I just returned last night from vacation in Rome, the eternal city!  Two of my classmates and I decided last year we would treat ourselves to this vacation as a celebration of our ordinations.  While two of us had been to Rome before, our one classmate had never been, so this was a great opportunity for him to experience the eternal city and for all of us to celebrate Holy Mass on these famous Altars.  We had the opportunity to celebrate the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass on Altars at Santa Maria Maggiore (St. Mary Major), the Basilica of St. Francis in Assisi (at his tomb), the St. Clementine Chapel in St. Peters Basilica (the altar directly above St. Peters bones), and in St. Paul outside the walls Basilica.  Each church is more breathtaking than the next.  

    THE highlight of the trip was meeting Pope Francis.  Now, I didn’t have a conversation with him, but I said “hello Holy Father,” he nodded his head at me, and I shook his hand.  While this was a very short encounter with Pope Francis, it was an experience I will never forget.  During his audience he spoke of the Christian virtue, hope.  Pope Francis has done many things to make the Church stronger and focus on the mission of bring Christ to all people.  Jesus came to save everyone, not just those who “follow the plan” or act like the are.  Pope Francis does what he can to move the Church out from our comfort zone and to be more like Jesus who walked out from his home town and visited everyone no matter their sex, religion, political background, etc.  Pope Francis is doing that as best he can and we need to follow his guidance and role model, Jesus Christ.

    Being in Rome as a priest also helped me to see the universal Church in a new way.  Everyone goes to Rome to visit Catholic HQ, so while you’re visiting you will see the universal Church.  I met people from all over the world while walking the streets of Rome.  It always helps to widen your world view so that your own local problems don’t seem so large in a greater context.  Most of the time, the things we think are super important really aren’t.  Now, that’s not to say we shouldn’t work on those things; but, it does mean that we should relax a little more and not lose our cool.  There is a big difference between seeing something that needs change and changing it and seeing something that needs change and forcing it while complaining loudly about it.  This is one of the many reasons I love to travel the world: it makes my worldview larger and helps me to put things into context. 

    Anyway, these are just some thoughts that came to mind during this vacation.  It was a wonderful time and I hope to visit the eternal city again in the future.  If you have never been, then run, don’t walk, to Rome and experience the beauty, the history, and the holiness of this great city.  Go now!