Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Sorry... Again...
Unfortunately I have not had access to the Internet here in Madrid till now. It is pretty late and we have a long day tomorrow. I will try to put a longer and more detailed post up soon but know that Wprld Youth Day is absolutely incredible and Madrid is an amazing city. We are all in awe of the hospitality of the people and government of Spain and especially Madrid for allowing 1.5 million people and growing to invade their city. There are pilgrims everywhere and the joy in their hearts is tangible. The people of Madrid are experience a church that is very alive and filled with joy and I really believe it is changing the hearts of the people and their government. God is so good and he has blessed us with very nice facilities where we can all be together and beautiful weather. There will be more later but know we are keeping the prayers of you all and of the people of Phoenix, Arizona and the United States in our prayers especially as we prepair to welcome the Holy Father to Madrid tomorrow! We are all also very excited to see our Father, Father Don Kline tomorrow when he arrives here in Madrid! May God Bless you and please keep the prayers coming!
Paris
We arrived in Paris on Friday after a long day of driving. After eating dinner in downtown Paris we made our way to our hotel. He were all very tired so we went to bed to get a good nights rest.
We woke up Saturday morning and ate a quick French breakfast Of delicious croissants and jam and then headed for a bus tour around the city. We were surprised to learn that the city of Paris as it is now is a relatively new city. Most of the current structures were bulky in the 1800's and so the streets were much wider. Many people in the group throughout that Paris was a lot like New York City. After seeing the eiffel tower and the arc de triumph as well as many other famous sites in Paris, we broke from the tour group to have our own tour of the many beautiful little churches around Paris. We had holy mass as the church of the miraculous medal where the incorrupt body of St. Catherine, whom the blessed mother appeared to in order to reveal the medal, lies in rest beneath an altar. The church also contains the heart of St. Vincent de Paul which was very powerful for all of us to spend time in prayer before. We then headed to the church where the incorrupt body of St. Vincent de paul lies in rest. The churches in Europe are filled with relics of the saints. It has been beautiful hearing our youth as they realize that they have to be the saints to fill the churches of America. We went to several other churches around Paris including the one where St. Louis de Montefort said his first holy mass before meeting up again with the group for dinner.
On Sunday we headed to Holy Mass at Notre Dame Cathedral. We were filled with wonder and awe at the glory of God which is so mamifested in that glorious house of God. Our eyes were all instantly drawn upwards as our souls were raised to contemplate the glory of God. After mass we were given free time to wander Paris. My group headed to a market to pick up food for a picnic along the Paris canal across from Notre Dame. We then headed to La Sacra-coure or the Church of the Sacred heart. We all fell in love with this beautiful church up on a hill shining as a light over all of Paris. It was a truly beautiful church. Many of us thought it was even better than Notre Dame. We were all very happy to discover that the church had perpetual adoration and so we were able to spend some time praising our Lord in this truly beautiful Church in honor of his Sacred heart. We especially prayed that the Lord would bless our diocese with an abundance of Vocations to the Priesthood. After spending some time in prayer we then headed to the Louvre museum where we were able to see many famous works of art including the Mona Lisa. After dinner we headed back to our Hotel to prepare for our day of travel to Madrid! May God Bless you abundantly and please keep us in your prayers as we embark on World Youth Day in Madrid!
We woke up Saturday morning and ate a quick French breakfast Of delicious croissants and jam and then headed for a bus tour around the city. We were surprised to learn that the city of Paris as it is now is a relatively new city. Most of the current structures were bulky in the 1800's and so the streets were much wider. Many people in the group throughout that Paris was a lot like New York City. After seeing the eiffel tower and the arc de triumph as well as many other famous sites in Paris, we broke from the tour group to have our own tour of the many beautiful little churches around Paris. We had holy mass as the church of the miraculous medal where the incorrupt body of St. Catherine, whom the blessed mother appeared to in order to reveal the medal, lies in rest beneath an altar. The church also contains the heart of St. Vincent de Paul which was very powerful for all of us to spend time in prayer before. We then headed to the church where the incorrupt body of St. Vincent de paul lies in rest. The churches in Europe are filled with relics of the saints. It has been beautiful hearing our youth as they realize that they have to be the saints to fill the churches of America. We went to several other churches around Paris including the one where St. Louis de Montefort said his first holy mass before meeting up again with the group for dinner.
