:00pm.  However, with a new Pope, this might change.  This Mass is held at St. Peter's.
• Jan. 1 - Mass for the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God.  This is always on New Year's Day and is celebrated by the Pope inside St. Peter's Basilica around 10:00am.  Following the Mass is the Pope's address from the Papal Apartment window.
• Jan 6 - Epiphany.  The Holy See maintains the custom of observing Epiphany on January 6, rather than the Sunday following.  This will be a morning Mass in St. Peter's, with the Angelus to follow in the Square.
• Feb 2 - Candlemas.  The Pope usually, but not always, celebrates a papal Mass for the feast of the Presentation on February 2.  This is an evening Mass in St. Peter's Basilica.
• Ash Wednesday at Santa Sabina.  There is a long custom of the Pope celebrating the Stational Mass of Ash Wednesday--and distributing ashes--at our Dominican church of Santa Sabina.  It begins with the Pope praying at the church of Sant'Anselmo at the top of the Aventine and then processing to Santa Sabina as the choir chants the Litany of Saints.  The Mass is inside the Church, but they usually set up monitors and seats outside as well, and ashes and Holy Communion are distributed to those seated outside.  It is usually held in the evening.
• Palm Sunday.  The Pope celebrates Mass with the blessing of Palms at St. Peter's Basilica.  It is usually a morning Mass in St. Peter's Square.
• Holy Week:
• Chrism Mass- Holy Thursday morning.  The Pope has Mass with the blessing of the oils and the Priests' renewal of promises in the morning in St. Peter's Basilica.
• Mass of the Lord's Supper.  In the past, this was an evening Mass at St. John Lateran.  For his first Holy Thursday, however, Pope Francis chose to say this Mass at a local youth prison.  He will likely continue that, and so there will be no more Papal Holy Thursday evening Mass.
• Good Friday - Liturgy of the Lord's Passion.  This is usually at 5:00pm (not 3:00pm) in St. Peter's Basilica on Good Friday.
• Good Friday - Way of the Cross - This is another very popular event held very close to the Colosseum (not, as many people believe in the Colosseum).  It is usually an evening event.
• Easter Sunday Mass.  This is one of the largest Masses in Rome for the year, and lots and lots of Pilgrims come to this.  It is an outdoor Mass on St. Peter's Square and starts about 10:00am.  After Mass, the Pope delivers the Urbi et Orbi address from the window of the Papal Apartments.
• Corpus Christi.  The original day for celebrating Corpus Christi was Thursday after the end of the Pentecost Octave.  Sadly, the Pentecost Octave is no more, but the Holy See maintains the tradition of observing Corpus Christi on the Thursday after Trinity Sunday.  There is a large outdoor Mass at the entrance to the Basilica of St. John Lateran.  Following Mass, there is a Eucharistic procession from the Lateran to St. Mary Major for Benediction.  
• June 29 - Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul.  This is usually a morning Mass at St. Peter's Basilica.  It is also the Mass at which the Pope bestows the pallium on the newly made Archbishops.  As many of these Archbishops bring pilgrims with them from their home dioceses, it is often difficult to get tickets for this Mass.
• August 15 - Solemnity of the Assumption. The Italians usually go on vacation in August, usually before or after "Ferragosto" (i.e., August 15).  The Pope is typically no exception.  Usually this Mass is celebrated at Castel Gandolfo.  However, Pope Francis has indicated that he will not be spending August in Castel Gandolfo, so this Mass may be held in Rome.  
• Last Sunday before Advent - Solemnity of Christ the King.  Pope Benedict often arranged for the Consistory--at which the new the Cardinals are created--to occur the day before the Solemnity of Christ the King.  He would therefore end the liturgical year with this Mass with the new Cardinals in St. Peter's.  This is not one that the Pope regularly celebrates publicly, and if he does have it following a consistory, it is usually hard to get tickets because of the pilgrimage groups of the attending cardinals.

