Big, colorful, historical, photographic, artistic, delicious, religious blur.
We went to The Vatican today. Honestly if you asked me a year ago if I ever thought I would set foot in the Vatican I would've said no. Seeing it in person was liberating, but frightening at some points. Here's why:
We climbed - and I do mean literally climbed - to the cupola of St. Peter's Basilica this morning. I think even Richard Simmons on his best day would be a little salty. But I quickly forgot about the physically taxing task once I reached the top and my glisten thankfully abandoned me (ladies, we never let them see us sweat, we glisten).
The view was astonishing.
I once told a friend that my faith in God strengthens whenever I get the chance to travel. When I reached the top and saw all of Rome I remembered why. I believe that humanity (not mankind, I read the handbook, ha!) has unparalleled potential. We've made wonders that, in my opinion, would not have been possible without God. Our world is organized chaos with intricacies that a higher power brought to life.
After the cupola I had the chance to tour the Vatican. At one point in time I saw a saint in every direction that I turned. This was the frightening part. Yesterday I witnessed my first incorruptible at San Crisogono Trestavere. Blessed Anna Maria Taigi is entombed in a chapel at San Crisogono. I didn't expect to see her nor did I think she was real. Jeff had to convince me otherwise. She looked like a doll. When I allowed myself to digest the scene before me I said a prayer for her and continued the tour.
I was christened Lutheran. As such, the thought of viewing a saint in my lifetime has never crossed my mind. When I saw Pius IX and Innocent III I wasn't sure how to react. I said prayers for them as well, but the fear didn't leave me until I attended mass.
Again, something I would have never expected to do in my lifetime was attend a Catholic mass delivered in rapid Italian at the Vatican. Regardless, it was a beautiful experience that allotted me time to reflect and appreciate my surroundings. The gold ceilings, light and statues were gorgeous. I couldn't believe this building had been around for half a century (I still plan to find that altar stone).
Being Lutheran, my usual custom at communion is to cross my arms and receive a blessing instead of receiving the body of Christ. I asked Dr. Bednarz if this would be okay. She said it shouldn't be a problem. But, lucky me, the cardinal didn't recognize my actions and handed me the Eucharist. I thanked him and turned to return to my seat. Before I had the chance to open my mouth the Christ Cop (I don't know the job title for Vatican security, work with me) stopped me in my tracks, yelled at me in Italian and gave a finger wag that would put Uncle Sam to shame. No passing go, no collecting €200. Stunned, I swallowed - in hindsight that kinda hurt, but at the time I wasn't concerned.
Dr. Bednarz later told me the Vatican has had issues in the past with zealots from around the world stealing the Eucharist to perform "magic" (cough VOODOO cough), so that would explain why he spazzed. I joked that I would have been thrown in jail. But guess what? Fun fact: The Vatican actually has a jail! The Swiss guards detain over 480 visitors annually for petty crimes like pickpocketing. They have a standing agreement with the Italian government not to imprison detainees as long as they're not Vatican residents, so they can't actually try or incarcerate visitors.
In theory, I could've just pulled a Marion Jones and ran a 1000M dash out of St. Peter's Square. *Shrug* Oh well. You learn something new everyday.
I enjoyed classes today and tried a vending machine chocolate cappuccino for the first time during the break. Fun Fact #2 - when fresh, it tastes horrible. But if you add water right after you buy it, it tastes like hot chocolate! Which also made my taste buds sing.
I think I covered everything. So take a look at some photos. Ciao.
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