On Sunday we headed to Holy Mass at Notre Dame Cathedral. We were filled with wonder and awe at the glory of God which is so mamifested in that glorious house of God. Our eyes were all instantly drawn upwards as our souls were raised to contemplate the glory of God. After mass we were given free time to wander Paris. My group headed to a market to pick up food for a picnic along the Paris canal across from Notre Dame. We then headed to La Sacra-coure or the Church of the Sacred heart. We all fell in love with this beautiful church up on a hill shining as a light over all of Paris. It was a truly beautiful church. Many of us thought it was even better than Notre Dame. We were all very happy to discover that the church had perpetual adoration and so we were able to spend some time praising our Lord in this truly beautiful Church in honor of his Sacred heart. We especially prayed that the Lord would bless our diocese with an abundance of Vocations to the Priesthood. After spending some time in prayer we then headed to the Louvre museum where we were able to see many famous works of art including the Mona Lisa. After dinner we headed back to our Hotel to prepare for our day of travel to Madrid! May God Bless you abundantly and please keep us in your prayers as we embark on World Youth Day in Madrid!
Lucerne
Firenze and Pisa!
On this trip, every one of us has grown in understanding of the Lord's faithfulness. In so many ways, seen and unseen, our Heavenly Father has taken care of us to make this pilgrimage fruitful and blessed. This past Tuesday, we awoke in Montecatini, a tiny little town outside of Florence, and walked the silent streets to find the Catholic Church for Mass. The other EF group, which has Most Holy Trinity youth and young adults, and students from Northern Arizona University. Father Matt Lowry celebrated the sacrifice of the Mass for us in the beautiful basilica in the center of the town. After Mass we had breakfast, and made our way into Florence.
Florence, like all other towns and cities in Italy, is centuries old and has ridiculous amounts of history. We were dropped off at the Duomo and the ancient Baptistry and immediately in awe of the exterior of the church. The designer used three different colors of marble to build the church in a very ornamental way with intricate carvings of our Blessed Mother and the Saints. The Baptistry, located detached from the church, contained the Gates of Paradise, the famous gold doors that opened for the belt baptized to leave the Baptistry and enter the church.
The rest of the day we had free time to explore more churches, museums, take in the smell of real Italian leather, and get some amazing gelato, which was invented in Florence, so you know it was good :). A few of us took the opportunity to hike up the more than 400 stairs up to the top of the dome of the basilica to get beautiful views of all of Florence. FYI, this basilica is the fifth largest in all of europe, so it went very very high.
The next day, on our way to Switzerland, we stopped in Pisa, another small beautiful city. Besides the tourists and hundreds of pictures being taken of the leaning tower of Pisa, this place was quaint and quiet, and a nice resting place on our way to the Alps.
On this trip, every one of us has grown in understanding of the Lord's faithfulness. In so many ways, seen and unseen, our Heavenly Father has taken care of us to make this pilgrimage fruitful and blessed. This past Tuesday, we awoke in Montecatini, a tiny little town outside of Florence, and walked the silent streets to find the Catholic Church for Mass. The other EF group, which has Most Holy Trinity youth and young adults, and students from Northern Arizona University. Father Matt Lowry celebrated the sacrifice of the Mass for us in the beautiful basilica in the center of the town. After Mass we had breakfast, and made our way into Florence.
Florence, like all other towns and cities in Italy, is centuries old and has ridiculous amounts of history. We were dropped off at the Duomo and the ancient Baptistry and immediately in awe of the exterior of the church. The designer used three different colors of marble to build the church in a very ornamental way with intricate carvings of our Blessed Mother and the Saints. The Baptistry, located detached from the church, contained the Gates of Paradise, the famous gold doors that opened for the belt baptized to leave the Baptistry and enter the church.
