Finding a Catholic Church in Rome is like finding a skyscraper in New York City. They are everywhere. Through my class on Christian Art and Architecture, I learn that there is more to a church than what one may get from just attending mass. Each church has a history as unique as each snowflake that falls from the sky. The location of the church, the name, the structure, the early Christians have a reason for everything. Even on the inside of the church, one finds meaning in every painting, every sculpture, every side chapel and every altar. Of course, in class I can only get a glimpse of the sacred stories these places tell, and we touch on the necessary ones: St. Peter's Basilica, St. Mary Major (my scavenger hunt find from last week), St. John Lateran (the Cathedral of Rome), and others. But there are hundreds of more churches, and hundreds of more stories to find!
One day when walking around the city, I observe some street performers dancing the day away. Taking a seat on some steps to take a break from walking and watch, I take in both the performers and their surroundings. Clothing stores, restaurants, and cafes line up each following the next among this busy retail area. My sweeping overview of the area however, comes to a stop as I look at the building I am sitting in front of. Somehow, I end up staring at the plain gray surface of a Church, a large contrast to the modern trends advertised around it. Indeed, it looks almost squished into its little place on the corner. I get so thrown off by the presence of this church that I just have to walk in. Opening the tall and old bronze doors, I am nearly litteraly blown off my feet for what meets me. From the gold color in the wide columns, surrounding the main aisle to the boldly dark frame of the multicolored altarpiece, it is hard to believe I am in the same building that is so monochromatic on the outside. The beauty continues as I observe each and every side chapel, each having a beautiful sculpture or painting of a saint or devotion. However, each one is careful not to overwhelm the center of attention, a painting of the Crowning of Mary as Queen of Heaven placed right above the altar, representative of the titular devotion of this church, the Church of Jesus and Mary. Walking around some more, I find that this church, from the baroque period of art, also holds the tomb of a beloved holy priest of God accessible off of one of the side chapels. Well, it's certainly not everyday that I just walk into a church and see a tomb! How great must be this witness of God that he would bless this little church with his presence. I take a moment to pray in this sacred area separated from the noise outside. The proclamation of a historically grounded faith in this very modern location fills my heart with joy. Furthermore, the fact that I am able to see the faith of a parish just by walking around one little church is incredible. How blessed am I to have found this witness of faith! Are there other little gems of churches in the city? If so, I want to see as many as I possibly can!
From this point on, I decide to do two things. First, create a church log to keep track of every single church I walk into, and second, begin walking into any random church I come across no matter where I am. Five days of my Spring Break in Rome present the perfect opportunity to go on my tour of sacred treasures. First off are my list of churches I specifically want to go see, one of them being the Basilica of St. Paul outside the Walls (see adjacent picture). Besides St. Peter's Basilica and the Basilica of St. John Lateran, this can be considered the other major church in Rome. Getting off at the metro stop, I can't wait to see the visual place to accompany the devotion to a beloved saint. It takes me a while, but finally I see a tall cross on top of a building in the distance that stands above the rest of the skyline. As I make my journey to my destination, the church seems to get bigger and bigger with every step I take. Eventually I find a door three times taller than me inside several columns. Walking in, I can already tell this is now little church stuck in the middle of a street. Even the ceiling seems to reach higher than the clouds outside. However, something seems a bit off. If I walked in the front door, shouldn't the alter be right in front of me? Well, it turns out I went in a side door and not the main door. Taking a 90* turn to face the main door, I nearly fall down, as I face the incomprehensible truth. The real main entrance stands, at least ten times taller than I am. Walking through the main aisle is as if I were an ant walking through an entire mall sized parking lot. The columns themselves reduce me to a speck of dust. Everything, the height, the doors, even the atrium is at least five times bigger than your average building. No wonder the early Christians built this towering palace! It certainly proclaims their presence in the city. After all, no one would be able to miss such a large building. It's quite the opposite of The Church of Jesus and Mary, this time proclaiming boldly that this is a Christian Church and by gosh it's going to shout it to the entire world as it quite literally seems to touch the heavens. Of course, another reason it is so big in size is that it is the home of the tomb of St. Paul, by far one of the top five most important Christian saints, which is another reason why this place has such a large significance as well. The significance surely matches the size, and I must imagine that this place is so big it can hold God himself if God could be held.
If I had room to describe every single one of the 33 Catholic churches I have visited so far, I would. Each one is unique, and each one has something different to present to the faithful pilgrim that comes to its doors. For one church it may be the Mosaic above the alter that stands out, for another a certain relic, or the location, or something I have never seen before. Nevertheless, each contributes to the universality of the beauty that is the Catholic Church, and it has been more than inspiring to visit so many of them, only to know that I, in a half of a semester, have only covered a fraction of all the secrets of the Catholic faith. How lucky am I to experience all of these places, and learn the roots and the very treasures of the Catholic faith from the beloved places that are themselves the expression of faith.
No comments:
Post a Comment