Rejoice! The Lord is risen! Alleluia!

"The Resurrection" by Titian
Happy Easter! After the Easter Vigil I am always reminded of the phrase I would hear my Hungarian Cistercian friends say after their Easter Vigil: "Rejoice! The Lord is risen! Alleluia!" Part of it was in the delivery, which was what made it so amusing.

Anyway, I want to thank all of you readers who have been praying for me. Not only has the Lord been resurrected, but also "Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum" the "resurrection" of my vocation. The three months of intense vocational discernment was spent at the Benedictine Monastery in Norcia, Italy as an "observer." I am happy to say that I will be returning there this summer to enter the monastery.

Basilica and Monastery of Saint Benedict in Norcia, Italy.
So, I would ask for continued prayers as I try to get things taken care of so I can return. I feel a bit overwhelmed with all things to get done, but I guess I'll just need to chip away at it with God's grace.

I was also thrilled to see that the monks have been posting the audio and pictures from their Tenebrae services this year on their website at http://www.osbnorcia.org

So, once again, happy Easter.

RS

Happy Feast of the Transitus of Saint Benedict

Statue of Saint Benedict in the piazza in Norcia, (aka Nursia) Italy
From the Dialogues of Saint Gregory the Great, Book II:

"CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN: HOW VENERABLE BENEDICT DID PROPHESY TO HIS MONKS THE TIME OF HIS OWN DEATH.

In the year that was to be his last, the man of God foretold the day of his holy death to a number of his disciples. In mentioning it to some who were with him in the monastery, he bound them to strict secrecy. Some others, however, who were stationed elsewhere he only informed of the special sign they would receive at the time of his death.

Six days before he died, he gave orders for his tomb to be opened. Almost immediately he was seized with a violent fever that rapidly wasted his remaining energy. Each day his condition grew worse until finally, on the sixth day, he had his disciples carry him into the chapel where he received the Body and Blood of our Lord to gain strength for his approaching end. Then, supporting his weakend body on the arms of his brethren, he stood with his hands raised to heaven and, as he prayed, breathed his last.

That day two monks, one of them at the monastery, the other some distance away, received the very same revelation. They both saw a magnificent road covered with rich carpeting and glittering with thousands of lights. From his monastery it stretched eastward in a straight line until it reached up into heaven. And there in the brightness stood a man of majestic appearance, who asked them, "Do you know who passed this way?"

"No," they replied.

"This," he told them, "is the road taken by blessed Benedict, the Lord's beloved, when he went to heaven."

Thus, while the brethren who were with Benedict witnessed his death, those who were absent knew about it through the sign he had promised them. His body was laid to rest in the Chapel of St. John the Baptist, which he had built to replace the altar of Apollo."

RS

Our Lady of Loreto

Today is the Feast of Our Lady of Loreto.

Loreto is a town in upper-mideast Italy which has the Holy House where the Angel Gabriel visited Mary on the Annunciation. Obviously, the house was originally in Nazareth. Legend says that the House was carried by Angels one night, and brought to Loreto. Although embellished, it is based on historical fact. Back during the Crusades, many Western Christians were bringing back relics from the Holy Land to rescue them from the Muslims. Sometimes for pious reasons and sometimes for more worldly reasons.

Anyway, the Angeli family (brought by "Angels") helped to bring the Holy House to Italy in Loreto and a basilica was built around it.

I was very blessed to be able to go there on my last trip to Italy back this October.

If you go there today, you have to go up on top of the large hill where the city is. At the top you'll come to a large fortress structure.


Then going through the gate, you'll see the basilica.


Then in the middle of the basilica is the Holy House. You can't see the outside of the house because it is covered in marble with reliefs.


I wasn't able to get a picture of the inside since they were strict about pictures and there were A LOT of people praying in there, so I didn't want to disturb them. So here's a picture I pulled off the web.


Fr. Benedict was able to say his 2nd Mass here in Latin, which I was blessed to serve. It really struck me when we processed in, as right behind the altar in gold letters you see:

"HIC VERBUM CARO FACTUM EST"
("HERE THE WORD WAS MADE FLESH")
And to think that Father Benedict was about to bring that about again at the Consecration as he said the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. It was a very profound experience.

