Arrived

Greetings from the Eternal City!

I arrived last Friday after a very smooth and comfortable flight. 

I spent the weekend with a Vincentian priest friend of mine, Fr. John Maher at their headquarters a few miles outside of center city Rome.  It is their international headquarters and priests and brothers from many countries live there.  So many countries and backgrounds, not to mention languages, and one could still feel the spirit of hospitality and welcome.  They made me feel very welcome.

During the days, I got a good overview of the city of Rome, not to mention learning the bus and metro (subway) system.  You really can get anywhere in Rome without a car.  We spent some time visiting some of the churches, the ruins and just walking the streets of the Vatican and surrounding areas.

The Interior of
St. Susanna's

Sunday morning we went to worship at the Church of St.Susanna, which is the American church in Rome, run by the Paulists.  Santa Susanna's Church is a beautiful and historic place of worship, whose every feature is steeped in the history, art, and architecture of the Christian faith as it has been lived over the centuries in Rome.  After the few days here, it was nice to be in an environment where English was the primary language.  Their answer to our bagels after mass is to have coffee and cornet pastries.  And then a tour of the church ... I am sure the first of many tours in many churches.

Today (Monday) I moved into my room at Casa O'Toole at the North American College overlooking the Vatican.  (I have to find out the history of Casa O'Toole in the middle of Rome.)  The program is run by a priest of the Archdiocese of Newark, who greeted me (and a few other early arrivals.)  The majority of the men arrive tomorrow and we begin with Mass at 6pm, followed by dinner.  Wednesday morning, we hit the ground running at 8am.