Meet the Pope at the Vatican City
Excerpt from the book On a Tall Budget and Short Attention Span from the Teresa the Traveler Series.
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On our way back to the hotel, I invited him to visit to the Vatican with me and his response completely took me by surprise. This Italian Catholic, one time altar boy, asked’ “What is the Vatican”. I replied, “Are you serious”?
Apparently he was. I assured him the Vatican was a place he would want to see during his stay in Rome and he agreed to meet me at my hotel the following morning. Vatican City Built over what is believed to be the tomb of St Peter, St. Peter’s basilica is the largest Catholic Church in the world. How ironic that the church Peter built is now built on him. Simon of Galilee was a fisherman who became one of Jesus’ closest apostles. One day Jesus said to him “You are Peter (which means rock), and on this rock I will build my church”. Following Jesus ascension into heaven, Peter became the first pope. Nero, the Emperor of Rome, crucified Peter upside down and Peter became a martyr. During its early days, when Christianity was considered a cult, Christians were often persecuted. In fact, after the great fire of Rome in 64AD, Emperor Nero covered Christians with wax and burned them to illuminate his garden parties. Others were fed to the lions at the Roman Coliseum to entertain the crowds. All of this changed in 306 AD when Constantine, whose mother was Christian, became Emperor. While preparing himself for a battle he saw a vision of the cross with the first two letters of Christ’s name. He had the letters emblazoned on his soldiers’ shields and they won the battle. Thanks to this historical event, attitudes towards Christianity changed almost overnight. The following year, in 313 AD, Constantine ordered the construction of a giant church on the exact site where St. Peter was martyred. St. Peter’s Basilica remains the largest Catholic Church in the world. It is located in the middle of Vatican City – the smallest country in the world, the center of Catholicism and home to the Pope. It was noon on a Wednesday when John and I arrived at the Vatican. Bad move! This is the one day of the week when the Pope gives a public address then holds a “meet and greet”. What a zoo! Catholics from all over the world descended on the tiny country to watch the sermon and shake hands with the Pope. The sermon was over by the time we arrived but the courtyard was full of monks, nuns, catholic school kids and an assortment of newlyweds hoping for a blessing. Rather than fight the crowds in the courtyard, John and I bought tickets for the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel. As we walked through the Vatican Museum, which contains one of the largest collections of biblical artwork in the world, it was a challenge not to constantly roll my eyes at John. He marched down the halls beaming with pride and claiming each masterpiece to be a part of his proud heritage. He took hundreds of pictures which he would no doubt accidentally delete on his way home. I made a mental note to burn my pictures onto a CD and give it to him so he would at least have something to remember his trip by. As we wandered through the collection of ancient paintings and sculptures, one thing struck me as rather odd. Why did so many of the male sculptures have a fig leaf over their genitalia? I later learned that some of the more chaste Popes ordered all their penises to be covered by fig leaves just like Adam and Eve. According to the Bible, after eating fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, they covered their nakedness. I would be curious to know if their private parts were lopped off and stored in the basement or just merely covered up. The most impressive part of the tour was no doubt the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Commissioned by Pope Sixtus IV after whom it is named, the ceiling, which is covered with a series of frescos depicting scenes from the Book of Genesis, was painted by Michelangelo between 1508 and 1512. The most famous fresco, located in the center of the ceiling, is called the Creation of Adam. It depicts God touching his finger to Adam’s finger and imparting the spark of life. A team of 15th century masters including Botticelli and Perugino painted the walls of the chapel with scenes depicting much of the doctrine of the Catholic Church while a set of large tapestries created by Raphael completes the décor. The Sistine Chapel plays a key role in the Catholic faith as it is where the Papal Conclaves are held. When a Pope passes on, it is the duty of the College of Cardinals to elect a Bishop of Rome who then becomes the next Pope. Ballots are distributed amongst the Cardinals and burned after the vote is counted by a team of scrutineers. Once a two thirds majority is reached, the Pope elect is asked if he accepts the position and, if he does, he often adopts a new papal name. For instance, the current Pope Benedict XVI’s birth name is Joseph Alois Ratzinger. People assembled in St. Peter’s Square await the result which is announced via a smoke signal. If the smoke is dark that means the vote, did not produce a Pope and the Cardinals must go into another round of voting. If the smoke is white, that means a new Pope has been chosen and it is time to rejoice. It was night time when we finished touring the Vatican so we took a train back to my hotel and went our separate ways as John had to fly back home the following day. |
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For tips on visiting Europe CLICK HERE
For general travel tips on what to pack and how to plan ahead CLICK HERE
For tips on travelling on a budget CLICK HERE
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Where I Stayed...
Hotel Lazzari Via Castelfidardo, 31 Rome, Italy Tel: +39 – 064464638 Fax:+39 – 064941378 |
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