The rest of the day we had free time to explore more churches, museums, take in the smell of real Italian leather, and get some amazing gelato, which was invented in Florence, so you know it was good :). A few of us took the opportunity to hike up the more than 400 stairs up to the top of the dome of the basilica to get beautiful views of all of Florence. FYI, this basilica is the fifth largest in all of europe, so it went very very high.
The next day, on our way to Switzerland, we stopped in Pisa, another small beautiful city. Besides the tourists and hundreds of pictures being taken of the leaning tower of Pisa, this place was quaint and quiet, and a nice resting place on our way to the Alps.
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Sorry
Sorry we are a little behind on posts. We should be back up to date by tomorrow. We have had spotty Internet and have been very busy. Please pray for us today as we head from Lucerne to Paris! God bless you!
Firenze and Pisa!
On this trip, every one of us has grown in understanding of the Lord's faithfulness. In so many ways, seen and unseen, our Heavenly Father has taken care of us to make this pilgrimage fruitful and blessed. This past Tuesday, we awoke in Montecatini, a tiny little town outside of Florence, and walked the silent streets to find the Catholic Church for Mass. The other EF group, which has Most Holy Trinity youth and young adults, and students from Northern Arizona University. Father Matt Lowry celebrated the sacrifice of the Mass for us in the beautiful basilica in the center of the town. After Mass we had breakfast, and made our way into Florence.
Florence, like all other towns and cities in Italy, is centuries old and has ridiculous amounts of history. We were dropped off at the Duomo and the ancient Baptistry and immediately in awe of the exterior of the church. The designer used three different colors of marble to build the church in a very ornamental way with intricate carvings of our Blessed Mother and the Saints. The Baptistry, located detached from the church, contained the Gates of Paradise, the famous gold doors that opened for the belt baptized to leave the Baptistry and enter the church.
The rest of the day we had free time to explore more churches, museums, take in the smell of real Italian leather, and get some amazing gelato, which was invented in Florence, so you know it was good :). A few of us took the opportunity to hike up the more than 400 stairs up to the top of the dome of the basilica to get beautiful views of all of Florence. FYI, this basilica is the fifth largest in all of europe, so it went very very high.
The next day, on our way to Switzerland, we stopped in Pisa, another small beautiful city. Besides the tourists and hundreds of pictures being taken of the leaning tower of Pisa, this place was quaint and quiet, and a nice resting place on our way to the Alps.
Monday, August 8, 2011
Assisi!
We are very sorry that we have not been updating the blog the past couple days. The hotel that we were at for the second half of our Rome trip had very spotty wifi. I just put up the two blogs from day 4 and 5.
Today we had the beautiful experience of going to Assisi! We saw the incredible basilicas of Santa Maria de Los Angelas where the portiuncular chapel, the chapel that St. Francis received his call to rebuild the Church. We were able to pray and adore our Lord in the very church that St. Francis rebuilt with his hands. After this we went to the basilica of St. Clare. We were able to pray before the incorruptible body of this incredible saint. We begged her intercession for the rest of this beautiful pilgrimage and that she may especially bless our poor Clare sisters in the diocese of Phoenix as they work on building their monastery. After the Basilica of St.Clare we made our way to the house where St. Francis was born and lived his life until he renounced everything. It has since been turned into a very beautiful Church. Personally it was my favorite in all of Assisi. A truly beautiful Church. We then ate lunch at a beautiful little Restraunts on the side of a road and had the best food we have had in Italy so far. Then we ran into Seminarian Fernando Camou and Kevin Grimditch as they were finishing one of their Italian classes. Both of these men are seminarians for the Diocese of Phoenix who have been sent to the Pontifical North American College in Rome to continue their studies in Theology for the priesthood. They are both currently studying Italian for four weeks in Assisi. We joined them for "the best gelato in Assisi" and then headed down to the basilica of St. Francis. We were given our tour by a Franciscan friar from Connecticut. He showed us around this incredible basilica built over 800 years ago. We were able to go down to the crypt where St. Francis' body is reposed. The Holy Spirit was so present in this small chapel two levels below the main basilica that it was tangible felt by all in the group. It was truly incredible to pray before the bones of one of the greatest saints in history. We offered all of our intentions that were given to us as well as many prayers for our parish and for our diocese before him. After our tour of the upper basilica we finally ran into the pilgrims from Most Holy Trinity and Northern Arizona University. It was great to catch up with our fellow pilgrims from Phoenix. We then loaded the bus and were off for Florence. Many of us spent the evening down at a local laundry place washing all of our clothes. It was quite the experience trying to figure out what we were doing when everything was in Italian and seemed to be optimized for maximum confusion of the noisy American tourists! After about two hours we were finally done and headed back to our hotel. Tomorrow we will wake up for mass at the local parish and then head into the city of Florence to see the many beautiful churches and attractions in the city.
