Skip to main content

Pathways to the Divine...All in one day

 




It started out like any typical day of a summer program but, in the end, Tuesday July 4 might be recorded as one of the most memorable days of this course for me. It turned out to be a day in which I would have the opportunity to be immersed in an intentional way in the three transcendental pathways of encounter with God. The way of “Truth” was represented by our lectures at the Centro Pro Unione and the visits to the Pontifical Biblical Institute and Gregorian University. Next, the way of “Beauty” was revealed in the visits made to churches, and in particular the paintings by Caravaggio of the ‘Call of Matthew’ in the church of San Luigi dei Francesi, and ‘The Pilgrim Madonna’ in the church of Sant’Agostino. The final part of this day provided an experience of the path of ‘Goodness,’ exemplified by the work and worship of the Sant’Egidio community of Rome. Devoted to the care of the persons on the periphery of society, the work of this community encompasses the two feet of social justice – direct charity to the poor as well as advocacy on behalf of the poor. I was impressed by the scope of their work – peace negotiation, speaking as a voice for the voiceless, and providing a sense of dignity to those who are neglected and rejected by society. I admired their international outreach, in particular their work in difficult and dangerous parts of the world. Above all, their mission is sustained by a rich liturgical life, in particular a commitment to daily prayer in common, that is also admirable. This organization models what could be described as a “living ecumenism” and it is a sign of hope.

 Therefore, although the day began very simply, it became in the end a remarkable day to reflect on the Living God as revealed in truth, beauty and goodness.

Carla Thomas

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Catacombs of Domitilla

The story of Christianity is awe-inspiring.  This is true whether you are a believer or not.  Within 50 years of the physical death of Christ, 12 believers had directly and indirectly converted thousands to the new faith.  Within 300 years, they had converted an empire. This tour begins at the walls of Rome within sight of St. John Lateran where we get our ride to the countryside of Rome.  Making our way outside the walls, the city changes to country quickly.  The Roman countryside is quite beautiful.  The hills begin to roll and the gated villas extend to farms of vegetables, rose hips, or barley.  The air cleaner and the sound clearer. Flavia Domitilla was the granddaughter of the emperor Vespasian.  As daughter of Domitilla "the Younger", Flavia was also the niece of the emperors Titus and Domitian.  These catacombs were founded on her property in about the year 120 A.D.  Flavia and her husband, Flavius Clemens, were likely ...

The Villa Borghese: Tainted Beauty

In the 17 th  century it was common for the pope to place a nephew in a key administrative role, for self-preservation.  Thus in 1605, at the age of 28, Scipione Borghese was made cardinal and papal secretary, head of the Roman Curia, by his uncle Pope Paul V, making Scipione the second most powerful person in the country.  Cardinal Scipione purchased a property in the north of Rome and began acquiring ancient Roman and contemporary Italian art.  The villa and its beautiful grounds were never a residence, only ever a gallery and conservatory. Cardinal Scipione became the patron of Gian Lorenzo Bernini, providing Bernini with the opportunity to cement his legacy as perhaps the best sculptor to have ever lived.  Though several pieces of furniture and adornment were sold off by the Borghese family in the 19 th  century to address fiscal problems, those have been replaced with copies, and the most famous and significant pieces of the original collec...

A Trini - Canadian walks into a Mosque, a Synagogue and Several Churches

       During my last week in Rome, I had the honour of entering both a synagogue and a mosque for the first time in my life. After visiting what seemed like a million churches in Rome and, (as a Roman Catholic), loving every one of them, it was a nice way to end off the interreligious dialogue component of our course.     The synagogue is located in the old Jewish ghetto of Rome. It is in this area that Jews were forced to live and had many restrictions put upon them in the past. Our visit included the museum under the synagogue where we saw a copy of the declaration that announced forming the State of Israel. The Great Synagogue of Rome A picture I took of the beautiful square dome inside the Synagogue Declaration of the State of Israel           Our friend and classmate Oded, who was born and grew up in Tel Aviv, Israel, drew my attention to an extraordinary black and white photo of crowds of Jews in Rome celebrating this d...