June 3rd, Eve. - June 6th

On Tuesday evening, June 3rd, we went to Evening Prayer at Santa Maria Church in Trastevere, one area of Rome. Santa Maria is the oldest church dedicated to our lady in Rome, predating the "Peace of the Church" in 313. It is a beautiful old chruch. (I'm typing on an Italian computere and I don't know what I did to have this different kind of type!) The prayer service was also beautiful. It was started by someone who was concerned about the poor in the area and has been going on since 1968. Some of you may have heard of this community which is now an international group called Sant' Egidio Community and it was started in this area of Rome. They are very involved in helping the poor besides having beautiful evening services.

On Wednesday we had classes on the subject of "Getting in Touch With the Person of Benedict in the Social, Political, and Ecclesiastical Context," again with Sr. Aquinata Boeckman,OSB. She is an excellent teacher and of, couse, it is a subject that is so appropriate to us, in this Benedictine Renewal Program.

We went to Sant Eutizio, Norcia (the birthplace of saints Benedict and Scholastica -twins), and to Santa Scholastica which is outside of Norcia, on Thursday. These places and their churches and art are extremely precious to Benedictines. The little town of Norcia is so enjoyable with its little shops and friendly people. We also were able to eat at the guest quarters of a group of Benedictine nuns at Norcia, visit with their hospitality nun, and see some of their monastery.

Today we went to St. John Lateran Church, the first cathedral of Rome, since 312. Fr. Dan McCarthy,OSB, again talked to us about the significance of this and other churches in the area. There is a beautiful baptistry there and outside in a huge obelisk, the oldest one in Rome and the largest in the world. Made of red granite about 1500BC, it once stood before the Temple of the Sun at Heliopolis, where Moses could have seen it!!! Constantius II had set it up in the Circus Maximus about 357. Sixtus V found it in fragments in a swamp and had it transferred to the area of St. John Lateran in 1588.

Later on Friday morning we went to San Clemente Basilica. It is the best preserved of the medieval basilicas in Rome. Below the present church are excavations that we could enter that go back to the first century, with four layers of excavations from four different times.

Following this, we could decide where we'd like to go and three of us went to see the inside of the Colosseum, taking a guided tour. I am especially in awe of the great courage and faith of the early Christians who became martyrs.

The last church that we went to today was Sant Peter in Chains, which has the chains that St. Peter wore while in prison. It also has a huge and beautiful statue of Moses, sculptured by Michelangelo.

Sisters Adrian, Marietta, and I then found our way back to St. Peter's area and had pizza... before returning to our Casa.