There's also a custom in the mountain towns which I find rather humorous. In Norcia, and I believe other mountain towns in Italy, on the Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, they build these huge bonfires in the piazzas of the town.

Bonfire in the Piazza di San Lorenzo in Norcia on the Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, 2001
This commemorates the legend of when the Angels carried the Holy House through the night to Loreto, and the Italians will light bonfires in the mountian towns to "guide" the Angels to Loreto so they don't bump into the mountains. I don't know why, but I find it humorous.

Anyway, today is a great opportunity to meditate upon the Annunciation and the fact that God became man. For a good meditation, here's an excellent homily by Fr. Angelo Geiger, FFI:

Homily on the Immaculate Conception

"The Annunciation" by Philippe Champaigne
RS

Religious persecution and the rise of communism

Although there is a lot in the gloom and doom crowd who are fearing the complete supression of religion under Obama, I think we have to realize that we here in the United States are VERY blessed with religious freedom to the degree in which we have it. But in spite of what happens, I think all Catholics and other Christians need to ask ourselves: if religious persecution does happen, are we willing to stand up and sacrifice ourselves for the Truth? I think many of us fear increases in religious persecution because it might mean we would have to do something and put ourselves in the way of danger and stand up for our beliefs and convitions ... and really look at ourselves and see if we really believe our beliefs and are convicted about our convictions.

It reminds me of a friend of mine who was born in Cuba and was a small boy when the communist revolution there happened. He said that Catholics who had been going to daily Mass for years were suddenly persecuting the Church and handing over priests to be arrested. He ended up fleeing Cuba with his mother. I can tell you, the popularity of the Che Guevara icon and the pro-Cuba leanings of many in the entertainment industry drives him nuts.


Fr. Tim Finigan at The Hermeneutic of Continuity posted this video from the Don Camillo series in Italy, which should be a reminder that religious persecution has been pretty recent.



And communism is still a player in Italian politics. I took this photo in October of 2008 just outside of Norcia, Italy:


And, sadly, the Democratic party has been sliding down the path to socialism and communism as well, esepecially under Barak Obama. It's a slippery slope, and once a country falls under it's spell, it is hard to let it go. As momentous as the fall of communism was in the Soviet Union, there is a growing number of people in Russia who want communism back. People had become so dependant on the government, that they are willing to throw away liberties to have programs spoon fed to them by the government again.



Hopefully, our country can wake up from its morbid fascination with socialism and move back to freedom and responsibility.

RS

Pilgrimage List

OK, so here's my list of Saints and Relics I visited. This was actually harder to compile than I thought because there were a few I wasn't really sure about. Overall, I have to go with the information which seems to be consistant and also with what was on the reliquary or tomb itself. I do have photograpic evidence of most of these. I couldn't take photos of some of the tombs or altars in Saint Peters because the area they were in was either reserved for prayer or confiessions. But, hopefully in the future I can get up some pictures too.

So here goes:

These are ones that I can confirm:

