Apostles old and new

Today, my long-awaited visit to the Basilica of St. John Lateran. (Seven years ago, I happened upon this church while looking for a restroom in the streets of Rome!) Before the relics of St. Peter and St. Paul I asked for the reconciliation between the Churches that has so long evaded us. I thought also about how Peter has become like a rag doll caught in an ecclesial tug-of-war—everybody wants a piece of him to legitimize power. But he is not the only victim of this un-Christian struggle. Rome wants Peter, Constantinople wants Andrew, India wants Thomas… Will the whole Church ever be able to see themselves as heirs to “the faith that comes to us from the Apostles”?

After that, the Church of San Clemente with its gorgeous apse mosaic and underground frescoes with so many stories. At the tomb of St. Cyril I wondered what it was like for St. Methodius to have lost his brother and missionary partner there. Did they know that they were saints? I prayed for my friends at Ss. Cyril and Methodius in Denver, for perseverance in their daunting task of bridging East and West. There were moments when the tension could’ve torn one in half.

Lunch was at a small restaurant across the street from San Clemente. My first real dining out experience on this trip, and though the food was very good the 30-euro bill stung. (I’d forgotten to ask for the price of the daily special, silly me.)

This evening I am off to Vespers and dinner with the Apostles of the Interior Life, a Catholic religious community to whom I owe much of my spiritual formation. Many old friends there. You can find pictures here.