Our St. Bede Parish Pilgrimage to Rome & Assisi October 2013

Day 1 Friday 25th October. To mark the Year of Faith a group of St. Bede Parishioners

made a pilgrimage in to The Tombs of The Apostles in Rome. We met up with 30 others and

Fr. Martin O'Connor at 06.30 to board a coach to Heathrow and met out tour-leader Damien

before our 11.00 flight to Rome. After checking in to the Best Western Hotel President, we

walked round to the Chapel of Sts. Marcellinus & Peter in Lateran, where Fr. Martin

celebrated our opening mass. We then walked round to the magnificent St. John Lateran Basilica

before returning to the hotel for a group dinner.

Day 2 Saturday 26 October. After early breakfast we walked to the the Basilica of Saint

Clement a Roman Catholic minor basilica dedicated to Pope Clement I. The present basilica was

built just before the year 1100. Beneath the present basilica is a 4th-century basilica that had

been converted out of the home of a Roman nobleman. Irish Dominicans have been the

caretakers of San Clemente since 1667, when England outlawed the Irish Catholic Church and

expelled the entire clergy. Pope Urban VIII gave them refuge at San Clemente.

We then walked round to near the Coliseum to meet our Irish Local Guide Judy for a full day

sight-seeing tour of Rome by coach and on foot. Some shots along the way to meet her.

Our first stop was The Papal Basilica of Saint Lawrence outside the Walls is a a Roman

Catholic parish church and minor basilica. The basilica is one of the Seven Pilgrim Churches of

Rome and one of the five Patriarchal basilicas, each of which is assigned to a patriarchate. St.

Lawrence outside the Walls is assigned to the Patriarchate of Jerusalem. The papal basilica is

the shrine tomb of Saint Lawrence, one of the first seven deacons of Rome martyred in

258. Pope Pius IX, who has been beatified, is also buried at the basilica. Before the present-day

basilica was constructed, the estate upon which it sits was once home to a small oratory built by

Emperor Constantine I who built it over the site on which it was believed that Saint Lawrence

was executed. In the 580s, Pope Pelagius II commissioned the construction of a church over the

site, in honour of the martyr. In the 13th century, Pope Honorius III commissioned the

construction of another church in front of the older structure. It was adorned with frescos

depicting the lives of Saint Lawrence, and the first martyred deacon Saint Stephen, who is

interred with Lawrence in the confession under the high altar. Excavations have revealed

several other crypts of various people, buried below street level. Saint Hilarius is buried here.

In the park opposite is a statue of Pope Pius XII.

Our next stop was The Basilica of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem a Roman Catholic parish church

and minor basilica in Rome, Italy. It is one of the Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome. According to

tradition, the basilica was consecrated around 325 to house the Passion Relics brought to Rome

from the Holy Land by St. Helena of Constantinople, mother of Roman Emperor Constantine I.

At that time, the basilica floor was covered with soil from Jerusalem, thus acquiring the title in

Hierusalem - it is not dedicated to the Holy Cross which is in Jerusalem, but the church itself is

"in Jerusalem" in the sense that a "piece" of Jerusalem was moved to Rome for its foundation.

The relics were once in the ancient St. Helena's Chapel, which is partly under ground level. Here

the founder of the church had some earth from Calvary dispersed, whence the name in

Hierusalem of the basilica. The altar has a huge statue of St. Helena.

The Venerable Antonietta Meo (December 15, 1930 – July 3, 1937)[1] was an Italian girl who

may become the youngest saint who is a confessor (not a martyr) ever canonized by the Church.

A shrine to Antonietta Meo is located at the Basilica Santa Croce in Gerusalemme .

We then drove through other parts of Rome to our next destination, the equally magnificent

Papal Basilica of St Paul Outside the Walls commonly known as St Paul's Outside the Walls.

It is one of Rome's four ancient major basilicas or papal basilicas: the basilicas of St. John

Lateran, St. Mary Major, St. Peter's and Saint Paul Outside the Walls. On 31 May 2005

Pope Benedict XVI ordered the Basilica to come under the control of an Archpriest and he

named Archbishop Andrea Cordero Lanza di Montezemolo as its first archpriest. James Michael

Harvey was named archpriest of the basilica in 2012. After lunch at the basilica's cafeteria, we

toured the grounds and the basilica.

The basilica was founded by the Roman Emperor Constantine I over the burial place of Saint

Paul, where it was said that, after the Apostle's execution, his followers erected a memorial,

called a cella memoriae.

This first edifice was expanded under Valentinian I in the 370s. In 386, Emperor Theodosius

I began erecting a much larger and more beautiful basilica. The work including the mosaics was

not completed until Leo I's pontificate (440–461). In the 5th century it was larger than the Old

St. Peter's Basilica. Under Gregory the Great (590–604) the basilica was extensively modified.