Although not Papal events, I might also recommend the following:

• Sunday Vespers at St. Peter's.  The Canons of St. Peter celebrate Vespers at the Altar of the Chair (i.e., at the very back of the Basilica) every Sunday at 5:00pm (following the 4:00pm Mass and immediately followed by the 5:45pm Mass).  The Office is chanted in Latin, with a choir.  It is usually led by a Bishop, or sometimes a Cardinal. The area will be blocked off, and open only to people attending Mass or Vespers.  Tell the guards at the barrier that you are there for Vespers (It: Vespri) or Mass (It: La Messa).  
• On the 5th Sunday of Lent St. Peter's is the Stational Church.  There is an old custom of displaying the relic of Veronica's Veil on that day, from where it is usually kept above the statue of St. Veronica under the main dome of St. Peter's.  In the older calendar of the Church, this Sunday marked the beginning of Passiontide, elements of which remain even in the post-Vatican II liturgy.
• Stational Masses of Lent.  There is a long custom of churches in Rome being designated as "Stational Churches" and associated with the different days of lent.  The NAC has an early morning Mass at every one of these Stational Churches throughout Lent (except for Sundays).  It is usually very well attended by American Catholics in Rome.  Full details are at the NAC's website.  Note, however, that these are not the official stational liturgies.  Most of these Churches will have the proper stational Mass in the evening, which involves a penitential procession.  
• At San Clemente, our Stational Mass day is Monday of the Second Week of Lent (in 2014, that also happens to be St. Patrick's Day).  The Basilica here follows a very ancient custom of covering the floor with basil leaves, so that when the procession walks over them, the fragrance of the leaves is released.  
• Pentecost Sunday at the Pantheon.  After the 10:00am (I think) Mass on Pentecost, the Church of Santa Maria della Rotonda (also called Santa Maria ad Martyres, but best known simply by its old Pagan name, "The Pantheon"), a great batch of red rose petals are dropped from the hole in the ceiling of the church in memory of the Holy Spirit who descended as "tongues of flame" on Mary and the Apostles.  You need not attend the Mass, but they will not let you into the Church until after Mass is finished, around Noon.
• Sunday Mass at St. Mary Major. People always ask me where to go to Mass.  I find that the 10:00am Sunday Mass at St. Mary Major is one of the most beautiful in Rome.  They have one of the best choirs.  That Mass is also in Latin, with the readings and homily in Italian.

IMPORTANT NOTE:  These are all subject to change.  The best source of papal events is the website of the Pontifical Liturgy Office, which maintains a calendar of the Pope's public events.  Make sure to check that before you come to Rome.

REALLY IMPORTANT NOTE: Almost every Papal event--especially if it is indoors--requires you to have a ticket in advance.  They will not let you in without displaying a ticket.  You can get those through the U.S. Bishops' Pilgrimage office.  

MOST IMPORTANT NOTE OF ALL (FOR CATHOLICS):  For Papal Masses, the norm is to receive communion on the tongue and not in the hand.  The priests are instructed to give the response (The Body of Christ) in the original Latin (Corpus Christi), after which you give your "Amen".  If you have never received communion on the tongue, here is a good guide and description:  How to Receive Communion on the Tongue.  If the Mass is outdoors, after receiving Holy Communion, please quickly move aside so that others may receive.  Obviously, if you are not Catholic or are not properly disposed, please do not receive  Holy Communion.  Most of all--and I cannot believe this is necessary to say--under no circumstances whatsoever or for any reason may you take the host home with you.  That would be gravely sinful.

Visiting Rome (Part II) -- Getting to the City

I am continuing with my series of posts on visiting the city of Rome.  Assuming you have made your plane reservations and all, you will almost surely fly into Rome's Fiumicino Airport, also known as Leonardo da Vinci.  In this post, I'll talk about the myriad of different ways to get you from that airport to the city itself.  As in most things in life, there is an inverse ratio between cost and ease of travel.  The easiest ways are the usually the most expensive, and vice-versa.

One preliminary note: if you are flying in from another European city on one of the ever-increasing number of discount airlines, you may be flying into Rome's other airport, Ciampino. This post, however, assumes you're coming into Fiumicino.

