Day 21: You are Peter …. and on this rock

A very early start to perhaps the most amazing day of pilgrimage yet. The wake-up call was 5am for a quick breakfast and onto the bus, destination Vatican City. We arrived to find the dome of St Peters shrouded in mist in the dawn light. It was at once eerie and quite peaceful. A few cars and taxis drove by, but beyond that our little group of Aussie pilgrims had St Peter’s Square to ourselves. A quick photo opportunity and then through security and into the basilica via the side entrance. The implications of the early morning arrival were about to become clear.

Entering the basilica was a goosebumps moment, my skin felt cold, not only because of the cold morning air but because of the immensity of the space. We had seen amazing things on this pilgrimage but nothing could prepare me for the sheer scale of St Peter's basilica. What a privilege… we were there on our own. The only others we saw were a few priests each celebrating Mass at an altar around the basilica and a group of cardinals processing behind each other who disappeared through a doorway to be rediscovered later. The floor of the basilica was ours to wander. We stood at the foot of the baldacino designed by Bernini that marks the spot of St Peter's grave and houses the high altar. It towers in bronze skyward towards the Michelangelo designed dome of the basilica. Beyond it, the chair of Peter adorns the back altar with a glowing mosaic Holy Spirit. And all I can here is the silence of the centuries, muffled footsteps and an overarching sense of the presence of the divine. We were given 20 minutes to explore but rather than head off on a mission I strolled, feasting on the artworks and the symbolism in this majestic space.

The tomb of John Paul II was evident in a side chapel near the entrance and then I saw the piece of art I had been longing to see. Pieta by Michelangelo: the agony of a woman embracing her dead son. Sculptured in marble it looks so warm and even soft with the folds of Mary falling gently towards the floor in stark contrast to the lifeless body of Jesus. Perhaps it was because the piece looked somehow smaller and more delicate than I had imagined, but as I stood before It I was overcome with a profound sense of grief and tears began to run down my cheeks. In a silent St Peter’s, on my own, in front of Pieta. As I walked back along the nave, the rays of dawn were streaming in through the windows above the entrance to the basilica casting patterns in the air and on the floor: rays of divine light.

We were called to the doorway of the disappearing bishops and processed across the floor of the basilica in the traditional two lines, following Eminence to the crypt level of the basilica to celebrate Eucharist in the Hungarian chapel. On the way we found the cardinals that had disappeared earlier, celebrating together at the chapel closest to the tomb of St Peter. And so, we celebrated Eucharist together and then returned to the floor level of St Peter’s to pause at the tomb of Saint Peter for prayer and a photo opportunity.

As the people were gathering for the audience and we had specific seats to occupy we made our way out to the general audience area. We walked via the main nave and saw the markings of the world’s biggest cathedrals marked in the floor, comparing their size to the basilica. The good news that Eminence was keen to point out to us is that St Mary’s Cathedral makes it on at almost 2/3 the length of the basilica. That done, we walked out the main doors of the basilica and could hardly believe what we were seeing, standing on the porch overlooking St Peter’s Square.  We were then escorted to our seats in the front section right near where the Pope would sit. We were less than 10 metres from the action. What was even more exciting was that Dan and Sue, Sam and Chris our tour director were actually going to meet the Pope, along with Eminence. They were seated in front of the barricade just in front of us. The sun was hot while we waited and then the Pope mobile arrived and he did laps of the square before driving up the stairs in front of us and assuming his seat on the presidential chair under the large cover. He looked frail and thinner than I had thought that he was. The ceremony consisted of a scripture reading from Acts concerning the witness of Stephen before his stoning. This was read by Cardinals in several different languages including English. At the conclusion of the reading each Cardinal then introduced the various groups that were present at the audience that day, according to their language. As each group was introduced there were cheers and choruses of songs. We were very excited when we were introduced as teachers from the Archdiocese of Sydney Catholic Schools accompanied by his Eminence Cardinal Pell. When each language had had their turn the dignitaries were presented to the Pope. It was very special to see each of our fellow pilgrims meet the Pope and as the photos attest, each person was very touched by the experience. I think it will take at least 'til his ordination to wipe the smile off Sam’s face, and that is just how it should be. As the ceremony was finishing we were ushered out to meet up with our superstars and to be sent off to grab a very quick lunch before meeting up again for our back of house tour of the Vatican Gardens.

Back in the gate past our favourite Swiss guards and this time onto minibuses not unlike the backlot buses in Universal Studios  to tour the gardens. The gardens occupy approximately one third of the Vatican state. They are green and fresh and beautifully kept and provide a place for meditation and prayer for the Pope and papal staff. They are certainly impressive. The little buses we travelled around in had headsets that plugged into a recorded soundtrack… it really felt like we were on the train in Universal studios seeing the sights.

After a spot of shopping time at the religious icon stores it was time for the final treat of the day: a tour of the necropolis or Scavi under the St Peter’s Basilica.What a fabulous tour. I knew that St Peter's had a crypt, as I had seen it this morning but I did not realise that the entire building was built on a city of the dead - a pagan city at that. St Peter had been killed in a circus that had existed where St Peter’s is now. He had been buried there in a simple tomb and later, even though Christianity was not the legal religion, a trophy monument, a small pagan looking temple, had been built over his grave. All around the area were huge mausoleums that contained pagan tombs. When Constantine went to build the first St Peter’s in the 4^th century, he had the roof of each mausoleum smashed and then the buildings were filled in with soil and in that way the foundations could be laid for the new church. Of course the original tomb of Peter was boxed into a marble case but people forgot exactly where it was. Excavations and records indicate where it is including a graffiti wall which can still be seen. So, what is amazing and of course is no accident is that where the baldacino is located  is immediately above the tomb of St Peter. Literally upon this rock I will build my church. The other thing that was amazing is how well the frescoes in the necropolis were preserved, apparently because the soil that they filled the mausoleums assisted with the preservation. It was an incredible experience, seeing the artwork seeing the tombstones of the ancients and realizing the enormity of the story of humanity. And to think only 200 people tour the necropolis each day - another special moment.

It had been a huge day but we still had one stop, to see the Caravaggio painting of St Paul’s conversion on the road to Damascus. We stopped briefly at the Place di Popularire to enter the church where this painting is found. It was the same painting we had seen on the DVD at Leichhardt the night before we came away. It is true Caravaggio style, perhaps not as big as I had imagined it, but amazing use of luminescence. Glad to have seen it.

Our day continued as we met up with my former colleague Enid for pizza and gelato at the Fontanne di Trevi. What a hoot of a night we had and the Trevi was ssoooooo crowded. And so I came to the end of an amazing overwhelming day, a day when words are not enough to describe the beauty, the grandeur and the connection to the story of God’s people for 2000 years. I am a member of that church, called by baptism to be priest, prophet and king. Called to witness and proclaim. I feel so privileged and humbled in the shadow of the memory of the day.