Today was different, today was our day trip to Assisi. Yesterday, we went to the Gesu, St. Ignatius church, and St. Ignatius' bedroom, but Toan just posted about that, so I'll let you know what we did today in Assisi.
Well, to start, I had to wake up at 5:15 AM. Our train to Assisi left Termini in Rome at 8, and we had to take the bus to get there as it's quite too far to walk, especially in the early morning. So, we met the other guys at the Corso house at 6:15, got on the bus at about 6:30, and arrived at Termini around 7. Our train was delayed 25 minutes, so we got our tickets, found out which platform to meet at, and split up to find some breakfast. Fr. Johnson and I went to a caffe and got some coffee, I had to do some translating for him to order.
After a while of hanging out at Termini, sort of like their Grand Central, we boarded the train to Assisi. It was early and we were all very tired, but we still managed to be a hoard of loud Americans compared to the quiet Europeans on their usual commute. The ride there was actually great, some guys played cards, some of us just shared stories, we all played Catholic Trivia that I brought, and Michael and Mr. Romano slept a bit. The views of the Italian countryside were incredible. I had to keep reminding everyone to look out the window, up from their card game, to see what was right beside us.
We got to Assisi after a 2 hour train ride, and it was still pretty overcast and rainy like it had been in Rome yesterday. It was like that all day, on and off raining. It wasn't great weather, especially for a place with such an amazing view, like St. Francis Basilica hanging off the edge of the hill, but we're pilgrims not tourists. We go on our way in every weather. The pilgrimage of life isn't always sunny and 65, so we shouldn't expect our pilgrimage here to be that way. So we faced the cold, wet weather head on, embracing it. I digress.
We boarded a bus to take us up to old Assisi, the train station is in the valley, and we wanted to get to the Basilica of St. Francis at the top of the hill in the old part of town. Once we got off our bus stop, we had a brief walk through the amazing old town on the hill, going up and across the hill through the cobblestone streets, passing small shops whose buildings were hundreds of years old. We arrived at St. Francis, spoke to some of the Franciscans at the entrance about our reservation to have Mass, and one Franciscan told us to follow him. He took us to a chapel underground, part of their priory, and got us set up for Mass. The chapel was underground with stone floors, walls, and ceilings, the only light coming from two big spotlights hung from the top. It definitely gave us a feeling like being back in time with the monks, in a dark, stone chapel, saying Mass as a community. Fr. Bravo said Mass, reminding us the Eucharist was the source and summit of our life, and should be the source and summit of our discernment. We had yet to enter the main Basilica, however, the consesus after Mass: we need lunch.
The Franciscans recommended a restaurant to us, and it was quite a hike up the hill, but it was worth it. Not sure about the other guys, but Austin, Michael, Nick, Martin, Fr. Bravo and I shared some funny stories during lunch. We heard some stories about Fr. Bravo's pre-Jesuit life. We left the restaurant and headed back to St. Francis, but stopped in some of the religious goods stores on the way, which, by the way there are at least one hundred of in Assisi, most of them having the same lineup of icons and images of St. Francis and St. Clare. We bought a few things for our friends and family back home, and, finally, entered into the Basilica of St. Francis.
The best way to compare this Basilica to others is in terms of its style of sacred art and architecture. The churches we had already visited, namely, St. Paul, St. Peter's, the Gesu, and St. Ignatius, are all either late Rennaissance or Baroque style, mostly Baroque (which is Fr. Bravo's favorite style of church). Baroque churches are dramatic, with giant statues, large marble scupltures, paintings flowing with infinite amounts of detail. So, I was surprised when I entered St. Francis and instead saw a classic Gothic style church. Gothic art is pre-Rennaissance, with less detail than Baroque, but by no means simple.
Entering St. Francis, Fr. Johnson and I were shocked by the infinite amount of color. Every section of wall and ceiling is covered by some color of paint, I'm serious. There are famous frescoes EVERYWHERE. So many frescoes I recognized from images on the Internet or in theology textbooks, dozens of them were created on the walls of this actual church. Fr. Johnson and I did an audio lesson about the Basilica and learned a lot. I'm glad he convinced me, it showed me what all these frescoes meant, that they were intricately planned, and he gave me some lessons on the differences between this Gothic style and the Rennaissance and Baroque styles we were used to in Rome. It was equally as amazing as the other basilicas, but a different experience, simply because of the different style. The Basilica of St. Francis was made in the 13th century, before Rennaissance or Baroque had made their debut. So, I wasn't blown away by the drama and grandeur like the Baroque, but the beautiful, colorful, lively storytelling of the Gothic. The church I go to in Houston is Gothic, so it was cool seeing things I recognized.
After viewing the frescoes in the upper baslica, we went down to the lower basilica, equally as beautiful. The art here was much better preserved than the 800 year old frescoes up above, as the art in the lower basilica was a mix between 13th century originals and new additions added in later centuries. The side altars in both levels of the basilica were simply beautiful. After going to the lower basilica, we continued on lower one last time to go to the tomb of St. Francis. It is more quaint down there, only a brief hallway that leads to a small chapel with his tomb placed above a small altar, it's all very small and covered in stone. There's lots of art and statues of other Franciscan saints. Fr. Johnson and I both had the same feeling while in there. He told me, "I could stay there forever. It's so calming, I just felt I should stay and never leave, the peace of the beautiful and quiet tomb. I didn't know when to leave until a group of kids came in and broke the silence."
We left St. Francis after visiting the tomb. We went to St. Clare's Basilica, about a ten minute walk from St. Francis. It's much smaller in there, the two main things to see are tthe tomb of St. Clare, also very peaceful and moving, especially seeing the care her body has been given because of her devotion to Christ. Then, the other thing to see is the original crucifix St. Francis was viewing when he had a vision of Christ coming off the cross saying, "Francis, rebuild my Church."
The church we went to next, is the church Francis thought he was supposed to rebuild. Down in the valley of Assisi, there is the Basilica of St. Maria degli Angeli. Francis took the words of Jesus literally, and thought he was supposed to rebuild the small church originally in that spot, falling apart, with a broken roof and wall. He did rebuild the church, later learning God wanted him to rebuild His Church of "living stones", that is Holy Mother Church. The Basilica is built around the small church, called the Porziuncola, that St. Francis rebuilt. The Porziuncola actually church sits in the middle of the nave of a massive Basilica (a Baroque style). After visiting this basilica, we headed back to the train station, and here I sit on the train back to Rome, writing to you about my day.
Here's what stood out for me today. Praying before the Tomb of St. Francis, the Tomb of St. Clare, and the spot where Christ spoke to Francis in a vision in the porziuncola, I felt God's presence. I felt the work done by these amazing two saints, who said yes to God and through that yes, changed their lives and changed the entire world. Their yes to God did not hold them back, it raised them up. Just like the Blessed Mother's yes to God changed salvation history forever. I was meditating on that "yes" whilst praying the first decade of the joyful mysteries, the Annunciation, whilst in the Basilica of St. Maria degli Angeli. How I asked St. Francis and St. Clare to intercede for me, it to help me say that yes to God, to help me know what I'm answering. And I asked God for the ability to say that yes without holding back, to give and not count the cost.
Closing up the iPad now, I hope this gave you a view into our day here. We prayed for all of our benefactors at Mass, we lit votive candles for loved ones. Please continue to pray for us, we have four full days of pilgrimage left. I look forward to the rest of this week and experiencing more of God's presence in these holy places.