From least costly to most costly:

1. FREE!  Fiumicino is about 25 miles from Rome.  According to Google Maps, it should take you only about 7 hours to walk that distance.  You can ponder all the money you're saving during your 7 hour trek.
2. €4 or 5.  There are a number of shuttle buses that will go every hour or so from the airport to Rome's Termini Station, in the center of Rome.  The trip is usually about 45 minutes.  They are pretty competitive and pretty cheap.  The biggest risk with these is Roman Traffic--make sure when you return to the airport you give yourself plenty of time.  There are a number of companies out there, but I have usually used Terravision, an international company with a website in English and online ticket purchase option. As of today, they are charging €4 per person each way.  The company employees usually speak a sufficient amount of English.
3. €14.  There is a train that runs directly between Fiumicino and Termini Station that runs every 30 minutes or so.  It is called the Leonardo da Vinci Express and is run by Trenitalila, the national train company.  Tickets can (and should) be bought in advance from Trenitalia's website, which has some English.  Like most (but not all) Italian trains, the ticket must be stamped in advance before boarding the train.  There should be small machines near the front of the tracks were you can do this.  The train will take you to Rome's Termini Station, the main train station in the city. The biggest risk here is that there is a strike and the trains are shut down.  I tend to find the train the best balance between cost and ease of travel.
4. €25.  There are shuttle companies that will take you from the airport directly to your hotel.  They work a bit like Airport Shuttles in the U.S., in that it is a small van that they fill with people, and drop off one-by one.  It's not too expensive, and is fairy quick especially if you are the first one dropped off, not so much if you are the last.  So, it could take you anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour (or longer) to get directly to your hotel.  This one is best if you are travelling in a group of people, meaning fewer stops along the way.  Like the buses, the risk is that the traffic will be terrible coming into Rome.  The company I've used is AirPortShuttle, and they have a website in English where you can reserve your ticket.  
5. €48.  The easiest way to get to and from the airport is by cab.  By law, the official cabs may only charge you a flat fee, currently set at €48, for trips to the center of Rome.  This fee is all-inclusive and is per trip (not per traveler).  The City's website has a handy sheet (in Italian, English, and Spanish) which explains all this.  Most of the cabs take credit cards, but it is a good idea to have sufficient cash in Euro with you just in case.  Also, make sure you only take the "Comune di Roma" taxis, with the red and gold shield of the city of Rome on the side of them.  Also, caveat emptor, Roman cabdrivers are notorious for trying to squeeze a few extra Euros out of foreigners--telling you that you need pay extra for using a credit card, or having extra luggage, or extra passengers, etc.  None of this is true.  You may certainly tip a few extra Euro if you want, but they are not allowed to charge more than the flat fee.  Also, in my experience very few of the Roman cabbies speak English, so bring a printout of the name and address of your hotel with you.  The cabs should be parked out in front of the main entrance to the airport.  Ignore the people soliciting cabs before you get to that cabstand.  The trip should take 45 minutes to an hour, depending on Roman traffic and where you're staying.  Occasionally, the cabbies do go on strike, so that if you are planning to go back to the airport by cab, consider getting the concierge at your hotel to make the reservation the night before.  The biggest risk in taking a Roman cab is that the speed and aggressiveness which define the Roman cabbie will give you a heart attack.  Make sure you hold on!
6. Priceless.  Go to seminary, get ordained a priest, then get consecrated a Bishop, then get named a Cardinal, then get elected Pope in the Papal Conclave, so that you can take the papal helicopter, Good Shepherd I, from the airport to your residence in Vatican City.

Visiting Rome - Part I

A number of people have asked me about visiting Rome--things to do, etc.  I thought it might be a good idea to collect some of my thoughts in a series of post, of which this is the first.  I will hopefully have some more soon.  This is written mostly with my fellow Americans in mind.  If you have any questions, ask in the comment box and I'll see about adding it in the future.

What to bring?

In addition to all the stuff you usually bring, consider these:

A small pair of binoculars.  In Rome there are lots of tall buildings, with some great art very far away (the Sistine Chapel being the prime example).  A small pair of collapsible binoculars will serve you well.

Decent clothes.  Some churches in Rome still require you to dress appropriately (thankfully).  The most important of these is St. Peter's in Rome.  What does it mean to dress appropriately?  It means you are covered from the shoulders down past the knees.  You'll also notice that the Italians rarely wear shorts--even in summertime, although that is changing a bit.  You can survive touring in Rome with a pair of cool, light trousers--even in the summertime.