Saints Tombs and Major Relics

Saint Eutizio
Saint Spes
Saint Paul the Apostle
Saint Peter the Apostle
Saint Matthias the Apostle
Pope Saint Pius V
Saint Jerome
Saint Stephen the Deacon
Saint Lawrence the Deacon
Blessed Pope Pius IX
Pope Saint Pius X
Saint John Chrysostom
Pope Saint Gregory the Great
Pope Saint Leo IX
Saint Jude Thaddeus the Apostle
Saint Simon the Apostle
Pope Saint Boniface IV
Pope Saint Leo the Great
Pope Saint Leo II
Pope Saint Leo III
Pope Saint Leo IV
Saint Processus (a Martyr)
Saint Martinian (a Martyr)
Saint Josaphat
Blessed Pope John XXIII
Saint Greogry of Nazianzen
Blessed Innocent XI
Saint Ignatius of Loyola
Saint Francis Xaiver (his right arm)
San Giuseppe Pignatelli
Saint Philip Neri
Saint Papius (a Martyr)
Saint Maurus (a Martyr)
Pope Saint Damasus I
Saint Eutychius (a Marytr)
Saint Joseph Calasanz
Saint Benedict (a young Martyr)
Saint Monica
Saint Felix (a Martyr)
Saint Camillus de Lellis
Saint Robert Bellarmine
Saint John Berchmans
Saint Aloysius Gonzaga
Saint James the Lesser the Apostle
Saint Philip the Apostle
Saint Catherine of Siena
Blessed Fra Angelico
Saint Vittoria (a Martyr)
Saint Valentine (his skull)
Saint John of Triora (Franciscan Martyr)
Fra Juniper (confrere of Saint Francis of Assisi)
Pope Saint Clement I
Saint Ignatius of Antioch
Saint Cyril
Saint Servulus
Saint Praxedes
Saint Prudentia
Remains of Martyrs transferred from the catacombes to Saint Praxedes
Saint Alexander (a Martyr)
Saint Sabina
Saint Seraphia
Saint Alexander (a Martyr)
Saint Eventius (a Martyr)
Saint Theodulus (a Martyr)
Pope Saint Pontian
Pope Saint Anterus
Pope Saint Fabian
Pope Saint Lucius I
Pope Saint Eutychian
Pope Saint Stephen I
Pope Saint Sixtus II
Pope Saint Dionysius
Pope Saint Felix
Saint Bartholomew the Apostle
Saint Adalbert of Prague
Saint --erantius (first letters on reliquary are blocked in my photo)
Saint Marcello
Pope Saint Callistus
Pope Saint Cornelius
Pope Saint Julius I
Saint Firmus (a Martyr)
Saint Leontia (a Martyr)
San Carlo da Sezze
Saint Cecilia
Saint John (from the Roman Canon)
Saint Paul (from the Roman Canon)
Saint Paul of the Cross
Saint Saturninus
The Martyrs of Scillitan (12 Martyrs)

Relics

Holy House of Loreto
Part of the hairshirt of Pope Saint Peter Celestine V
Tooth of Saint Benedict
Bone of Saint Scholastica
Part of the Table of the Last Supper
Saint Helena
Nail from the Crucifixion
Thorns from the Crown of Thorns
Part of the True Cross
Cross beam of Saint Dismas
Part of the INRI sign
Finger of Saint Thomas the Apostle
Stone Saint Francis of Assisi used as a "pillow"

Popes

Pope Leo XIII
Pope Innocent III
Pope Pius II
Pope Pius III
Pope Leo X
Pope Clement VII
Pope Benedict XIII
Pope Urban VII
Pope Paul IV
Pope Innocent II

These I am having trouble with verifying.

Uncertain Tombs
Saint Eutropius (a Martyr)
Saint Dionysius (a Martyr)
Saint Sabinus
Saint Clemens

Uncertain Relics
Saint Erasmus
40 Martyrs, Saint Alexis, Saint Mary of Egypt

Final count of Saints, Blesseds, and major relics (including Fra Juniper) is about 98 ... 8 of whom are Apostles.
Final count of uncanonized Popes is about 10.
And other relics.
I did pray at the ones I was uncertain about too.

And in other places, many other holy martyrs, confessors, and holy virgins.

RS

Saints Galore

No, it's not just the name of my friends Catholic gretting card and calendar company. It's also a description of my last 30 hours.

I did manage to get into Saint Peters, so I was able to visit almost every Saint I wanted to (I only missed Saint Petronella), and I didn't get down into the crypt.

Today, I was all over the place. I think so far my total of Saints over the last 30 hours is around 40. However, I really did try to make my visits as reverent and recollected as possible. As Saint Benedict says, you don't have to sit and multiply your words in your prayers like the pagans do. The only Saint I haven't been able to see so far is Saint Agnes because the relic chapel is under repair, so it was totally closed off.

I'll try to get the list of Saints up when I get home.

Ciao for now.

RS

In Rome

Grrr. I hate Italian keyboards! So be patient with any weird characters in the post.

Rome is hot. Well, it's not that bad, but it isn't as cool as Norcia. A hint when going to Rome: always plan to go to Saint Peter's early in the morning. I am surprised that even now in late October, the line to get into Saint Peters is still wrapping all the way around the piazza. I guess ever since they started making people go through the metal detectors to get in, the line backs up bad. Back in '93 when I was at the UD Rome campus, getting into Saint Peters was much more simple and there was never a wait, you just went right in.

So, now I start the mad "marathon" of visiting as many Saints as I can. I found an internet point and had to look up some info, so I thought I'd jump on and update the blog too.