Thank you so much for your patience and for your prayers. Sorry about the spelling errors. It can be difficult to write these on an iPad. Know that we are praying for you daily. Dios te bendigo!
Today we had the beautiful experience of going to Assisi! We saw the incredible basilicas of Santa Maria de Los Angelas where the portiuncular chapel, the chapel that St. Francis received his call to rebuild the Church. We were able to pray and adore our Lord in the very church that St. Francis rebuilt with his hands. After this we went to the basilica of St. Clare. We were able to pray before the incorruptible body of this incredible saint. We begged her intercession for the rest of this beautiful pilgrimage and that she may especially bless our poor Clare sisters in the diocese of Phoenix as they work on building their monastery. After the Basilica of St.Clare we made our way to the house where St. Francis was born and lived his life until he renounced everything. It has since been turned into a very beautiful Church. Personally it was my favorite in all of Assisi. A truly beautiful Church. We then ate lunch at a beautiful little Restraunts on the side of a road and had the best food we have had in Italy so far. Then we ran into Seminarian Fernando Camou and Kevin Grimditch as they were finishing one of their Italian classes. Both of these men are seminarians for the Diocese of Phoenix who have been sent to the Pontifical North American College in Rome to continue their studies in Theology for the priesthood. They are both currently studying Italian for four weeks in Assisi. We joined them for "the best gelato in Assisi" and then headed down to the basilica of St. Francis. We were given our tour by a Franciscan friar from Connecticut. He showed us around this incredible basilica built over 800 years ago. We were able to go down to the crypt where St. Francis' body is reposed. The Holy Spirit was so present in this small chapel two levels below the main basilica that it was tangible felt by all in the group. It was truly incredible to pray before the bones of one of the greatest saints in history. We offered all of our intentions that were given to us as well as many prayers for our parish and for our diocese before him. After our tour of the upper basilica we finally ran into the pilgrims from Most Holy Trinity and Northern Arizona University. It was great to catch up with our fellow pilgrims from Phoenix. We then loaded the bus and were off for Florence. Many of us spent the evening down at a local laundry place washing all of our clothes. It was quite the experience trying to figure out what we were doing when everything was in Italian and seemed to be optimized for maximum confusion of the noisy American tourists! After about two hours we were finally done and headed back to our hotel. Tomorrow we will wake up for mass at the local parish and then head into the city of Florence to see the many beautiful churches and attractions in the city.
Thank you so much for your patience and for your prayers. Sorry about the spelling errors. It can be difficult to write these on an iPad. Know that we are praying for you daily. Dios te bendigo!
Day 5!
Another glorious morning, only this time at a different hotel and with three high school groups from other parts of the United States. Began with a guided drive around Rome, and ending up right at the Colosseum for a tour. Being in such an old gigantic, building contracted by the hands of men was mind-blowing. For those of you that watch the History Channel, it does no justice to how massive this place really is. One amazing thing that many people are unaware of is that fact that the Colosseum is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Come again? Yes it is! This place was built for gladiators to fight, and they were considered athletes at the time, and many people strove to be one. Then they Romans began doing public executions of prisoners as a show for the audience. As Christianity became prominent, they became the prisoners, and were martyred in front of thousands of blood-thirsty Romans.
Our Blessed Mother is the Queen of all Martyrs, so it is only appropriate that this once very dark place be dedicated to Our Lady. the Pope himself visits the Colosseum every Good Friday, in honor of the thousands who were murdered for their faith.
