Two new saints

So, I made a game-time decision this morning.  I decided at 8:30 to head towards (I won't say "to" because...you'll see why) the Vatican.  Today was the Canonization Mass for two Popes: John XXIII who is most famous for opening the Second Vatican Council and John Paul II who is most famous for being himself.

For the past week, the city has been nuts - more people than normal, tour buses all over the place, and tour groups - all with matching scarves and a leader holding an umbrella up in the air. 

I was at St. John Lateran on Saturday, and I've never seen it this crowded.

St. John Lateran, the Cathedral of the Bishop of Rome (aka the Pope) getting into the spirit.

So, probably against my better judgment and prudence, I decided to head across town to see what I could see.  Of course, the public transportation was a zoo because so many streets were closed.  And for security reasons, the nearest subway stop was closed.  I was able to get to the center of the city, and then walk towards the Vatican.  Actually, it wasn't all that bad

I knew getting into St. Peter's Square was out of the question.  On Saturday, people had started camping out around the Vatican.  (Unfortunately, Rome had a thunderstorm and downpour yesterday evening.) And on the bus, a woman told me that the Square opened at 5:00am, and by 7:00am it and Via della Concilizatione (the street that goes into the Square) were totally full.

Bro. Sean was in the Square Saturday and snapped this picture.

The Square and Via della Conciliazione at 6am (from the Vatican News).

My only hope was to find a spot with a big screen tv.  After scoping out some options and wrangling through the crowd, I found just what I was looking for.  I was on Ponte degli Angeli, a bridge over the Tevere River, and off in the distance there was a jumbo screen.  Not the most ideal of situations, but also not all that bad.  I plopped myself next to some Polish nuns - seemed appropriate for the day.

Making my way through the crowd.

On the Ponte degli Angeli (with Castel Sant'Angelo in the distance)

Believe it or not, the view was better than it looks.

And this view was nice.

It was almost like I was in the Square (sort of).

One thing that impresses me at these big Vatican ordeals is the sound system.  We had a great audio feed where we were.  You could hear the Pope and the choir just fine.  So, let's get ready to make some saints.  (The pictures are a little small, but you'll think that you were there!)

Enter Benedict.

It rained for about 10 minutes.

Enter the Bishops

Enter Francis.

Seeing double - Francis and Benedict together.

The canonization ritual is pretty simple. After singing the Litany of the Saints and the Veni Sancti Spiritus, the head of the Congregation of Saints asks the Pope to inscribe the names of the Beatified into the Book of the Saints.  The Pope says yes, he'll do it.  And that's that!  (There's a little more pomp involved, but that's pretty much it.)  Then relics are brought forth.  Some blood of JPII was carried by a woman from Costa Rica who was cured through the pontiff's intercession.

The head of the Congregation of Saints presents the Beatified to the Pope.

The Pope accepts.

Relics are brought forward.

Then, the mass continues as normal with the Gloria.  In his homily, Francis talked about the two Popes.  He called John XXIII as the "guide who was guided" referring to his docility to the Holy Spirit in calling Vatican II.  He also talked about John Paul II's interest in the family, and recommended that we entrust families to his intercession.  All in all, the homily was under 10 minutes.  I think there's a lesson there for priests!  I left after the homily so that I could get home for lunch.  But, don't worry mom, I went to mass last night.

The homily.

Several news agencies are calling this a historic day.  Evidently, two former Popes haven't been canonized together since the Middle Ages.  And to have two living Popes celebrate the mass, well, never happens.  It was also special since I saw John Paul II when I was in Rome several years ago with my mom.  So, even with the craziness of the city, it was a good morning.  And, as always, it was good to carry all of you with me in spirit!

St. John XXIII and St. John Paul II, pray for us!

Ciao!

