San Pietro



My roommate Stephanie and I in front of San Pietro



Last Saturday, January 15, we left Italy for a few hours and ventured into a tiny neighboring country...Vatican City! With an area of only a few acres, Vatican City is the world's smallest country. It's amazing to think that I can travel to a different country just by walking a few blocks from school or taking the metro a few stops from my house! Although the country is so tiny, it is overwhelming to stand in the square facing St. Peter's Basilica (San Pietro). Although the square is enormous and there are tourists everywhere, the incredible beauty of the architecture takes your breath away and makes you feel like you're the only one standing in the middle, witnessing it all. 



View of San Pietro from PNAC



Outside of St. Peter's square, Vatican City is very mountainous, and it was quite a trek up to the Pontifical North American College, where we started our day. PNAC is the American seminary in Rome where seminarians from the United States come to study for the priesthood. Once their training is complete, usually after three to five years, the students return to dioceses in the United States and are ordained. The seminarians gave us a tour of their beautiful campus (which has an incredible view of the city from the rooftop garden) and cooked us a delicious American breakfast, a welcomed change to the tiny Italian breakfasts to which I am not yet accustomed. The seminarians also brew Dunkin' Donuts coffee, which was quite a treat, as the Italians prefer tiny cups of cappucchino or espresso, which just doesn't cut it for a coffee lover like myself. Over breakfast, the seminarians discussed with us ways in which to get more involved with our faith while in Rome. They invited us with open arms to their weekly Sunday Mass and brunch, an opportunity that I will definitely take advantage throughout the semester. Coincidentally, one of the seminarians graduated from my high school a few years before me and plans to return to the Archdiocese of Washington when his studies are done. It's amazing to think that I didn't know him at school, yet we met in Italy of all places!



After the wonderful breakfast at the seminary, we returned to the square, where Dr. Dawson, program director and Rome history and theology expert, gave us a fascinating tour of St. Peter's Basilica, which is by far the most amazing place I have seen in Rome so far. Here I realized, yet again, what an incredible opportunity this semester abroad is. Catholics from all over the world yearn to make pilgrimages to St. Peter's Basilica, and I have already been twice and can go back any time I want.

        

Stepping into the basilica is absolutely overwhelming. The sheer grandeur and size of the building took my breath away. Although it is the largest Christian church in the world, it was designed to look small and inviting, and oddly enough it is, once you let your eyes get used to everything. Everything about St. Peter's, every little detail, is beautiful and significant. The basilica was designed to be breathtakingly beautiful in order to attempt to convey God's beauty. The spot on the floor where we stood when we entered looked like just a part of the tile pattern, but it was actually the exact place where Charlemagne was crowned king after conquering Italy! The way Dr. Dawson mentioned these incredible facts with a "no big deal" attitude was hilarious. The nave of the church has statues of the saints who founded the religious orders, and I was thrilled to see a huge statue of St. Ignatius Loyola holding a book that says, "ad maiorem Dei gloriam," which is the Jesuit motto, and therefore Loyola University Maryland's, meaning, "for the greater glory of God." The hundreds of beautiful mosaics, sculptures, and altars made me marvel at the artists' and designers' brilliance. The geometric perfection of the colonnades and the way Bernini skillfully added movement and texture to his marble masterpieces is absolutely incredible. The trip to St. Peter's was so significant for me because everything I've learned at church and in theology and history classes came together. Stories from the Bible, the life of Jesus, and history all tie together to provide an incredibly moving and significant experience. Touring St. Peter's yet again reaffirmed why I came to Rome.     



Sculpture of St. Ignatius Loyola