Rome (nicknamed “The Eternal City”)
is home to over 900 operating Catholic churches. Walking through the streets,
that high number comes as no surprise. Dad and I decided it might be cool to
attend a service while we were here in the Mecca of Catholicism. It just so
happens that a church just a few blocks from where we are staying, San
Silvestro in Capite, houses the head of
John the Baptist as a relic in their church. Naturally, this is church we
decided to visit this morning. When you walk in the main doors, there is a
little chapel to the left, which is home to this:
Inside that gold box is what remains of the head of John the Baptist
Pretty impressive, right? Now,
there is some debate between Muslims and Christians whether this is truly the
actual head of John the Baptist, but it is still cool to think that that could
be it. After mass ended, we found this and Dad promised that he would buy me a
BMW for graduation:
It had only three wheels. Pretty cool!
In the afternoon, we decided to
visit Palatino, the Forum, and the Coliseum. We got so lost walking there, we
probably walked an unnecessary additional two or three miles just trying to
find the entrance to Palatine Hill. I joked to dad that the saying “All roads
lead to Rome” should be revised to, “All roads lead to Rome, but once you get
there, you are out of luck.”
On Palatine Hill (a.k.a. the rich neighborhood of Rome starting in 500 B.C.)
Palatino
Colliseum
The Colliseum is 50 meters tall! Kyle Field is only 34 meters tall, to give you a frame of reference.
Dad told me to give and thumbs up and that means the Gladiator can live.
I have been failing to remember to
take pictures of my meals the past couple of days. I think it is because
everything looks so good, I just get too anxious to eat everything (good news—my
appetite is back!). But here is the couple that I remembered to take today:
Limoncello was a lot stronger than expected.
Second round of Gelato in 24 hours. We had to get back all of those calories we burned while walking so much today.
Since arriving in Rome yesterday,
we have made our way in and out of several churches. Some of them we enter sell
audio players, there are masses of people snapping photos, on-lookers are gawking
at the ornate architecture and detailed artwork. I cannot help but think about
the passage in John 2 where Jesus becomes enraged at the temple being used for
anything but worship. This, and the fact that only roughly 1/3 of the people in
this country claim to be “practicing” Christians, makes most of the ornate
churches seem like shells. Empty. Hollow. The city is stunning, historical, and
I have never seen anything like it. However, the lack of God’s presence in the
midst of all of the architectural marvels has made me even more excited for the
heavenly kingdom which is to come. How much more beautiful will the kingdom of
God be? Rome will seem like burnt McDonald’s coffee next to Italian espresso
when compared to the Eternal Kingdom.
“Heaven and
earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away” Matt 24:35
“And he
carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy
City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. It shone with the glory of
God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper,
clear as a crystal.” Rev. 21:10-11
A few fun facts to round out my
post:
1)
Apparently Italians like their extra large water
bottles.
2)
I’ve decided that Italian men derived their
hairstyles from Jimmy Neutron.
3)
Every time I visit a public restroom, it is an
adventure trying to figure out how to work the toilets and sinks. The most
common thing I have come across is that apparently it is completely normal to
not put a toilet seat on the toilet? Almost every restroom (or shall I say
Water Closet?) I have come across since being in Italy—and even some in Athens—have
been sans toilet seat.
4)
I’m not sure how to explain this one.
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