Lily of the Mohawk

Some of my favorite childhood memories are the trips my family took to Cross Lake in Minnesota to go fishing.  There were meals together, games of shuffleboard, and of course a lot of fishing.  It was also during these trips to an area steeped in the culture and traditions of the First Nations of North America that I first met Kateri Tekakwitha, a 17^th century member of the Mohawk tribe and convert to Christianity. For some reason, I remembered hearing about her and seeing her statue even though I was pretty young at the time.  During one of those trips, I received a prayer card with her picture on it, and it remained in my night stand for many years. I would again encounter Kateri during family vacations in northern Michigan and when I travelled to the Rose Bud Reservation as part of a UD service program.  

Statue of Kateri Tekakwitha (from the web)

This weekend, Kateri once again came into my life…and the lives of many other people around the world.  This morning in St. Peter’s Square Pope Benedict XVI declared her a saint along with six others (including Mother Marianne Cope who worked with the leper community in Hawaii).  The Pope declared them "to be saints and that they are to be venerated as such by the whole Church.”  

The tapestry of St. Kateri that was hung in St. Peter's Square (from the web).

Kateri was born in 1656 to an Algonquin Christian mother and a Mohawk chief near Albany, NY.  When she was four years old, her parents and brother died of smallpox, and Kateri was left scarred from the smallpox lesions she had suffered.  At the age of 20, and against the wishes of her uncle, she was baptized by Jesuit missionaries, and she refused to be married.  As a result, she was ostracized by her family and moved near Montreal and joined a community of Christian Natives.  Here, she was described as having strong Christian fervor and devotion.  She died at the early age of 24, and from then has been hailed as a saint by the Jesuits and many other people.  Today, that conviction is officially recognized by the Church.

While I did not attend the Canonization Mass on Sunday, I did go to a Vigil service held the night before at the Basilica of Saint John Lateran.  

At the Vigil with Bro. Les, Bro. Javier, and Fr. Pachi.

It was quite a moving experience for me.  First, there is the “national” connection.  She lived in the present day U.S. and Canada (around Albany, NY and Montreal) and so we sort of claim her as our own – the Basilica was filled with many Canadians and Americans.  I also must say that it was special to celebrate with Fr. Louis, a Canadian Marianist who lives with us in Rome.   

With Fr. Louis.

Second, as I wrote above, I seem to have some sort of connection with Kateri – she just keeps “popping up” in different points of my life.  It's somewhat astonishing to think that I would again encounter this saint in Rome whom I first met as a child.

Furthermore, the vigil began with a traditional “Smudging Ceremony” where sage, sweet grass, cedar, and tobacco are burned like an incense that is then brushed over the people with a feather.  For me, it was quite an expression of an inculturated Church: women in traditional indigenous clothing smudging the diverse congregation in a Roman Basilica with a Cardinal looking on!  

Cardinal Ouellet with an image of Kateri.

The processional.

Finally, the vigil began with a video that chronicled Kateri’s life and the story of the miracle attributed to her.  A few years ago, a boy named Jake from Seattle contracted a flesh-eating virus and was given little hope of survival.  A network of supporters began praying to Kateri, and after a religious Sister (who took the name of Kateri when she entered her order) prayed over Jake with a relic of Kateri, the disease stopped without explanation.  Jake and his family were at the vigil.  It was striking that the young saint who was left with scars on her face would intercede for a young person whose cured disease also left some scars on his face.

A candid picture with Jake.  (There were so many people wanting to meet him, I just found my way behind and Fr. Louis snapped this picture.) 

Evidently, when Jake had been asked earlier about his trip to Rome, he simply said, “It’s pretty cool.”  I will echo his sentiments and say that to be with him and the many other pilgrims who came to celebrate St. Kateri was “pretty cool.”  

St. Kateri, pray for us!

Ciao!

P.S. Now, everyone needs to start praying fervently for the canonization of Fr. Chaminade so that the whole Marianist Family can have this much fun, too!!!!

And just one more picture...

Fr. Louis and I with Cardinal Collins of Toronto.