Roma « In the Shadows of the Saints

All Saints Day and All Souls Day: Rome Style

Things are continuing to stay busy here in Rome. Classes are speeding along and I have been spending a lot of time studying and trying to keep up with the readings. However, the 2-mile walk each day, to and from class, gives me an hour to just relax and walk with friends. It is always difficult to be just starting at a new institution because the tunnel seems so long, but I have been assured by many of the newly ordained deacons that their time here in Rome has flown by. It is pretty amazing that I left the United States three and a half months ago. On one hand it doesn’t feel like it has been very long, but it also seems like it has been a long time since I have seen my family. This is ironic because I talk to them a lot and can even video chat with them via Skype.

While things have been normal at the seminary and at the University, this last week was special. Jean, the Secretary of the Vocations Office for the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, and her husband, Tom, visited Rome for their first time. It was nice to be able to spend some time with someone I know from Oklahoma City. We saw a lot of the sights of Rome, enjoyed some great meals, and we even prayed at the bones of St. Peter (thanks to my diocesan brother, Cory). This was a travel weekend at the North American College, but I have been telling the other seminarians that I “went to Rome for the weekend!” The city is so large and I have been so busy that I have neglected to see a lot of the historical sights of the Eternal City. It was a great weekend and I discovered a lot about the city. It was also great to show Jean and Tom around St. Peter’s Basilica and the North American College.

Sunday, November 1, 2009, was All Saints Day in the Roman Catholic Church. It is the day that we celebrate the lives of the Saints that have lived in this world and have led their lives to glorify God. For Sunday Mass, we went to The Pontifical Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls. The Basilica was magnificent and very large. We even went into the courtyard of the Benedictine Monastery and saw fragments of a lot of marble sarcophagi with early Christian markings on them. There was also a beautiful little museum and Relic Room, complete with St. Paul’s staff. There was also a very large tapestry with a depiction of St. Paul’s shipwreck near Malta. It was pretty cool to think to myself that I had just been there just a few weeks ago.

Monday, November 2, 2009, was All Souls Day in the Roman Catholic Church. It was also my birthday. It is a tradition in the Church to bring to minds our loved ones whom have gone before us into the Kingdom of Heaven. There was an option to have Mass within the North American College’s Mausoleum located in Campo Verano. I had never been to an Italian cemetery prior to this trip and I was surprised with what I found. In the United States, we are used to green fields with small gravestones. However, there are so many people here, and they have been hundreds and hundreds of years of deaths, that they have had to adopt a system to deal with death. The cemetery was composed of small, casket-sized plots with a stone lid and then a headstone covered with names and pictures of the deceased members of that family. Some of the family plots were simple, but others were massive and quite expansive. From what I was told, when a family member dies, they place the body beneath the stone lid and wait for the body to decompose. They then place the bones in a small ossuary-type box and then place it in a different chamber. There is also not a one-time fee for the plot. If a plot is not continually paid for, the remains are disposed of, probably by cremation, the monument is destroyed, and then a new family may purchase the plot. They also do not embalm the bodies, so there was a slight stench from the decomposing bodies.

Deep within the tight walkways, we came upon a beautiful red-bricked building overlooking the rest of the cemetery. This tall, four-level mausoleum is where the earthly remains of around ten seminarians and faculty from the Pontifical North American College are entombed. Instead of a small box for their bones, each body was placed behind a 5 or 6-foot wide, marble monument with their name, diocese, and age of death written in Latin. When seminarians could only travel here by ocean, it would take a long time to get from Italy back to the United States, so if a seminarian or faculty member died, they were buried in this mausoleum. One of the seminarians, Frank Parater, is being considered by the Vatican to become a Saint. He is currently considered a “Servant of God”, which is only two steps away from becoming a Saint. He died in 1920, after living a life in which inspired many people. His young life evolved around prayer and he eventually discerned that God was calling him to become a Catholic Priest. He eventually was sent by the Diocese of Richmond to study at the Pontifical North American College. At the age of 23, he passed away and was buried at the mausoleum. While he sounded like an amazing guy, his Last Will and Testament is really what caught everyone’s attention.

“I have nothing to leave or to give but my life and this I have consecrated to the Sacred Heart to be used as He wills…This is what I live for and in case of death what I die for. …Since my childhood, I have wanted to die for God and my neighbor. Shall I have this grace? I do not know, but if I go on living, I shall live for this same purpose; every action of my life here is offered to God for the spread and success of the Catholic Church in Virginia. …I shall be of more service to my diocese in Heaven than I can ever be on earth.”