Around noon we trekked to yet another Catholic Church (they are literally on every corner) to celebrate Mass. We arrived at a church called Santa Maria.... (insert long, beautiful Italian word here), planning to have Mass. This church is Father Theilo's favorite Church in the entire world, and we were able to see why. It is the only gothic style Catholic church in all of Rome, and boy was it incredible. Also this is the church that contains the body of Saint Catherine of Siena (Doctor and martyr FYI!!!). For whatever reason, they were not having Mass at the time we expected so we thought we would have to find another Church.
Well, since God is so faithful and amazing, Father Theilo was given the opportunity to celebrate Mass for us on the MAIN ALTAR right in front of Saint Catherine. Another one of those moments when you ask yourself, or even out loud, "is this real life?" and it totally was.
After we collected ourselves and our excitement after Mass we split up for some adventures in the city. The hotspots were the Pantheon, the Spanish Steps, The Trevi Fountain, and of course gelato.
Afterwards it was wonderful to meet up again with our brothers and sisters for dinner. We have truly grown together in ways only we and the Lord could understand, and we still have 15 more days to go. It will get harder, more tiring, and more demanding as each day passes, but having brothers and sisters along your side make it all the more feasible. We have got a lot more dying of ourselves to do and lets just say we are ready.
Dun dun dun!
Our Blessed Mother is the Queen of all Martyrs, so it is only appropriate that this once very dark place be dedicated to Our Lady. the Pope himself visits the Colosseum every Good Friday, in honor of the thousands who were murdered for their faith.
Around noon we trekked to yet another Catholic Church (they are literally on every corner) to celebrate Mass. We arrived at a church called Santa Maria.... (insert long, beautiful Italian word here), planning to have Mass. This church is Father Theilo's favorite Church in the entire world, and we were able to see why. It is the only gothic style Catholic church in all of Rome, and boy was it incredible. Also this is the church that contains the body of Saint Catherine of Siena (Doctor and martyr FYI!!!). For whatever reason, they were not having Mass at the time we expected so we thought we would have to find another Church.
Well, since God is so faithful and amazing, Father Theilo was given the opportunity to celebrate Mass for us on the MAIN ALTAR right in front of Saint Catherine. Another one of those moments when you ask yourself, or even out loud, "is this real life?" and it totally was.
After we collected ourselves and our excitement after Mass we split up for some adventures in the city. The hotspots were the Pantheon, the Spanish Steps, The Trevi Fountain, and of course gelato.
Afterwards it was wonderful to meet up again with our brothers and sisters for dinner. We have truly grown together in ways only we and the Lord could understand, and we still have 15 more days to go. It will get harder, more tiring, and more demanding as each day passes, but having brothers and sisters along your side make it all the more feasible. We have got a lot more dying of ourselves to do and lets just say we are ready.
Dun dun dun!
Day 4
Mama Mia! Day number 4!
Praised be the Lord Jesus now and forever! Day three of our pilgrimage gave all of us many stories to share... And laugh about. So this was our second morning that we were able to wake up to the bells of Saint Peter's Basilica and see how the rising sun lights up the majestic dome that so many people dream of seeing. We decided to postpone breakfast in the morning and stroll over to the basilica to celebrate Mass on one of the many altars. Walking into Saint Peter's was a moment that each of us will never forget. It is scientifically impossible to put into words what one sees in that fraction of a second. Literally, one is stopped in their tracks and overtaken not just be the beauty, but the fact that one is now entering the same building that holds the bones of the man whom Jesus commissioned to build His Church. Our entire faith, was due to the humble sacrifices that he, the other Apostles, and the early Church made and gave their life for. We, these normal, ordinary, young adults from the desert lands in Arizona, are who Peter had in mind when he was martyred. It was a honor to walk into such a Holy and revered place.
It was almost silent when we walked in. Until a quiet murmur began to rise throughout the massive Shrine. This sound was the chanting of the seemingly hundreds of priests offering the sacrifice of the Mass at all of the altars surrounding us. We also were able to celebrate Mass, but we were directed to go under the church, and enter a tiny chapel known as the "Irish Chapel."
