Off and Running

Statue of Mary in the gardens of
the Castelgondolfo property.

     Literally from the moment we landed in Rome at 7:30 Thursday morning, we have been going non-stop.  A group of the orientation staff meet us at the airport and took us to the bus they had waiting for us.  We took a very brief tour of the city (from the bus) on our way to the college, passing by St. Paul Outside the Wall, the Colosseum and St. Peter's Basilica to name only a few of the places.  When we arrived at the college we were greeted by the orientation staff, the faculty of the college and those men in our class that had come early to study Italian.  They clapped us off the bus and all the way into the main chapel where we prayed midday prayer.  The day finished up with unpacking, a tour of St. Peter's Basilica, guided by the men of the orientation staff (giving tours of St. Peter's to American visitors could be my pastoral assignment next semester!), mass, and dinner outside on the 5th floor of the college, which provides one amazing view of the city!

     The next day, Friday, we had to rise early to make it to St. Peter's for 7:15am mass at the tomb of St. Peter...I guess it was worth waking up early!  After mass we were able to walk around a bit...I took advantage of the time to pray in the blessed sacrament chapel they have in St. Peter's.  An Italian placement test, sojournal (residency) papers, mass and a walking tour of the city (including gelato or Italian ice cream) rounded out day two.  A small group of us continued on to the basilica in honor of St. Augustine to pray at the tomb of St. Monica (St. Augustine's mother) on this her feast day (Aug 27th).  What a wonderful privilege to be able to be so close to so many holy men and women of God!

     Day 3, Saturday...the best thing yet!  I had seen St. Peter's and the Colosseum, prayed at the tomb of St. Monica, but nothing could compare to this...I GOT A FAN!  There are no air conditioners in our rooms and it is pretty close to South Louisiana hot here, so this was a great accomplishment!  After our time to roam around Rome (I haven't lost that great sense of humor yet!), we prayed a rosary together near an image of Our Lady of Humility that hangs in the college.  After the rosary, one of the priests blessed smaller copies of this image and each new man got to take one of this room.  After mass and lunch, we returned to The Basilica of St. Augustine, to pray there on his feast day (Aug 28th).  The day ended with a free night in the lounge where we were able to get beverages and snacks at no charge.

     Day 4, Sunday...it keeps getting better!  Today we had mass at 7:45am so that we could depart for Castelgandolfo, where the pope spends his vacation each summer.  There we had the opportunity to see the Holy Father and to pray the Angelus with him.  After that, he greeted the different countries in attendance.  When greeting the English speaking countries, he added a special greeting to the men of The Pontifical North American College, giving us his best wishes in our studies and letting us know that he would pray for us to grow in our relationship with the Lord during our time in Rome.  We also sang him a song entitled "Ad Multos Annos".  Following the Angelus we had lunch at a restaurant that was on the side of a mountain and overlooks an old volcano which is now a huge lake.  We were joined at lunch by Archbishop Burke, the Prefect of the Apostolic Signatura, and Archbishop James Harvey the Prefect for the Papal Household.  After lunch Archbishop Harvey led the group on a tour of the gardens at the popes summer residence, which houses the pool that Pope John Paul II had installed when he was elected Pope!

     As you can tell, it has been an amazing time so far.  I truly feel like I am at home here.  I am studying with guys from all over the U.S., one guy from Canada, and several Australians.  It is a neat experience to be able to go to places as amazing as St. Peter's Basilica and not take pictures because I know that I will have the opportunity to do so later.  I am allowing myself to simply be here and soak in all of the amazing things that are happening.  Know that I am praying for all of you back home and please pray for me especially as we start Italian classes tomorrow.  I hope to update this blog regularly as a way for you to know what is going on in between personal contact.

In Christ,

Patrick