And I guess, I'll try to get into Saint Peter's tomorrow morning.

RS

Officially an Oblate

Seal of Monastero di San Benedetto in Norcia
Last night I became an oblate of Monastero di San Benedetto in Norcia. It's basically like being a 3rd Order Benedictine. An oblate makes promises to the abbot (or in this case the prior) to live a life in the spirit of the Rule of Saint Benedict as his own situation allows in the world.

Basilica and Monastery of Saint Benedict in Norcia, Italy.
For more information on the monastery, please visit their website:

The Monastery of San Benedetto, Norcia, Italy.

The town of Norcia, Italy
Some general information on Benedictine Oblates:

Oblates at osb.org

RS

Mass of Thanksgiving and other neat stuff

Father Benedict's first Mass of Thanksgiving was an awesome sight. Some of the commons were sung from one of Mozart's Masses (I'll try to find out which one) by a local choir and small orchestra, while some of the propers and other commons were chanted by the monks' choir.

I am thankful to have been able to serve in this Mass as well as yesterday's ordination as a torchbearer (the altar boys back home will love to hear that!)

The Mass also had all the readings chanted (in Italian but with the same tones as the Latin), and the Gospel was chanted by a Byzantine Deacon. I think with a little practice I could possibly do the readings at our parish as the tones really weren't that hard. (Someone will have to nudge Father for me! [wink][wink])

We also had a lot of Fraternity of Saint Peter priests from Australia, so it was kind of cool to see several private low Tridentine Masses being said early this morning (and some of those priests were not Fraternity priests either).

Then today, I met Father Richard Cipolla (whom I'd met once before since he is a friend of Father Benedict) and I also got to meet and talk a little with Father Uwe Michael Lang! And I'll mention again that all the North American College seminarians that I met were solid guys too. So keep them in your prayers, so they can become ordained and the Church can get more good priests. I also got to see an Italian friend whom I'd met back in 2001 through Father Clement and hadn't seen since then.

It's been really great to have so many Catholics from different countries, languages, and even Rites, be able to come together. It was really easy training for Mass when everyone there was on the same liturgical page. And many of these people are in the know and have rather authoritative positions in the liturgical scene of the Church. I have to say it was a great experience.

As for some of the more trivial things: the Pranzo (lunch) today was particularly good. Some really good prociutto crudo, and a tartufo risotto. Tartufo is a truffle that is a regional specialty and delicacy. It's a bit of an acquired taste as the black tartufo is pretty strong. I don't usually prefer it, but the rosotto that it was in today was particularly good.

Oh, I have gotten to see a few relics. There was Saint Benedict's tooth (which I unfortunately did not get a picture of because it is held by the commune and they are very possessive of it, so it got taken away by the polizia municipale almost immediately after Mass. However, I did get pictures of a small relic from Blessed Columba Marmion, a part of the forearm bone of Saint Scholastica, and a part of the cincture of Pope Saint Celestine V. Not only are Saint Scholastica and Saint Benedict important to Norcia, but so is Pope Saint Celestine V. But I'll talk about that some other time.

And I can't remember if I mentioned it or not, but I have officially counted 15 churches in Norcia. Eventually I'll get the list up, several are in disrepair or practically ruins, and one has been decommissioned and turned into a concert hall, but still, seven are used on a regular basis, and Father Cassian told me that another one was just renovated recently.

So, as of this posting it's getting close to compline, then a dinner up at the guesthouse of the Benedictine Nuns here in the city.

Sightseeing begins tomorrow.

Oh, and jet-lag finally went away Friday.

Anyway, ciao for now.

RS

Habemus Sacerdotem

AVE O CRUX SPES UNICA

Pater Maria Benedictus Nivakoff, O.S.B.
monachus Monasterii Sancti Benedicti, Nursiae

sacerdos in aeternum

die 11 Octobris 2008

orate pro eo

-Holy card for the Ordination of Father Benedict

HAIL O CROSS OUR ONE HOPE

Father Mary Benedict Nivakoff, O.S.B.
monk of the Monastery of Saint Benedict, Norcia

a priest forever

on the 11th of October 2008

pray for him

The Church now has a new priest. Let us rejoice and be glad!