The pavement was raised to place the altar directly over Paul's tomb. A confession permitted

access to the Apostle's sepulcher. As it lay outside the Aurelian Walls, the basilica was

damaged in the 9th century during the Saracen invasions. Consequently, Pope John VIII (872–

882) fortified the basilica, the monastery, and the dwellings of the peasantry, forming the town

of Joannispolis which existed until 1348, when an earthquake totally destroyed it. Pope Gregory

VII was abbot of the monastery and in his time Pantaleone, a rich merchant of Amalfi who lived

in Constantinople, presented the bronze doorsof the basilica major, which were executed by

Constantinopolitan artists; the doors are inscribed with Pantaleone's prayer that the "doors of

life" may be opened to him. The graceful cloister of the monastery was erected between 1220

and 1241. From 1215 until 1964 it was the seat of the Latin Patriarch of Alexandria.

On 15 July 1823 a fire, started through the negligence of a workman who was repairing the lead

of the roof, resulted in the almost total destruction of the basilica which, alone of all the

churches of Rome, had preserved its primitive character for 1435 years. It was re-opened in

1840, and reconsecrated in 1855 with the presence of Pope Pius IX and fifty cardinals.

Completing the works of reconstruction took longer, however, and many countries made their

contributions. The Viceroy of Egypt sent pillars of alabaster, the Emperor of Russia the

precious malachite and lapis lazuli of the tabernacle. The work on the principal façade, looking

toward the Tiber, was completed by the Italian Government, which declared the church a

national monument. On 23 April 1891 the explosion of the gunpowder magazine at Forte

Portuense destroyed the stained glass windows.

The Holy Door, The Interior of the Church and Arnolfo de Cambio's Tabernacle.

The ceiling, apse mosaic (1220) by Venetian artists showing Christ flanked by Peter, Paul,

Andrew and Luke, the tomb of St Paul and us just outside the Basilica.

Right round the basilica just below the ceiling are medallion icons of every Pope since Peter.

We then went on to The Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore (Basilica of Saint Mary Major) the

largest Catholic Marian church in Rome. According to the 1929 Lateran Treaty, the basilica

located in Italian territory is owned by the Holy See and enjoys extraterritorial status similar

to that of foreign embassies. The building is patrolled internally by police agents of Vatican City

State, not by Italian police. It is located on Piazza del Esquilino. The church may sometimes be

referred to as Our Lady of the Snows, a name given to it in the Roman Missal from 1568 to

1969 in connection with the liturgical feast of the anniversary of its dedication on 5 August.

This name for the basilica had become popular in the 14th century in connection with a legend

that the 1911 Catholic Encyclopedia reports thus: "During the pontificate of Liberius, the Roman

patrician John and his wife, who were without heirs, made a vow to donate their possessions to

the Virgin Mary. They prayed that she might make known to them how they were to dispose of

their property in her honour. On 5 August, at the height of the Roman summer, snow fell during

the night on the summit of the Esquiline Hill. In obedience to a vision of the Virgin Mary which

they had the same night, the couple built a basilica in honour of Mary on the very spot which was

covered with snow. From the fact that no mention whatever is made of this alleged miracle until

a few hundred years later, not even by Sixtus III in his eight-line dedicatory inscription, it

would seem that the legend has no historical basis."

Then, a nice cold beer before going back to the hotel and a free night for dinner with Magalie

and Jenny and more wine and chat at the bar.

Day 3 Sunday 27th October After breakfast we took the Metro to Ottaviano Station and

Vatican City to celebrate Holy Mass and the Angelus with His Holiness Pope Francis, better

known in Rome as Papa Francisco. An experience that cannot be put into words. God bless him

and long may he live. There must have been a quarter of a million there to see and hear him.

After lunch, we walked down to The Mausoleum of Hadrian, usually known as Castel

Sant'Angelo a towering cylindrical building in Parco Adriano, Rome, Italy. It was initially

commissioned by the Roman Emperor Hadrian as a mausoleum for himself and his family. There

is a tunnel from The Vatican to The Castel which was once the tallest building in Rome. The

building was later used by the popes as a fortress and castle, and is now a museum.

We then met the group again and visited St. Peter's Basilica.

A panoramic view of St Peter's Square and a view from the dome of the Basilica below.

St. Peter's is a church in the Renaissance style located in Rome west of the River Tiber and

near the Janiculum Hill and Hadrian's Mausoleum. Its central dome dominates the skyline of

Rome. The basilica is approached via St. Peter's Square.

The basilica is cruciform in shape, with an elongated nave in the Latin cross form. The central

space is dominated both externally and internally by one of the largest domes in the world. One

of the decorated bronze doors leading from the narthex is the Holy Door, only opened in Holy

Years. The interior is of vast dimensions when compared with other churches. There are over

100 tombs within St. Peter's Basilica, many located in the Vatican grotto, beneath the Basilica.

