As I ‘ve aged and hopefully, made some small steps on my spiritual journey, I have become interested in the Early Church Fathers as well as the early Saints and Christians who have died for a Faith I am so blessed and privileged to be a part of. Each day I am grateful for the ‘freedom’ to write about and live my Faith. This is one of the reasons why I was so excited about our recent holiday to Rome, the seat of Christianity.
On hearing about our eminent trip to the Eternal City, Fr. Peter (our parish priest), offered to connect us with one of our parish Deacons who is in his second year of study at the Collegio Inglesi—-Roma. (The English College) That very same evening we received a jovial e-mail from Andrew. After a few emails sent to and fro, we established a firm date to meet up, after which we found out that Andrew would be smack-bang in the middle of end of year exams!
The above photo of Our Lady Of Walsingham was taken in the College. I just love this wooden statue. It’s got oodles of character. (I have yet to visit Walsingham here in England.) Andrew gave us an in-depth tour of the college, sharing many details about numerous martyrs, that are remembered through the art there. We were privileged to be able to hold a chalice that was used by a number of saints who themselves, had attended the college. Very special indeed.
Part of the ceiling .
We attended Mass at the college on both Sundays of our stay in Rome. At the first Mass we celebrated in awe of the four Cantors, the heavenly music and the fact that we were worshipping God in such a beautiful chapel. On the right and below is a taster of the beautiful decor of the chapel. The marble flooring adds to the sumptuous beauty of the chapel, and behind the altar is a painting of Christ being removed from the Cross. It was only after close scrutiny that the detail of the painting became apparent. The Precious Blood of our Lord, pouring out of His wounds onto the world. The Hands of God the Father can be seen too, holding up his Son, with the Holy Spirit in the centre.
As the tour continued Andrew named saint after saint after saint. Most of whom I had never even heard of. It was a humbling experience.
I had always wanted to visit a Seminary, just to know what happens there, and here we were being personally chaperoned by a prospective priest! It was such a privilege. We joined him for lunch,accompanied by much laughter and the excellent company of Fr. Guy and Benjamin. (a fourth year student priest.) We were made to feel so welcome, and the unbreakable bond of Christianity was tangible and a sure source of unity.
I have received this award from ‘To have a Heart’and ‘Biltrix’ Thank You! Thank You!
This lovely award was granted by ‘Biltrix’ Thank You!
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