The Mass was one of great joy as the Archbishop of Spoleto-Noricia, His Excellency Ricardo Fontana, ordained the now Father Benedict to the priesthood.

I regret that I do not have any personal pictures, but that was because I was able to help serve in the Mass. However, the experience was great. There were many priests and seminarians who had come for the ordination. I met several young men from the North American College, one of whom is a seminarian from my own diocese! And all of whom are solid guys. I must say it was really amazing over the past 24 hours as priests, seminarians, and young men and women who were friends of Father Benedict came to Norcia, and in all the liturgies where we used Latin we were all united in prayer and worship even though there were people from several different countries and languages.

It has been a rather amazing experience, and it has been impressive in how many people have been in contact not only with the monastery but with Father Benedict in his studies. There were people from the United States, people who studied in Rome with him at Santa Croce, and students from the theological institute in Gamming, Austria (I probably didn't spell that right), as well as other friends and family.

It's also been great to help out the monks and get to know the newer members of the community.

Well, I need to get ready for Compline, and then help out Brother Sacristan in setting up for Masses tomorrow. The main Mass will be Father Benedict's thanksgiving Mass.

So, please say a prayer of thanksgiving to God for providing another laborer for the harvest ... one who is solid in the Faith and zealous for liturgy.

Deo gratias!

RS

Body and soul

It's amazing how much physical well being can affect the mind and spirit. Or to say it in a simpler way: jet-lag stinks.

All yesterday I was just in a weird mood all day long. It didn't even dawn on me that I had only gotten 3.5 hours of sleep the night before. Even though I did get a lot of rest on my first night here, the second night I went to bed around 9:30 pm and then woke up at 1:00 am and just could not get back to sleep. I laid there for another 2.5 hours trying to get back to sleep and just couldn't. So, I got up and showered and went to Matins (which are at 4:15 am everyday), and was surprisingly awake for Matins (Lots of Latin chanted recto tono that early in the morning usually make for an epic struggle to overcome sleep, LOL).

But then after Prime, the body just began to weigh down the mind. It's probably best I hadn't realized I had only gotten 3.5 hours of sleep since I was helping with some chores around the monastery and even drove one of the monks to the train station (driving in Italy is so much fun!).

But, the good thing about being that tired is that once you do go to bed, the sandman doesn't take too long to visit. It also helped that I got a heater in the room to help stave off the dampness.

So, hopefully jet-lag is about ended.

Other than that, things are going well. The ordination day is tomorrow, so the last minute details will be frantically dealt with.

So, pray for my driving, and pray for Brother Benedict as the final countdown to his ordination begins.

In other news, I have gotten to have a few good liturgical discussions which have clarified some important points for me. These guys know their liturgy (both forms) so it is good to get some more "authoritative" perspective on things.

Pax et Bonum,

RS

Hello from Norcia

I'm here in Norcia.

Internet access is available, but limited.

The weather is decent, but it is a bit damp, so there can sometimes be a chill in the air that I am not used to. But last night I managed to stay warm enough. I was also able to catch up on the lost sleep from flying the redeye to Rome, then getting from the airport to Rome and from Rome to Umbria by train ... all while jet-lagging. And it doesn't help when you only know survival Italian and even that is rusty. But I've just accepted the fact that it is obvious I am American and can't speak Italian, so at least Italians are friendly and happy that I am at least trying to speak their language even if I stink at it. In spite of that, I worked up the courage to ask an Italian lady to help me get the monastery phone number since I forgot to bring it in my flurry of last minute packing. She was helpful and I was able to get to the monastery. LOL.

Norcia is still an amazing place. It almost seems odd to me that in one sense it is so familiar to me, given that Italy is such a different culture from the United States. I guess even though I lived here for about 14 months, it has obviously captured my heart on some level.

It is certainly very different place from the United States. As I walked around town this morning, I realized there are (or more truthfully have been) about 13 different churches in this tiny little town! Even so, there are 6 that are still used (although two of them are the same parish, they just use one in the summer months and one in the winter months)in a town of only about 1000 people.

I should also mention that I attended my first Extraordinary Form Mass in quite awhile. Definitely my first since Summorum Pontificum was released. I was a little lost, but it's nothing that I couldn't get used to once I learn it. Today's conventual Mass which was in the Ordinary Form was also very beautiful since the Mass was in Latin with sung chant propers. Interestingly, I could follow everything but the readings since they were in Italian ... darn vernacular! LOL.