These include 91 popes, St. Ignatius of Antioch, Holy Roman Emperor Otto II, and the

composer Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina. Exiled Catholic British royalty James Francis Edward

Stuart and his two sons, Charles Edward Stuart and Henry Benedict Stuart. Also buried here is

Queen Christina of Sweden, who abdicated her throne in order to convert to Catholicism, and

Countess Matilda of Tuscany, supporter of the Papacy during the Investiture Controversy.

Recent Popes interred here Pius XII, John Paul II, and John XXIII.

St. Peter's Basilica as painted by Giovanni Paolo Panini The apse with St. Peter's Cathedra supported by

four Doctors of the Church

The dome The nave looking towards Crepuscular rays are seen in the The narthex

the entrance Basilica at times each day

Maderno's nave, looking towards the chancel View of the interior shows the transept arms to right and

chancel beyond the baldacchino arms to right and left

The altar with Bernini's baldacchino Bernini's "Cathedra Petri" and "Gloria"

Statues in the piers of the dome

Saint Helena St Longinus St Andrew St Veronica

Treasures of St Peters

The Holy Door is opened only for great celebrations. The bronze statue of Saint Peter holding the keys, attributed

to Arnolfo di Cambio. The Pietà by Michelangelo is in the north aisle, andTruth, by Bernini. Her big toe is pierced by

a thorn from Britain.

Tomb of Pope John Paul II

Tombs of Pope John XXIII and Pope Innocent XI.

The centre door into the basilica & a Swiss Guard.

The crypt was closed so we postponed our visit to the Tomb of St. Peter to Wednesday

afternoon after the audience with the Pope. Then it was back to the hotel for a rest before

dinner.

Day 4 Monday 28th October After an early breakfast, we boarded a coach for a 2+ hour drive

to Assisi, a small town and commune of Italy in the province of Perugia in the Umbria region, on

the western flank of Monte Subasio. We first visited the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli

situated in the plain at the foot of the hill of Lower Assisi. Two of The USA's biggest cities get

their names from here - San Francisco and Los Angeles. The basilica was constructed between

1569 and 1679 enclosing the 9th century little church, the Porziuncola, the most sacred place

for the Franciscans. It was here that the young Francis of Assisi understood his vocation and

renounced the world in order to live in poverty among the poor and started the Franciscan

movement.

Nave with the Porziuncola. The Porziuncola.

Fr Martin celebrated Holy Mass for us in a small chapel (size of a front room) in the monastery.

The Cappella del Transito is the small room where St. Francis died on 3 October 1226. It was a

little hut serving as a primitive infirmary for the sick.

One enters the rose garden via the sacristy. It is the last remains of the ancient wood in which

St Francis and his friars lived. Here he talked to the turtle doves. Doves have been nesting

since times immemorial in the hands of the statue of St. Francis in this rose garden.

According to tradition, one night St. Francis, feeling the temptation to abandon his way of life,

rolled naked in the bramble thorns in an attempt to overcome doubt and temptation. In contact

with his body, the bramble bushes turned into dog roses without thorns. Since then, the dog

rose has been grown here.

From the rose garden, one enters the Rose Chapel. This was the cell where St. Francis rested

and spent the rest of the night in prayer and penance. Here St. Francis also met Saint Anthony

of Padua.

After lunch we took the coach to Upper Assisi and met our guide who took us on a guided tour

around the old town and the Basilicas of St. Francis and St. Clare. St. Agnes. Clare's sister also

followed her and is buried in the Basilica in an unmarked grave.

Saint Clare of Assisi (July 16, 1194 – August 11, 1253), is an Italian saint and one of the first

followers of Saint Francis of Assisi. She founded the Order of Poor Ladies, a monastic religious

order for women in the Franciscan tradition. Following her death, the order she founded was

renamed in her honour as the Order of Saint Clare, commonly referred to today as the Poor

Clares.

The Basilica of Saint Clare (Basilica di Santa Chiara in Italian) is dedicated to and contains

the remains of Saint Clare of Assisi. Through the supporting arch is a view of the Fort of Assisi.

From here we walked through the old town to the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi.

Wild boar is a local delicacy. On the way we visited the Temple of Minerva. It currently houses

a church, Santa Maria sopra Minerva, built in 1539. The temple was built in the 1st century BC.

Of the ancient temple, the façade has been preserved, with six Corinthian columns supporting

the architrave and a small pediment.

The Papal Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi is the mother church of the Roman Catholic Order

of Friars Minor, commonly known as the Franciscan Order in Assisi, the city where St.