During the Mass of All Souls Day at the mausoleum of the North American College, I stood right next to his tomb. What a wonderful blessing it was to realize that God tries endlessly to stir our spirit to follow Jesus Christ. Even in Frank Parater’s final days of his illness, he kept God’s will as his focus and was completely reliant on Him. The more I learn about him, the more I wish I could have met him in person. That is the whole point of even venerating the Saints within the Catholic Church. They provide examples for us of people that have followed God with complete trust and have showed us a glimpse of the Father’s love.

The rest of my birthday was pretty normal. It was raining all day, so I was not able to go out for dinner with some of my friends, but I received a lot of birthday wishes from the seminarians within the North American College and from my friends in the United States. I even received a special call from Mrs. Wynn’s 5^th Grade Class at All Saints Catholic School in Norman, Oklahoma. During our short video chat, they sang “Happy Birthday” to me. They are special kids and I really appreciate their prayers and support. They are the future of our Church and I have been very impressed with their love for God and his Church.

: Enjoying Rome from the NAC Roof

: During the tour of the North American College, we took Jean and Tom to the roof of the college for the amazing view of the city and of St. Peter’s Basilica.

: These small family tombs line all of the walls. Some boxes are very small and others are very large.

: NAC Mausoleum Entrance

: This was the entrance to the 4-story North American College Mausoleum.

: This was the tomb of Servant of God Francis Parater. His cause is currently being examined for beatification and canonization. He attended that North American College in 1919-1920.

: These small boxes in the walls house the earthly remains of many members of a family. There were thousands of these boxes in the walls of the cemetery.

: This beautiful mausoleum is the final resting place for many monsignors, professors, and different Vatican officials.

: Many religious orders have mausoleums at Campo Verano. This is the mausoleum of the Jesuit Order.

: Nuns pray for their diseased sister at the Cemetery of Campo Verano.

: This is the ceiling of the NAC Mausoleum covered with beautiful images of the phoenix, a symbol of Jesus Christ and the promise of eternal life in Heaven.

: Our first glance within the NAC Mausoleum.

: The tightly spun staircase was located behind the altar on the top level. This massive room is the third level of the NAC Mausoleum. There are another two floor similar to this below.

: The frescoes on the NAC’s Mausoleum ceiling were beautiful. It was recently renovated.

November 4, 2009 | Categories: Life at the North American College | Tags: All Saints Catholic School, All Saints Day, All Souls Day, birthday, Campo Verano, Catholic Church, Diocese of Richmod, Francis Parater, Frank Parater, Last Will and Testament, Mass, Mausoleum, Norman, North American College, November 2nd, Oklahoma, Roma, Roman Catholic Church, Rome, Saints, Servant of God, St. Paul Outside the Walls, tomb | 2 Comments »

Wasting Time With God

Yesterday, I returned back to Rome from the first year “New Man” retreat. The retreat was very simple in its format. It was a silent retreat with community liturgies (Mass, Morning and Evening Prayer, Holy Hour), and two 45-minute conferences by our retreat leader. The rest of the time was free for us to sit back and refocus our spiritual lives before classes begin next week. The conferences were wonderful and invited me to go deeper with my love and dependence of Jesus Christ. It was a great retreat and I am looking forward to continue to reap the harvest from the retreat for months to come.

The retreat center was located in Greccio, Italy. It is located in the mountains and is home to the first Nativity Scene, created by St. Francis of Assisi. He did this in order to give Italians another option when they desired to travel to Bethlehem to experience where Jesus Christ was born of the Virgin Mary. However, because of the civil unrest in that area of the world, it was extremely dangerous to travel the pilgrimage roads to the Holy Land. St. Francis then decided to create the first live Nativity Scene for the people in the area, many of whom were poor, to experience the miracle of the Word being made flesh. It also allowed the people to be closer linked to the Baby Jesus in his poverty and complete dependence upon the Father.

One day, I decided to hike the trail behind the Church of St. Francis. I didn’t really know what was on the trail, because I was not able to talk to the other seminarians during the retreat. However, I had a great time exploring. The wooded path led, very steeply, up the mountain. There were several parts of the path that were very narrow and, with one wrong step, a pilgrim would fall… pretty far. Eventually, the nature trail ended and turned into a beautiful stone pathway that led to the top of the mountain. It was a lot easier to walk, but the path also grew more steep. With a lot of time and sweat, I reached the top and then explored the meadow located at the top of the mountain. The meadow was level and had a nice sandy path through the fruit trees and other shrubs. While I have never been to the Holy Land, this is what I would have imagined would have met my eyes during the time of Jesus’ birth. The walk and hike also allowed me to enter deeply into the Passion and Death of Christ and that first Easter morning. I really liked the silence and simplicity of just being in the presence of God on that mountain. What a great way to waste time with Him!