Still adjusting to the time difference. My body is a bit confused. The bigger test will be to see how well I sleep tonight. Usually jet lag lasts a few days which causes me to wake up at about 3:00am wide awake and unable to get back to sleep. Of course I guess that is not too bad since Vigils are at 4:15am. But even monks can be sleepy at that hour. LOL.

We'll see how often I can update. It will all depend on how much work I will be helping with and how many opportunities I'll have to get onto the computer. So until next time: ciao for now.

RS

Saint Joseph of Cupertino

Saint Joseph of Cupertino
Today is the feast day of Saint Joseph of Cupertino. I thought I would share a few pictures from Assisi. Last year at this time I was making pilgrimage to Italy. A year ago tomorrow, I was in Assisi. I found a friar there whom I had met back in 2002. He was gracious enough to "sneak" me into the cell ... or actually prison cell" where Saint Joseph of Cupertino was held during the time the friars thought he might be possessed because sometime he would levitate. So, I thank Fr. Alfeo for allowing me to see the cell.
One reason I had asked him and knew about the cell before was that I was able to see it back during my Rome semester in 1993. At that time it was pretty unkept and sadly looked like it had been used as a storage closet. But last year I figured since it was the day after Saint Joseph of Cupertino's feast day, and since I had a friend who had just joined the Franciscans of the Immaculate who had a great devotion to Saint Joseph of Cupertino, I thought I'd try to get in and say some prayers for him (and take a few photos).

Sorry these are a bit lower in quality.

Part of the "prison" cell where Saint Joseph of Cupertino was held
Where Saint Joseph of Cupertino prayed (same room as the picture above)
Habit of Saint Joseph of Cupertino above the altar where he said Mass while imprisoned
(in a separate room right behind me when I took the first two pictures)
Chapel dedicated to Saint Joseph of Cupertino
(his cell is on the other side of the painting)
Life of Saint Joseph of Cupertino on EWTN

Thanks again to Father Alfeo.

RS

Sant'Eutizio Monastery and Church

Today, May 23rd, is the Feast of Saint's Eutizio, Spes, and Fiorenzo. I affectionately refer to these three as the Grandfathers of Western Monasticism since they would have had an influence on Saint Benedict, the Father of Western Monasticism, and Saint Scholastica. You can read about Sant'Eutizio, San Spes, and San Fiorenzo in my post from last year, here:

Feast of Saint Eutizio, Saint Fiorenzo, and Saint Spes

As I noted at the end of that post, I was disappointed that I did not have any pictures of my own from the monastery of Sant'Eutizio. Thankfully, that has changed. Last year, when I went to Norcia, Father Clement (who is now the pastor at Sant'Eutizio, which is now a parish) was kind enough to drive me there. It was a beautiful day and thankfully the church was open.

As a small historical note, the monastery of Sant'Eutizio was a rather important monastery back in the Middle Ages. It was related to the Monastery in Norcia, but apparently, Sant'Eutizio also had a lot of power back then. From what I was told, it controlled monasteries all the way to the western coast of Italy. Eventually it was abandoned when Napoleon came through Italy and kicked all the religious out of their monasteries and religious houses. This is why so many churches and monasteries in Italy are controlled or owned by the state.

Fortunately the diocese, and not the state, actually owns this land. The monastery has been used as a retreat center and the church is now a parish for the surrounding area. However, last year, the archbishop appropriately assigned one of the monks of Norcia as the pastor of the parish there.

I do love the place. A great memory was the first time I went to Norcia in 2000, Fr. Cassian, Fr. (then Br.) Clement, and I went to Sant'Eutizio and chanted the traditional Benedictine Vepsers in the choir in the church. It was a rather amazing experience.

Now back to last year's trip. First we had to get to Sant'Eutizio from Norcia. The drive there is about 15 minutes of amazing scenery around Norcia. You end up going over a pass "behind" Norcia and then into a valley area. There are about three or four little towns on the way to Sant'Eutizio. I'm always amazed at how some of the towns are just stuck on the side of a hill or mountain. Here's an example. I believe this is the small town of Piedivalle.

