To Rome, where the night-time minimum temperature is hotter than the daytime maximum in England. This is something of a shock to the system, though a pleasant one providing you have a change of shirts. Once again it is work of a kind that has brought me to the Eternal City for the third time this year, though it’s hardly arduous. I am here as the chaplain to the wonderful Schola Cantorum of the Catholic school where I work.
So it was that these boys were singing Palestrina’s Tu es Petrus on June 29 for the school Mass, and in the days following will sing it at the tomb of the Apostle. They are to spend five days in Rome during which time they will give two concerts and sing for Mass at St John Lateran and St Peter’s.
In between they see something of the usual tourist sites. We make a very early start for the Vatican Museums and hasten through so as to be in the Sistine Chapel before the crowds arrive in force. From thence to a lesser known section which has only been open a few years. It is the museum of papal carrozze or carriages. There is a short but illustrious history of papal conveyances from Pius VI onwards. He felt he needed to appear to look like a powerful monarch travelling in pomp in order impress Napoleon, who already had designs on the Vatican.
In the end, of course, the effort was in vain, because the Frenchman would loot the Vatican of many treasures to fill the Louvre and even carry off the pope himself. History seems to judge Napoleon rather indulgently, in my opinion, when he was really rather a menace and a thug. Anyway, papal carriages had just a single throne in them and were pulled by a team of six or eight horses. A single postilion steered from the front horse so that there wouldn’t be too many people turning their backs on the Pope. The only persons allowed to set their hands to the carriage door were the papal chamberlain or the Holy Roman Emperor. (As you can see, we had a thorough tour: the curator of the museum arrived when we were there).
Tradition having the force of law, even when the age of the motor car arrived, papal cars retained many original features. The 20th-century exhibits in the museum include a wonderful 1920s stretch Mercedes, which has a pair of gilded carriage lamps on either side of the windscreen – just because that’s what papal conveyances had always had.
Most significant for me were two vehicles associated with St John Paul II. First, the Popemobile in which he was travelling when he was attacked on May 13, 1981. Video footage recalls the terrible scenes of him collapsing as he is shot, and then the vehicle speeding through the crowds as his secretary cradles the gravely wounded pontiff, the white robes showing an ominous dark stain.
For many of the boys, of course, the assassination is something they have never heard of. They watch in amazement, as it is so like a story out of a Hollywood film. Then the screen changes to show that extraordinary picture of the recovered pope visiting his assassin in prison, his head bent close to Ali Ağca’s as if the pope is hearing his confession. I was the boys’ age when the events happened and I realised I had to be older to appreciate how truly extraordinary the life of St John Paul was.
Finally there is a black Mercedes 600 with the Vatican plate SCV1. The curator explains it is so heavy because of its bulletproof windows and three-inch armour plating. I recalled a story told me by a Vatican monsignor of the time: John Paul was preparing to visit a Roman parish one Sunday morning. Somehow his fingers were slammed in the door of the car and were crushed and bleeding. Everyone assumed that this would instantly put paid to the visit, but the Polish pope, with indifference to his suffering, insisted on going ahead with the visit. His bleeding fingers had to be re-bandaged several times during Mass.
To have such strength of will and determination and yet to be forced to suffer publicly a long, slow decline; to learn equally to wear your frailty for the sake of preaching the Gospel and to let it serve where once your strength did – what true heroism. This is not just great strength in action, but great strength harnessed to even more powerful love which surrenders the reins and allows itself to be led.
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