Thank you all so much for praying for me and the other seminarians during the retreat. I am looking forward use the graces I gained on the retreat to become a better disciple of Christ and to, with God’s grace, to serve at the altar as an ordained priest of Jesus Christ.

: The seminarians as we approached the retreat center.

: This is where I spent a lot of my time in prayer.

: Some of the artwork on the grounds of the retreat center were a little cryptic. I can’t tell if this is an angel or a human bat.

: These statues welcomed visitors to the chapel at the retreat center, Oasi Bambino Gesu.

: This statue was on the grounds of the retreat center, but I just don’t get it!

: This paved path allowed the early pilgrims to experience Bethlehem in their own backyard.

: This meadow and gravel road was at the top of the mountain.

: This gate marked the summit of the mountain.

: This is where St. Bonaventure lived.

: Fog overtook the fields around Greccio every morning.

: Overlooking the valley.

: Getting one last look at the panoramic view before returning to Rome.

: The nature trails were very steep, but a lot of fun to climb.

: The location was beautiful!

: The courtyard at the convent.

: Silence is lifted!

: The Convent in Greccio, Italy is located on the side of the mountain.

October 4, 2009 | Categories: Life at the North American College | Tags: Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, Brian Buettner, Greccio, Italy, Jesus Christ, mountain, nativity, New Man, New Men, North American College, Roma, Rome, seminarian, seminary, St. Bonaventure, St. Francis | 1 Comment »

Reaching the “One Month” Mark

It is hard to believe that I have now been in Italy for one month. The first week in Rome gave me just enough time to unpack most of my things and arrange my room…and then I was gone. Now that I am wrapping up my language studies in Northern Italy, I am looking forward to returning to Rome in order to start feeling like that is where I live now. Since we were pulled out of Rome so quickly, I know the area around the hotel in Verbania better than I do the area around the North American College in Rome. I am ready to stop living out of a suitcase.

For dinner last night, most of the seminarians and tutors went out to eat at one of the best pizzerias in Verbania, Paschal’s Pizzeria. The restaurant is located right on Lago Maggiore and boasts some breathtaking, and unobstructed, views of the town of Laveno and the mountains on the other side of the lake. The pizza was good and the company was great. It was really amazing to see how far we have all come with our language studies since we have been here! I cannot understand everything, but I was able to contribute to the conversation and answer questions from others. It is a great feeling to be able to communicate in another language and other people understand. It may not be completely grammatically correct, but just getting across to other people is a great feeling. I look forward to continue improving when I return to Rome.

The NAC seminarians walking to the pizzeria to meet our teachers for dinner.

Eating pizza with our teachers at Paschal's Pizzeria on the Lago Maggiore shore.

Elisa, my Italian conversation tutor, and me after dinner.

Since our time is running out, I am trying to see everything I can in Northern Italy before leaving next week. Therefore, today I went with David and Ryan to a small hermitage that is located on Lago Maggiore. The hermitage, Santa Caterina del Sasso, was established in the early 12^th century as a Benedictine monastery that was later converted into a hermitage. It is a very simple group of buildings, but it is amazing and beautiful because it is built on the side of rocky cliff and overlooks Lago Maggiore. After our Italian lessons this morning, one of the tutors gave us a ride to one of the ports and we took a ferry to Stresa and then to Santa Caterina del Sossa. After we stepped off of the ferry we immediately climbed up steep steps made out of rock and then, before I knew it, we were at the ground level of the hermitage. The hermitage is not used anymore, as far as I know, and is one of the many sightseeing sights in the Lago Maggiore area. Therefore, there were a lot of people milling around and taking pictures of the façade of the building.

The palace on Isola Bella on the way to Santa Caterina del Sasso.

There were some awesome flowers blooming in the touristy town of Stresa.

Another flower in Stresa.

The Hermitage of Santa Caterina del Sossa

There are many weathered frescoes that adorn the walls and it is clear that people had periodically painted over the old frescoes. However, the frescoes that remain are awesome. I wish I had something like that on my walls in Rome! Many of the scenes probably depicted the history of the hermitage and church, but I didn’t have any guide to make out what the frescoes meant. So, I just sat down in the old, hardwood pews to pray and to admire the craftsmanship of so many people. The great thing about the chapel is that the focus is ultimately on the altar. All of the frescoes and side chapels seem to point towards the tabernacle on the high altar. It was a wonderful place to pray and to remember how I am a part of the history of the Church just by visiting these holy and revered places on pilgrimage. To be able to pray at the feet of Saints and to walk on the streets that they walked remind me that I am studying to be a Catholic priest because I want to follow God in the same ways they did. I believe that we are all called to follow Christ and to strive to become Saints.