Change purse.  As Americans, we are not used to carrying coins around.  Our paper bills start at $1, and so we may have a few coins in case a purchase is less than that.  In Europe there are 1 and 2 Euro coins.  That means you will be paying for a lot more things--especially snacks and small gifts--with coins.  There are few things more likely to prompt an exasperated look from a Roman shopkeeper than pulling out a €20 note to pay for something that cost €1.05.  Get used to carrying around a bit of change with you, and a change purse, or some other small bag, helps keep it all together.

Map App.  If you have a smartphone, I have found that one of the most useful apps for Rome is a downloadable map.  The great thing about this is that in a city the size of Rome, your phone can triangulate your position based on the cell towers.  That means a downloadable map can pinpoint you on the map, without an internet connection!  I use the Ulmon App, but there are a lot of others.

An at least one thing you may not need to bring:

An Umbrella.  This you probably do not need to bring with you. Whenever it rains, there is small army of foreigners who sell large and small umbrellas.  You can get one for your stay for €10 Euro.  It probably won't outlast your stay, but it's one less thing you have to pack.  Although it does rain in the summertime, Rome's rainy season is in winter--November to January--when nobody is here anyway.

Advance Work

There are a few tickets that you absolutely need to get in advance, sometimes several months in advance:

Guides in Italy.  One of the best English speaking guides in Italy is Liz Lev. She knows her art and she knows Rome.  She has also written a great Guide to Roman Guidebooks, which you can read here.  One of her best pieces about Roman tour guides is here: "7 Sure-fire Signs You're on the Wrong Vatican Tour". There are also people who you can hire to give you private tours.  Certainly, Liz Lev (whose email is on the previous link) would be a great choice.  I would also recommend a married couple I know here, John and Ashley Norohna, whom you get find out about from their website.

"The Scavi".  "Scavi" is just the Italian word for "excavation".  But "The Scavi" usually refers to the excavation of the necropolis (cemetery) under St. Peter's Basilica and it is where the relics of St. Peter may be found.  It is an incredible site, and absolutely, definitely, without doubt, worth seeing.  Because of the fragility and importance of the excavation site, only a very limited number of tours are permitted each day.  This means you have to book this months in advance.  Fortunately there is a website, and they take requests in English.  All the details can be found at the webpage for the Excavations Office.  Note also that they also do not allow children (under 15 years old) into the Scavi--no exceptions.  The guides for this tour vary greatly in quality. The American Seminarians from the Pontifical North American College are some of the best guides--and it doesn't hurt to ask if there is an American Seminarian available to lead the tour.

Sistine Chapel.  Although the Sistine Chapel is in Vatican City you can't get there from St. Peter's Basilica.  Unless you're a Cardinal on your way to the Conclave, the only way in is through the Vatican Museum, which is a bit north and a touch west of the St. Peter's Square..  Now, you can get tickets for the Museum and the Sistine Chapel there.  However, in the height of the tourist season, that line can get very, very long.  However, you can now book your ticket (and time of entry) on-line.  It is a bit more expensive, but it is a lot better than standing in line under the hot Roman son for an hour.

Galleria Borghese.  This is a one of the great art museums of Rome--a collection of Master works, in a beautiful building, in one of the great parks of Rome.  The only problem is that you have to get tickets in advance.  Not really a problem, just something to plan for.  They have a website with plenty of information in English, and you can book online.  The Borghese is not too far from the top of the Spanish Steps, so you might plan to visit it the same time you visit the Steps.

Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine Hill.  Like the Sistine Chapel, you can get your ticket to the Colosseum and Palatine Hill (and it is one ticket for both) when you get there.  But it is a lot easier, and only a bit more expensive, to get them online.  Looks like they have changed their website, but this link should get you there.  Since this tour is outside, I usually recommend to people to go in the morning when it is cooler, and then eat lunch nearby.  Unless you want to stop and see everything, the morning should do.  If you want to go back, the ticket is good for two days.  I would also strongly recommend getting a good audio guide or guide book for this--the ruins are not well marked, and you often have no idea what much of it is.  I have found that Rick Steves audio guides can be pretty good.

That's a start anyway.  I will add some more in the coming days...

Pentecost Papal Parade by Popemobile

Well, 'parade' is probably the wrong word, but I liked the alliteration.

At the end of Mass on Pentecost, the Pope greets the people on the Popemobile.  Below is a very short video at the very end of the route, as Pope Francis heads back into Vatican City.