Eventually we leave the main road in the valley and head up to the monastery. Just above the monastery, again stuck to the side of the mountain, is Preci. I'm not sure if this is Preci proper, or just a small "upper part" of it. This is the view of it from the monastery.


Turning around we see the entrance to the monastery.


Which opens into the inner courtyard with the church to the right.


Inside the church, you can see an amazingly beautiful design where the high altar and choir are placed above the main level of the church.


Here we see the main altar, the crucifix and two busts of Sant'Eutizio and San Spes.


Going behind the altar we come into the choir and on the backside of the high altar area we see the reliquary.


The signs tells us (one in Italian and one in English) "Here rests the bodies of Sant'Eutizio and San Spes, Abbots, whose acts were written about by Pope Saint Gregory [the Great]."


Here's the choir I mentioned above. It's all woodwork, and although it's a bit hard to tell, there are actually two levels of choir stalls there.


Going outside we can see the bell tower built into the cliffside.


Turning to the right, we are looking at the facade of the church with a beautiful Romanesque rose window.


Just to get your bearings, here's the facade of the church and you can see the entrance to the monastery which we came through to the right.


Turning around and going up the side of the hill, we come to the cave where Sant'Eutizio lived.


And finally, after we leave and drive back towards Norcia, we come up over the pass and are able to look out upon Norcia itself.


So, I hope you enjoyed this little virtual tour of Sant'Eutizio and hope you feel a bit closer to them. They may be unknown, but in God's Providence, they have actually had a huge influence upon religious life in the West. If you don't know much about them, please read last year's post.

"Saint Spes and Saint Eutizio with Christ"

Saint Fiorenzo of Preci

I'm hoping that my friends at Norcia can help me learn more about these Saints.

RS

Saint Lucy pic

Just thought I would share a picture I took of a painting above one of the side altars at the Basilica di San Benedetto in Norcia (Nursia), Italy.

Saint Lucy surrounded by Our Lady with Christ Child, Saint Charles Borromeo(?) and another Saint I'm not sure of

I took this picture back in 2001 with a [gasp] film camera.

You can read about her life at the Catholic Encyclopedia entry on Saint Lucy.

RS

Saint Nicholas

How cool is this. Saint Nicholas was at a friends birthday party last week. Unfortunately I missed him, but my friend's wife got a picture:


Of course I've liked Saint Nicholas since I was a cub, but as I've learned more about him, I've come to appreciate him for who he actually was. I also feel a bit closer to him, having passed through his town of Bari when I was on my way to Greece.

I particularly love one story I heard about Saint Nicholas (could you imagine of something like this happened today?!?!?):

Bishop Nicholas was a holy man, an articulate teacher, and a staunch defender of orthodoxy against Arianism. Having survived his imprisonment, he lived to see the triumph of the true faith at the Council of Nicaea, where he was an active participant. There, according to later histories, he denounced Arius forcefully. Indeed, some sources (though not entirely reliable) claim that St. Nicholas punched Arius in the nose and brought forth a “profusion of blood.”

-source

He is also a good Saint to pray to for ecuminism with the East as he is venerated by the Orthodox as well.

More on Saint Nicholas available here:
Catholic Encyclopedia: Saint Nicholas of Myra
and
EWTN: Saint Nicholas

RS

Virtual basilica

I once bought the DVD version of UT2004 to learn how to make virtual environments to design churches and monasteries. However, lack of intuitiveness in the editor, my not willing to sit down and learn it, and intrest in the game itself caused me to quickly abandon that.

How cool is this? These guys took a video game engine and made a virtual copy of the Basilica of Saint Francis in Assisi.



I did notice that they are missing all the choir stalls that go along the entire back wall of the apse. Still, the project is pretty impressive. I noticed that since they labelled it "1.0" it looks like they plan on refining it in the future. I'd love to get my paws on this.

For comparison, here's the only picture I could squeeze off.


You can purchase their program which gives you the ability to move wherever you want. I couldn't get the demo to work since I don't have the right operating system.

