I have arrived back at my apartment in Rome, overlooking the City from two very fine and very high views. So, I am back.. yep, sure am… with about six zillion tourists who have invaded! Here is a shot from my window down toward the "side" passage in an out of the Piazza Navona. The streams of people is pretty must steady like this.
Sabine Farm must wait for me. Or, I suppose I could go to visit the real Sabine Farm again!
Isn’t that curious that you would have posted this picture and this comment just as the Holy Father made the following comments on the occasion of the 2,759th anniversary of the founding of Rome?:
“Si celebra proprio oggi il Natale di Roma, a ricordo del tradizionale anniversario della fondazione dell’Urbe, ricorrenza storica che, riportandoci col pensiero alle origini della Città, diventa occasione propizia per comprendere meglio la vocazione di Roma ad essere faro di civiltàe di spiritualitàper il mondo intero. Grazie all’incontro tra le sue tradizioni e il cristianesimo, Roma ha svolto nel corso dei secoli una peculiare missione, e continua ancor oggi ad essere importante richiamo per tanti visitatori attratti da un così ricco patrimonio artistico, in gran parte legato alla storia cristiana della Città.”
So many visitors attracted to the rich artistic patrimony of Rome …
Interesting! And yet, I ask myself, why is it that in an age that mostly rejects the values of previous generations, particularly of the Christian civilization that preceded us, so many keep seeking an opportunity to view and to touch at least something that was left behind, be it a museum, a church, a building, a Roman street…
It definitely feels like humanity in search of Christ?
All roads do, in fact, lead to Rome
Andrew: Your wrote: “It definitely feels like humanity in search of Christ?”
Or, they could be in search of a plate of spaghetti all’amatriciana.
“Or, they could be in search of a plate of spaghetti all’amatriciana.”
ROFLOL!!
OTOH, giving the declining quality of our restaurants and the average quality of our
clergy, I am not sure about which is the harder to find these days…
Fabrizio: I, however, we both know where it is still possible to eat very well indeed in Roma. As for the clergy… nemo est iudex in causa propria.
It’s a long way for many people to travel for a piece of “pancetta”.
Fr. Z,
well, I said “average” quality. I am well aware that
there are many wonderful priests in the
dioceses of Italy. As a matter of fact being a priest,
especially a pastor, pastor is an extremely though
task these days. He is often alone in his daily duties,
confronted by cultural chaos and often poorly trained
himself.
They deserve all our prayers and support. I must say
though, that contributions from overseas seem to
help improve the above mentioned “average quality”!
Especially when they get so italianized that they could
not only help the flock to find Christ, but also to
discover the best places in town for an “amatriciana”!!