Praise our Eucharistic King! We definitely had one of the best mornings one could imagine. I mean, could it have been any greater? I submit that it cannot!
Unfortunately, that all changed within about an hour and a half. We jumped on a city bus to travel to our next destination when we were suddenly bombarded by two men wearing blue shirts. They very hurredly asked for our bus tickets, looked at them, and then shouted for all of us to get off the bus. Mind you, we had no idea what was going on. We all got off, they took seven of our passports and demanded money. Talk about a terrifying moment. They tried fining us 100 dollars a ticket and wouldn't give us our passports, but Daisy, our fearless "mama" negotiated down to only 100 dollars for all of them. We gave them the money, and then left.
Our next stop was to the Santa Scala. This place contained the very steps that Christ walked up to be condemned by Pontius Pilate, where the people shouted "crucify him, crucify him!" They were 28 marble steps that were transferred to Rome from Jerusalem, and have since been a popular pilgrim site for ages. All day people ascend these steps on their knees while praying the rosary, kissing and touching each step, and meditating on the drops of blood that were still visible on the stairs. The pain felt helps one to enter into the Lord's persecution, even in the smallest and most minimal way. Every one of us dropped to our knees and climbed. This was maybe the most tough, but most beautiful moments that we shared together as pilgrims, one that will never be forgotten.
Then of course, free time in the city. Many chose to go shopping, many chose to find other pilgrim spots, and others just decided to go on adventures. We all met up for dinner and made our way back to the hotel. Never a dull day in Rome, that is for sure.
Please know that we pray for each of you every time we say Morning and Evening prayer, and at every Mass. We love and miss everyone! See you in the Eucharist :)
Praised be the Lord Jesus now and forever! Day three of our pilgrimage gave all of us many stories to share... And laugh about. So this was our second morning that we were able to wake up to the bells of Saint Peter's Basilica and see how the rising sun lights up the majestic dome that so many people dream of seeing. We decided to postpone breakfast in the morning and stroll over to the basilica to celebrate Mass on one of the many altars. Walking into Saint Peter's was a moment that each of us will never forget. It is scientifically impossible to put into words what one sees in that fraction of a second. Literally, one is stopped in their tracks and overtaken not just be the beauty, but the fact that one is now entering the same building that holds the bones of the man whom Jesus commissioned to build His Church. Our entire faith, was due to the humble sacrifices that he, the other Apostles, and the early Church made and gave their life for. We, these normal, ordinary, young adults from the desert lands in Arizona, are who Peter had in mind when he was martyred. It was a honor to walk into such a Holy and revered place.
It was almost silent when we walked in. Until a quiet murmur began to rise throughout the massive Shrine. This sound was the chanting of the seemingly hundreds of priests offering the sacrifice of the Mass at all of the altars surrounding us. We also were able to celebrate Mass, but we were directed to go under the church, and enter a tiny chapel known as the "Irish Chapel."
Praise our Eucharistic King! We definitely had one of the best mornings one could imagine. I mean, could it have been any greater? I submit that it cannot!
Unfortunately, that all changed within about an hour and a half. We jumped on a city bus to travel to our next destination when we were suddenly bombarded by two men wearing blue shirts. They very hurredly asked for our bus tickets, looked at them, and then shouted for all of us to get off the bus. Mind you, we had no idea what was going on. We all got off, they took seven of our passports and demanded money. Talk about a terrifying moment. They tried fining us 100 dollars a ticket and wouldn't give us our passports, but Daisy, our fearless "mama" negotiated down to only 100 dollars for all of them. We gave them the money, and then left.
Our next stop was to the Santa Scala. This place contained the very steps that Christ walked up to be condemned by Pontius Pilate, where the people shouted "crucify him, crucify him!" They were 28 marble steps that were transferred to Rome from Jerusalem, and have since been a popular pilgrim site for ages. All day people ascend these steps on their knees while praying the rosary, kissing and touching each step, and meditating on the drops of blood that were still visible on the stairs. The pain felt helps one to enter into the Lord's persecution, even in the smallest and most minimal way. Every one of us dropped to our knees and climbed. This was maybe the most tough, but most beautiful moments that we shared together as pilgrims, one that will never be forgotten.