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:

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:

Rome Dispatch with Joan Lewis

I will be a guest on Rome Dispatch with Joan Lewis today (Sunday, March 3) live at 10:00am Eastern Time (that's 4:00pm here in Rome) on EWTN.  It should be re-broadcast Sunday, March 3 at 9:00pm ET as well, but check your local listings.

Letter of Convocation

Above is a copy of the letter of Convocations sent to each of the Cardinals convoking the first general Congregation of Cardinals following the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI.  When reading these, it is helpful for Americans to recall that the Italians generally have a much more elevated style of writing in correspondence.  Italian letter writing tends to include a great deal of formal elements, which sometimes seems odd to Americans.  Even so, I find this one relatively simple. 

Note the "SV/3".  In Rome, all issued documents get protocol numbers. The "SV" indicates that this is being issued during the period sede vacante.  This is the apparently the third document that was issued.

Below is my somewhat less than perfect translation:

Ticket to the Papal Audience

I meant to post this before.  Above is an image of the tickets to get you into the final General Audience on Wednesday, Feb. 27.  This was, of course, the Pope's last public audience in Rome before his resignation came into effect.

In the News

The other day I did a short interview with Edward Pentin, a reporter for The National Catholic Register, among others.  He published the story the other day.  He probably makes me sound more an expert than I really am, but I appreciate the coverage.  You can see the article here, my contribution is towards the end:

Benedict’s New Name: Pope Emeritus, His Holiness Benedict XVI, Roman Pontiff Emeritus

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 Interregnum: The First Phase - UPDATE

SECOND UPDATE -- The Press Office of the Holy See is reporting that it is unlikely that the decision on when the Conclave will begin will be decided on Monday.   Paragraph 13 of Universi domenici gregis indicates that the date for voting is set "[i]n one of the Congregations immediately following" the first General Congregation.  I had assumed that the unusual decision to have an afternoon session on Monday meant that it would be taken up then, expressing the Cardinals' desire to finish the voting as soon as possible.  Apparently, that will not be happening.  This makes March 11 an increasingly likely start-date, if they choose to start early.

UPDATE -- As I predicted, the first General Congregation will not occur today, as many expected.  Rather, the first meeting of all of the Cardinals will begin at 9:30am on Monday.  Per the rules governing these, they will not set the date and time of the Conclave at this first meeting. Rather, they will do that at their second meeting.  However, unlike in the past, their next meeting will not be the following day, but rather that afternoon.  I think we can expect the date and time of the voting process in the Conclave to be set by Monday afternoon.  Assuming they work through the "all Cardinals being present" issue, that probably means a start date for the Conclave around March 11, maybe as early as March 9.

John Allen has some good info at his blog.  (Although, I think he has misread Universi domenici gregis regarding some of the timing of things.) 

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As of 8:00pm Rome Time, February 28, 2013, the See of Peter was made vacant.  Now the process begins to determine a new Supreme Pontiff of the Holy Catholic Church.  The development of the procedure to choose a Pope is an interesting one, and often tracks the controversies in the Church, especially its struggles against the State.  You can get a nice bullet summary from the EWTN website.  The use of Cardinals alone as electors goes back at least to the 8th century, although the forerunners of the Cardinals (the clerics of the major churches of Rome), goes back to the earliest centuries of the Church in Rome.

The idea of a "conclave" is much later.  A quick foray into linguistics helps here, bear with me.  Latin, like modern Italian, has no verb for "to lock".  So how do say something is locked in these languages?  You say that it is closed with the key.  In Latin the words "with the key" are "con clave", or as we render it in English, 'conclave'.  When Pope Celestine V resigned from the See of Peter after only 6 months back in 1294, which was preceded by a period of sede vacante (i.e., no Pope) for two years, while the Cardinals wrangled over the procedures, they decided to try something radical.  They would take the Cardinals and lock them in (close the doors con clave).  By locking them in, they hoped to get them to decide faster.  There were even rules that food and comforts were to be reduced the longer they were in there, until at one point they would be given only bread and water!  Those extreme measures did not last long, but the Conclave has.  Conclaves have been held in a number of places over the centuries, but eventually (and currently) the Sistine Chapel has become the location for the Conclave.