Francis was born and died. The basilica is one of the most important places of

Christian pilgrimage in Italy. With its accompanying friary, the basilica is a distinctive landmark

to those approaching Assisi. The basilica, which was begun in 1228, is built into the side of a hill

and comprises two churches known as the Upper Church and the Lower Church, and

a crypt where the remains of the saint are interred.

The Lower and Upper basilicas and the portico, as seen from Side entrance to the lower basilica

the Lower Plaza of St. Francis.

Nave of the upper basilica and Papal altar with frescoes

Tomb of St. Francis in the crypt and Courtyard

We then walked down to lower Assisi to the coach and a cup of coffee. The little cafe and the

views of Assisi from there. We left at 5.00pm for the hotel for dinner and a relaxing evening.

Day 5 Tuesday 29th October After breakfast we walked round to Sanctuary of the Santa

Scala (Holy Stairs). According to the Christian tradition, the steps that led to the praetorium

of Pontius Pilate in Jerusalem, which Jesus Christ stood on during his Passion on his way to trial.

The stairs were, reputedly, brought to Rome by St. Helena in the 4th century. For centuries,

the Scala Santa has attracted Christian pilgrims who wished to honour the Passion of Jesus by

climbing the stairs on their knees. It consists of twenty-eight white marble steps, now encased

by wood, located in a building which incorporates part of the old Lateran Palace, located opposite

the Basilica of Saint John Lateran. They are located next to a church which was built on ground

brought from Mount Calvary. The stairs lead to the Sancta Sanctorum (Holy of Holies), the

personal chapel of the early Popes in the Lateran palace, known as the chapel of St. Lawrence.

We then crossed the road to The Papal Archbasilica of St. John Lateran, commonly known

as St. John Lateran's Archbasilica, St. John Lateran's Basilica, and just The Lateran

Basilica. It is the cathedral church of the Diocese of Rome and the official ecclesiastical seat

of the Bishop of Rome, who is the Pope.

It is the oldest and ranks first among the four Papal Basilicas or major basilicas of Rome (having

the cathedra of the Bishop of Rome). It claims the title of ecumenical mother church among

Roman Catholics. An inscription on the façade, Christo Salvatori, indicates the church's

dedication to "Christ the Saviour", for the cathedrals of all patriarchs are dedicated to Christ

himself. As the cathedral of the Bishop of Rome, it ranks above all other churches in

the Catholic Church, including St. Peter's Basilica. For that reason, unlike all other Roman

Basilicas, it holds the title of Archbasilica.

The archbasilica is located outside of the boundaries of Vatican City proper, although within the

city of Rome. However it enjoys extraterritorial status as one of the properties of the Holy

See. This is also the case with several other buildings, following the resolution of the Roman

Question with the signing of the Lateran Treaty. Below the Baldacchino is a statute of John the

Baptist and the tomb of Pope Martin V (1443).

The Basilica from the Holy Stairs and the 14th century Gothic Baldacchino. Below, The Papal Cathedra.

Fr Martin then celebrated mass in the Choir Chapel of San Giovanni.

Part of the decorated ceiling. The Loggia delle Benedizioni, on the back left side. Annexed, on the left, is the

Lateran Palace. The square in front has an obelisk commissioned by Pharaoh.

The Archbasilica and a statue of St. Francis and his followers across the road facing the Archbasilica.

We then took the metro into the centre of Rome to take in some of the city's landmarks.

The Trevi Fountain

The Pantheon built over 2000 years ago and the square opposite. The alter and natural lighting from the ceiling.

The Church of St. Louis of the French (San Luigi dei Francesi) is a Roman Catholic minor

basilica and titular church in Rome, not far from Piazza Navona. It is the national church in

Rome of France and the seat of the Cardinal of Paris. It houses three outstanding paintings by

Michaelanglo de Merisi, known as Caravaggio and a feast of Roman Baroque art.

Piazza Navona is a city square in Rome, Italy. It is built on the site of the Stadium of Domitian,

built in 1st century AD, and follows the form of the open space of the stadium.

Then it was time for lunch and after that a walk back to St. Peter's to visit the crypt and pray

at the tomb of St. Peter. On the way back we passed The Church of St. Ignatius of Loyola a

Roman Catholic titular church dedicated to Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Society of

Jesus (The Jesuits). Then from St. Peter's it was back to the hotel for our last supper there.

Day 6 Wednesday 30th October. After an early breakfast we headed back to St. Peter's for

the Papal Audience at 10.00 am. It was an experience to behold and never forgotten. While

waiting, a Welsh Choir next to us, newlyweds and many other from all over the world.

And then it was a short walk to the Church of the Holy Spirit for our last mass together with

Fr. Martin in another beautiful church.

Our Anam Cara Tour Guide, Damien and a view of St. Peter's from the Church of the Holy Spirit

The Pilgrims. Then it was lunch, back to the hotel and an evening flight back to London. The end

of a very memorable pilgrimage to Rome and Assisi.