Then of course, free time in the city. Many chose to go shopping, many chose to find other pilgrim spots, and others just decided to go on adventures. We all met up for dinner and made our way back to the hotel. Never a dull day in Rome, that is for sure.
Please know that we pray for each of you every time we say Morning and Evening prayer, and at every Mass. We love and miss everyone! See you in the Eucharist :)
Friday, August 5, 2011
Feast of the Dedication of St. Mary Major
Yet again the Lord has blessed us with another incredible day. We were so blessed to be able to attend the mass of the dedication of St. Mary major basilica at St. Mary major! The mass was absolutely beautiful. Celebrated by cardinal Law and concelebrated by many priests and bishops, we attended the sacred mass amongst the faithful from the US, Spain, France, Italy and all over the world. We were truly able to witness the Church universal and the beauty of her language as all of us, who spoke many different languages, were able to pray as one. The music and the beauty lifted us up to heaven and brought us to tears as we experienced in a very tangible way the Glory of Heaven and the Love of our Savior Jesus Christ. We were also able to venerate the crib of Christ which is present under neath the main altar at St. Mary's. After mass we Split into groups to eat lunch and my group found an awesome little pizzeria.
After squeezing by with our "spitalian" (Spanish and Italian) to order our food, Zack made a mistake with his language that we will never let him forget. When asked by our Italian waitress how our food was Zack accidentally responded "Multe Bella" instead of "multe bene". Zack had no idea that he had just told our waitress that she was very beautiful until we all laughed as our waitress asked "perdone!" after lunch we made our way to the basilica of St. Clement. This basilica was built many years ago but only within the last hundred or so years did they discover that there was an entire church below the current basilica dating back over a thousand years! As they continued escavating they have since discovered that even below that underground church there was an ancient roman house with a flowing stream inside of it! Who know, maybe the next time we come they will have found yet another layer! After San Clemente we made our way to the Coliseum! It was truly incredible to see this remarkable piece of architecture where so many faithful Christians gave up their lives for their faith! We continued our walking pilgrimage to the very prison where Ss. Peter and Paul were kept before they were martyred! We walked in the very room, touched the very floor where Saints Peter and Paul were kept before they laid down their lives for the sake of our faith which two thousand years later we still believe and celebrate! Praised be Jesus Christ! From the prison we walked to a beautiful piazza where we would eat an incredible 5 course Italian meal stopping in a couple of the very beautiful churches along the way. One of the basilicas we stopped in was the only Gothic basilica in Rome. This beautiful churches roof was painted by Michaelangello and contained one of his original statues as well as the body of the great Saint Catherine of Sienna! We then enjoyed a nice cappuccino and terimisu on a piazza with an incredible fountain topped by an obelisk from ancient Egypt! This place is truly amazing. Everyone seems to agree that it really has a feeling of home for all of us. It feels like we have lived here our entire lives. It is crazy for us to think we have only been here for two days! We praise God constantly as He is pouring out his many blessing upon us. We will remember you all in our prayers tomorrow morning as we offer holy mass in St. Peters basilica! Please pray for us! May God bless you! Pace!