The current rules for the Conclave were re-codified by Bl. Pope John Paul II in 1996 in a document (an "Apostolic Constitution") called Universi domenici gregis.  (Church documents are often titled by the first few words of the text in Latin.  In this case it means "The Shepherd of the Lord's whole flock".)  That document was amended twice, both by Pope Benedict XVI.  The first one doesn't really matter anymore, because its changes were incorporated into the second.  The second amendment, the Apostolic Letter Normas Nonnullas, came out days before Benedict XVI's resignation came into effect.  I gave a description of it earlier on this blog.

So the rest of this entry, I mean to go through the current rules in place for the upcoming Conclave.  In other words, what happens now that the See is Vacant?

The first thing that must be realized is that just about every Cardinal, and everyone who acts in the name of the Supreme Pontiff, loses his authority.  The heads of all those various dicasteries act in the name of the Holy Father.  Without him, they have no legal authority to act.  There are some exceptions, especially regarding certain dispensations and confessional matter, but that's bit more than I want to get into.  In short, most of the Cardinals in Rome now have only one job, their duty sine-qua-non as Cardinals, which is to elect a Pope.

The College of Cardinals, as a body, is given the collective responsibility of governing the universal Church.  But this is only in regards the ordinary business of the Church and the carrying out of the election.  The "Administrator" of the Holy See during the vacancy is the Cardinal Camerlengo, currently Cardinal Bertone.  For this reason, during the interregnum period, the coat of arms of the Holy See changes from the Papal coat of Arms to the Coat of Arms of the office of the Camerlengo.

The first thing that will happen is that the Cardinal Camerlengo, together with the senior Cardinal of each Order of Cardinals (which are, I believe, Cardinal Sodano, Cardinal Arns, and Cardinal Tauran) will set the date for the first "General Congregation".  These are the meetings of all of the Cardinals, which are to be held daily.  All the Cardinals are required to attend these General Congregations. There are three exceptions.  First, those who do not enjoy the right of election (i.e., they are over 80 years old) are excused.  Also excused are those who are impeded by sickness and those impeded  by some other grave reason.  Only the College of Cardinals can determine whether or not a reason is grave enough to constitute an impediment.  You can read my early comment on this.

In addition to the "General Congregations" there is also a "Particular Congregations".  The Particular Congregations involve a smaller group of Cardinals, and they handle minor issues that need not be brought to the entire body.  (I suppose you might think of them as a kind of Steering Committee or Executive Committee.)  The Particular Congregations also help with the preparation of the Sistine Chapel for voting and they grant permission for any outside communication by the Cardinals.  These Particular Congregations are made up of the Cardinal Camerlengo and three Assistants, all Cardinals.  The Assistants are chosen by lot--one from each order of Cardinal (Cardinal-Bishop, Cardinal-Priest, and Cardinal-Deacon)--and they rotate every three days.

At the first General Congregation, all the Cardinals are given a copy of Universi domenici gregis and  Normas Nonnullas.  They then each take an oath to observe all the norms set forth in each, and to maintain the secrecy of the Conclave.  This takes up the business of the first General Congregation.

In the next General Congregation, presumably the next day, they get down to business.  The law lists many things for them to decide, but most of them have to do with the arrangements for the Pope's funeral, which obviously is not an issue.   That leaves __ things for them to do, as follows:

1. They have to see to it that the residence Domus Sanctae Marthae is prepared for the arriving Cardinals.  This includes sweeping the place for electronic listening equipment.  One thing to note, is that some people have the impression that the Domus Sanctae Marthae is some residence that stays empty until it's needed for an election.  Not true.  Most of the time, people (all priests, I think) live there who work at the Holy See.  They are required to vacate their rooms, and most have moved out this past week.  Their belongs are put into a sealed cabinet in the rooms, and the rest of the room is given over to these use of the Cardinal who will stay there until after the election.
2. They name two 'ecclesiastics' (usually another Cardinal) to provide meditations "on the problems facing the Church at the time and on the need for careful discernment in choosing the new Pope".  They also fix the dates and times of these meditations.
3. They have to approve the payment of expenses incurred until the new Pope is elected.
4. They have to destroy the implements of the Pope's Office -- the seal of the "Fisherman's Ring" and lead seal that marks Papal documents
5. They assign rooms by lot in the Domus Sanctae Marthae by lot.
   And finally, and most importantly, they:
6. Set the day and hour of the beginning of the voting process.

