Today, we began the morning with a bus trip to the Catacombs, where the early Christians buried their dead, occasionally found sanctuary from Roman persecution, and preserved the faith. There are several catacombs in close proximity to Rome. The one we visited has a total of 12 miles of caves, crypts and narrow passageways. We celebrated communion together and reflected … [more]
Rome
Rome
Today we focused on the titanic clash of nation-states and religious identities. We began the morning at the Spanish Steps and traveled on to the Pantheon, originally a temple built for all the Roman gods but now a beautiful Christian church honoring Mary and the Christian martyrs. … [more]
Vatican City and St. Peter’s
Today was exhilarating, exhausting and mind-numbing. We awakened at 4:30 a.m., had our suitcases outside by 5 a.m., and headed to the airport at 5:30 a.m. My kind of day! The plane ride to Rome was nearly three hours. We enjoyed a wonderful Italian lunch and then headed to Vatican City. What a remarkable and enduring place. After visiting Athens … [more]