More info here:

Institute of Digital Theology

RS

Happy Transitus of Saint Francis

Today, October 3rd, is the celebration of the Transitus of Saint Francis. It may seem odd that we celebrate his feast day on October 4th, but this is because Saint Francis died after sundown on October 3rd, which in medieval times was the beginning of the next day. (The same logic applies to how we have vigils for Solemnities and Sundays)

Here's some pictures from my recent trip to Assisi a few weeks ago.

(As always, you can click on the pictures to get a better view)
Saint Francis died in the valley below Assisi, just outside the little chapel of Santa Maria degli Angeli (Our Lady of the Angels). Actually, now, there is a huge basilica built around the chapel.

This picture couldn't have been planned, right when I got off the bus and was taking this picture, a Franciscan Friar was walking in the perfect place.
The original chapel of Santa Maria degli Angeli is inside the basilica under the dome.


Even the inside of the chapel has a rugged beauty to it.


Saint Francis himself said "Our Lady and the Angels frequent this place." Hence the message on the floor at the entrance of the little chapel.

"HIC LOCUS SANCTUS EST" ("THIS PLACE IS HOLY").
Just behind the chapel and to the right is the little infirmary area where Saint Francis actually died. There is now a chapel inside the infirmary at the place where Saint Francis died.

"Qui mori S. Francesco 3 Ottobre 1226"
("Here Saint Francis died October 3rd, 1226")
On the outside of the infirmary is a beautiful painting of the death of Saint Francis called "The Transitus" by Domenico Bruschi.


I know the post is almost exactly the same as last year's, but I wanted to share some of the pictures I just took over there. I think they came out rather well given the lack of lighting. So, hope you enjoy them.

Sancte Francisce, ora pro nobis.

RS

Catching up.

Sorry for not posting much.

First I wanted to say that I visited many Saints' relics or tombs and prayed for all my family and friends (which includes the readers of this blog). I also am having a Mass offered at the tomb of Saint Francis for all my family and friends.

I am not sure if this is a comprehensive list, but it's as many as I can think of that I visited and prayed at (or as near as possible):
Relics of the Passion (true Cross, nail of the Passion, part of the INRI sign above Christ's head)
Saint Peter
Saint Paul
Saint Francis of Assisi
Saint Clare of Assisi
San Rufino of Assisi
Saint Vittorino of Assisi
Sant'Eutizio
San Spes
(finger of) Saint Thomas the Apostle
Pope Saint Pius V
Saint Jerome
Pope Saint Gregory the Great
Pope Saint Leo the Great
Saint Prisca
Saint Ignatius of Loyola
Saint Francis Xavier
Saint Agnes
Saint Catherine of Siena
Blessed Innocent XI
Pope Saint Boniface IV
Pope Saint Leo IX
Pope Saint Pius X
Saint John Chrysostom
Saint Gregory of Nazianzen
Blessed John XXIII
Saint Josaphat
Pope Saint Clement I
San Giovanni da Triora
Saint John and Saint Paul (mentioned in the Roman Canon)
Saint Saturninus
Saint Paul of the Cross
the Martyrs of Scillium
Saint Alesseo (Alexis)
San Carlo da Sezze
Saint Alexander, martyr (I don't know which one, whoever is buried under the altar at Sant'Anselmo),
and I also prayed at the prison where Saint Joseph of Cupertino was held when they thought he was possessed.
I also probably was near many other Saints whom I might not have even known were in proximity of me at various places.

Unfortunately, blogging will probably be light for a while for two reasons:

1) I realized in Rome how much time I waste on the internet, so I am trying to avoid it more.

but more importantly:
2) Upon getting home, several real life situations have come crashing in upon me, so I will need to get those things straightened out first. So I ask for your prayers on those.

RS

Ciao da Texas (Howdy from Texas)

Well, I made it back. The pilgrimage was great! Just a quick post, since I have to hit the ground running and get things ready for the Sunday liturgy at the parish.

Here's a video of the song that basically became my theme song over there. I saw it a few times on the TV in the hotel, I even heard it on the radio on the bus to Norcia, and the day we left, it was on at the cappucino bar at the airport. So, it's a simple little goofy song, but one that gets stuck in your head. It's apparently popular over there too.

Actually the video can sort of symbolize travelling to Italy. Things may seem really strange and different over there, and you can try to run away from the culture, but once you just accept that they do things differently and adapt to their way of doing things, you'll have a lot more fun.

Old Man River's "La"



RS