After squeezing by with our "spitalian" (Spanish and Italian) to order our food, Zack made a mistake with his language that we will never let him forget. When asked by our Italian waitress how our food was Zack accidentally responded "Multe Bella" instead of "multe bene". Zack had no idea that he had just told our waitress that she was very beautiful until we all laughed as our waitress asked "perdone!" after lunch we made our way to the basilica of St. Clement. This basilica was built many years ago but only within the last hundred or so years did they discover that there was an entire church below the current basilica dating back over a thousand years! As they continued escavating they have since discovered that even below that underground church there was an ancient roman house with a flowing stream inside of it! Who know, maybe the next time we come they will have found yet another layer! After San Clemente we made our way to the Coliseum! It was truly incredible to see this remarkable piece of architecture where so many faithful Christians gave up their lives for their faith! We continued our walking pilgrimage to the very prison where Ss. Peter and Paul were kept before they were martyred! We walked in the very room, touched the very floor where Saints Peter and Paul were kept before they laid down their lives for the sake of our faith which two thousand years later we still believe and celebrate! Praised be Jesus Christ! From the prison we walked to a beautiful piazza where we would eat an incredible 5 course Italian meal stopping in a couple of the very beautiful churches along the way. One of the basilicas we stopped in was the only Gothic basilica in Rome. This beautiful churches roof was painted by Michaelangello and contained one of his original statues as well as the body of the great Saint Catherine of Sienna! We then enjoyed a nice cappuccino and terimisu on a piazza with an incredible fountain topped by an obelisk from ancient Egypt! This place is truly amazing. Everyone seems to agree that it really has a feeling of home for all of us. It feels like we have lived here our entire lives. It is crazy for us to think we have only been here for two days! We praise God constantly as He is pouring out his many blessing upon us. We will remember you all in our prayers tomorrow morning as we offer holy mass in St. Peters basilica! Please pray for us! May God bless you! Pace!
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Pictures
I am working on figuring out how we can upload our pictures. Unfortunately the Internet is in Italian over hear so that makes things considerably more difficult. Thank you for your patience! God bless you!
First full day in Rome
Wow what an incredible day we have had! God is so good! After we left our Hotel we headed strait to the Catacombs. This catacomb was the first ever Christian catacomb and was a place where the Sacraments were celebrated in secret by the faithful Christians when our faith was illegal. Fr. Thielo celebrated mass in one of the chambers of the catacombs where some of our very early church fathers may have once celebrated the sacred liturgy. The presence of the saints and the martyrs burried here was felt very strongly as Fr. Thielo prayed the Roman Canon in Latin. After the catacombs we once again navigated the busses and tested our skill at dodging crazy European drivers as we made our way to St. John Lateran, the cathedral of the diocese of Rome and home to the Cathedra of the current bishop of Rome, Pope Benedict XVI. The incredible beauty of this Church drew our eyes heavenward to contemplate the great love and blessings that our Heavenly Father has given to us especially in allowing us all to participate in this awesome pilgrimage. Some of us were able to catch the end of Eucharistic adoration in one of the side chapels and benediction. It was so beautiful to be united as one church as people from Spain, Italy, France, and the USA joined together to pray the Tantum Ergo together. After spending an hour in prayer and adoration with the aide of this beautiful Cathedral Basilica given to us by our early fathers, as well as discovering that we could communicate with each other while at different ends of the Church using the buttresses, we headed off on a walking tour of Rome to find a great place for some authentic Italian food. We all split into groups and made our way through Rome in search of the perfect place. My group found a beautiful little plaza with a gorgeous white marble faced church surrounded my many awesome little Italian restarants. We at fresh bread with some of the best olive oil I have ever had, ordered our pasta, partook in a bottle of red wine, and relaxed as music was played by local artists. As we walked back to our hotel we were guided by the amazing site of the dome of St. Peters basilica illuminated against the dark sky. The Lord is truly blessing us and we give thanks and praise to him as we prepair to begin another day in His name tomorrow! May God bless you!
Viva ROMA!
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
And we're off!
At 8:30 am all of the pilgrims arrived at terminal 3 of SkyHarbor to begin our journey to Chicago and then off to Rome. There is a very tangible sence of excitement among all of the pilgrims. Please pray for us as we begin this long day of travel to the eternal city! Fr. Thielo is preparing by getting his shoes shined so he can look nice and shiney when we see the Holy Father. We will post again when we get to Rome! God bless you!
And we're off!
At 8:30 am all of the pilgrims arrived at terminal 3 of SkyHarbor to begin our journey to Chicago and then off to Rome. There is a very tangible sence of excitement among all of the pilgrims. Please pray for us as we begin this long day of travel to the eternal city! Fr. Thielo is preparing by getting his shoes shined so he can look nice and shiney when we see the Holy Father. We will post agin when we get to Rome! God bless you!
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