"The great Father Zed, Archiblogopoios"
-
Fr. John Hunwicke
"Some 2 bit novus ordo cleric"
- Anonymous
"Rev. John Zuhlsdorf, a traditionalist blogger who has never shied from picking fights with priests, bishops or cardinals when liturgical abuses are concerned."
- Kractivism
"Father John Zuhlsdorf is a crank"
"Father Zuhlsdorf drives me crazy"
"the hate-filled Father John Zuhlsford" [sic]
"Father John Zuhlsdorf, the right wing priest who has a penchant for referring to NCR as the 'fishwrap'"
"Zuhlsdorf is an eccentric with no real consequences" -
HERE
- Michael Sean Winters
"Fr Z is a true phenomenon of the information age: a power blogger and a priest."
- Anna Arco
“Given that Rorate Coeli and Shea are mad at Fr. Z, I think it proves Fr. Z knows what he is doing and he is right.”
- Comment
"Let me be clear. Fr. Z is a shock jock, mostly. His readership is vast and touchy. They like to be provoked and react with speed and fury."
- Sam Rocha
"Father Z’s Blog is a bright star on a cloudy night."
- Comment
"A cross between Kung Fu Panda and Wolverine."
- Anonymous
Fr. Z is officially a hybrid of Gandalf and Obi-Wan XD
- Comment
Rev. John Zuhlsdorf, a scrappy blogger popular with the Catholic right.
- America Magazine
RC integralist who prays like an evangelical fundamentalist.
-Austen Ivereigh on
Twitter
[T]he even more mainline Catholic Fr. Z. blog.
-
Deus Ex Machina
“For me the saddest thing about Father Z’s blog is how cruel it is.... It’s astonishing to me that a priest could traffic in such cruelty and hatred.”
- Jesuit homosexualist James Martin to BuzzFeed
"Fr. Z's is one of the more cheerful blogs out there and he is careful about keeping the crazies out of his commboxes"
- Paul in comment at
1 Peter 5
"I am a Roman Catholic, in no small part, because of your blog.
I am a TLM-going Catholic, in no small part, because of your blog.
And I am in a state of grace today, in no small part, because of your blog."
- Tom in
comment
"Thank you for the delightful and edifying omnibus that is your blog."-
Reader comment.
"Fr. Z disgraces his priesthood as a grifter, a liar, and a bully. -
- Mark Shea
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I was blessed to twice have the opportunity to make the climb. The first time (November of 1996), just as we got to the top and broke out into the fresh air, a priest approached us and asked us to take a picture of him with his camera. We asked where he was from and he told us Dallas, which is where we were living at the time. He was a retired priest, in Rome to join Pope John Paul II as they both celebrated their Jubilee years of Priesthood. It was an incredible experience and a breathtaking climb.
The second time, in 1998, my then 10 year old son joined me in the climb. We made it to the top without much trouble, but my weary legs started to give out on me during the descent. It took much longer than it should have, but we made it back down safely.
We were signed up for the Scavi tour, but didn’t realize that there was a minimum age requirement (16, I think) and they wouldn’t let the kids go, so we all had to pass. Fortunately, my wife and I had gotten to experience it 2 years earlier. Again, an incredible experience.
I made this climb last summer. The view from the top is absolutely worth it, but anyone considering the climb should be aware that not only is the climb physically taxing (even if you take the lift partway), but the descent too isn’t for the faint-hearted. The stairs are narrow and steep and the risers are worn enough to slope slightly downwards, and for large stretches of the route there aren’t any handrails and the walls are covered in smooth-glazed tiles that will do nothing to help you stay upright if you make a misstep: put one foot wrong and you’ll fall. I’m in decent shape to make the ascent… but frankly I was praying on the way down!
When I visited Rome in February 1992 on my honeymoon pilgrimage to see HH John Paul II, we climbed to the cupola. At that time, there was a much lower rail inside the “crown” where the “Tu es Petrus…” inscription is – and I believe I read somewhere and verified somewhat from perspective that those letters are 6 FT high. What struck me when I viewed this short video was how clean and tidy the areas of the cupola steps are now – especially the walls. When I was there, they were totally covered with gum and graffitti from many years of ‘pilgrims’ visits.
It is in fact one of the most beautiful and picturesque locations that I have visited and the best place to get a real view of the Vatican from above. I would recommend a slow ascent and visit to everyone who travels to Rome.
I went last November and made the climb. As Raphaela said, going up (though I was winded by the time I got to the top) was not nearly as bad as going down. I have this weird fear of falling down steps anyhow, so walking down a curving staircase with no handrail was a real treat, let me tell you. Despite that though, it was totally worth it and I’ll certainly do it again when/if I get back to Rome.
Oh, man. Another sightseeing opportunity designed by sadists….
I thought there couldn’t be anything worse than the glass floor of the CN Tower!
Father, did you know that Greg is in Mumbai these days reporting on the terrorist attacks?
Yes the cupola is cool, but the airport style security they now have is such a drag. My time was limited so I took a stroll around the perimeter of Vatican City.
http://www.4marks.com/apps/albums.html?album_id=450785
Ooooh, two treasures I recall from my scaling the cupola:
On the outer ribs of the dome are little spiky-looking things, which people may suppose are lightning-rods or something, but a priest at the top told me they were candle-holders, formerly used to illuminate the dome on great feasts. I suppose that back in the day, the minor order of acolyte was a serious job, requiring rapelling skills!
And: On the way down (if you take the stairs all the way) you can see memorials describing various occasions when the Holy Door had been opened for Jubilee.