For the setting of the voting process, and the changes made by the Pope's most recent document, see my earlier blog post here.

One thing I want to emphasize is that, as should be clear, the Cardinals cannot begin voting tomorrow.  (In fact, the current rumor is that the General Congregation won't even be held on Friday, but that they will wait until perhaps Monday to begin).  Even if they decide to begin voting before the 15-day period, it is likely that the earliest they could start would be the 9th.

What we should hear first, from Cardinal Bertone, is the day of the first General Congregation.  Only after that, will they set the date.  In the meantime, they need to schedule the days of meditation and other preparation.  Only then may they begin voting.

I hope to do another blog piece on the process of voting in the next several days.

Benedict XVI's Last Audience

Tomorrow is Pope Benedict XVI's last audience.  I hope to be there and will tweet from there.  You may follow me at @PiusOP.  Now, in the U.S., at major events the cellphone companies set-up portable cell towers to handle the excess demand.  I don't think they do that in Italy.  So, that means I probably won't get much of a cellphone signal there, and the tweets will come only after people have dispersed.  I plan to post pictures and things when I get home later in the day tomorrow.

The Conclave: Setting the Date - UPDATED

UPDATE 2/26/13 - Renowned U.S. Canonist E. Peters offers some great commentary on the changes in Normas Nonnullas. As I did, he raises the question of how they can start early without all of the elector present. (For that reason I would suggest he amend his blog title from "Problem Solved" to "Problems Created"!)  He offers the following solution:

Well, I suggest that authorizing an earlier conclave under certain express conditions authorizes resort to reasonable means to determine whether those conditions have been met. Now Darmaatmadja and O’Brien have declared their intention not to enter the conclave. There is no reason not to think that those are free choices. So the opening date can be set without further notice of them

I think it is easier than that.  The law itself allows cardinals to be excused from voting.  They may be excused for illness, and Darmaatmadja is clearly covered by this.  By that alone, I think he would not count in determining whether they could permit early voting.  As I mention, the law also allows a cardinal to be absent for another grave reason.  But this can only be determined by the Cardinals.  The solution, it seems to me, for the case of O'Brien, would be for him to submit his intention not attend, citing his reason.  The other Cardinals could then vote to approve this as a sufficiently grave reason--if they truly believe that it is--and he would be excluded.  With that, and all other Cardinals present and accounted for, I believe they could begin.  Absent this, I do not believe the may begin early.

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Original Post:

The Pope issued today a new motu proprio (Normas Nonnullas) amending the Apostolic Constitution which governs Papal Conclaves.  A number of changes were made, many of them small or technical.  One of the most expected changes was the decision regarding when the Conclave could begin.  The document is currently not available in English, only Latin and Italian.  From the Italian version:

lascio peraltro al Collegio dei Cardinali la facoltà di anticipare l’inizio del Conclave se consta della presenza di tutti i Cardinali elettori

Essentially, that means that it is left to the Cardinals the faculty to begin the Conclave early, so long as all of them are present.  This is a key point.

For in addition to this, the document requires all cardinals to respond to the convoking of the Conclave. Only those who are unable to attend by reason of illness or other grave impediment are excused. Moreover, it is up to the Cardinals as a body to decide what that means.

To take a real example, Cardinal O’Brian of Scotland has declared his intention not to attend the Conclave. I presume he means that he suffers from some impediment preventing his attendance. But what if the Cardinal-Electors decide that is not a sufficiently grave reason? Then they have to wait for him to attend before they can set an earlier vote. In other words, before they can vote to begin the voting early, they first have to determine that all the Cardinal electors are present, except those legitimately impeded. A Cardinal can always refuse to attend, but unless excused the Cardinals may not vote before the lapse of the 15 days.

So, the question is, when will the Conclave start?  The answer now is, we don't know.  We will have to wait for the Cardinals to gather on March 1 and tell us.

[I am happy to see, as I hoped, that in issuing the new motu proprio, the Pope also waived the vacatio legis and declared it would be promulgated in L'Osservatore Romano.]

Early Conclave?

There has been much discussion in the media about the Conclave.   Two pieces of information have struck me as being incorrect.  The first regards the question of changing the date of the Conclave to make it earlier. The second is the earliest date on which the Conclave can begin. Click on the "Read More" button below to continue.