My Pilgrimage to Rome

It is now more than 22 years since I made my pilgrimage to Rome and today's Bible Reading (Matthew 16:13-20)  brought it back to me once again ("So I will call you Peter, which means "a rock." On this rock I will build my church ...").  It was a marvelous opportunity to go to Rome; I wanted to do that for a very long time and the idea was enhanced by my belonging to the World Wide Anglican group that was my principal communication with other Anglicans - it was a huge group at that time (joined in 1995 when I first acquired an email address) around 400 people as I recall. I had learned a great deal from all of the people in that group - my hitherto feelings of being sin-free were rapidly replaced with the knowledge that my sins of omission were still sins in the eyes of God. People in the group talked about going to Rome and specifically the Vatican and so the idea was born in my mind that I too would like to make such a pilgrimage. For most people I think perhaps they think of the Holy Land but for me the Church in Rome was the ancient seat of Christianity as it rose rapidly to become one of the dominant religions of the world. I wanted to see all of that and I wanted to visit the Vatican Museum. Suddenly, the opportunity presented itself when the next ECUSA Bishop of Europe was to be consecrated at the Church of St Paul Inside the Wall and we, the members of the Anglican worldwide group, were invited to come in the early summer of 2001. I decided instantly that I would like to do that; I asked my husband if he would like to go but thus far in our years of marriage (we were married for 34 years then) Edward did not want to go to Europe (he did not want to fly there; he often thought of going by ship which was not practical time wise). My oldest daughter was between ideas at that time as she had been thinking of doing her Masters in Library Science and welcomed the opportunity to have this ten days that I was planning to fly once again to Europe as she had been about eight years earlier on a School trip. So together we spent the next four months learning to speak Italian (she was already fluent in French and quickly picked it up; I did learn enough to at least speak to people and understand a little and mostly read Italian as needed on the trip). Soon we were a group of around a dozen people planning to go to Rome from different parts of the world but primarily the United States of America and the UK and members of the Commonwealth countries (not surprising considering that the Church of England is the Anglican Communion). The eight days spent in Rome were memorable -  we went to Vatican City every day (we were staying at a monastery not far away) and we took a full day tour of Rome and a number of tours on our own. But every day we went to St Peters Basilica and it was and remains one of my most religious experiences that I have ever undertaken. 

The Pope was at his window one of the days (it was rainy) and he blessed the crowd in St Peters Square. I am remembering that and the Pope's appeal to Russia to get out of Ukraine and stop killing the people there - different Pope - same message (the two memories flow together). I was horrified to see that once again Russia has bombed an apartment building in Ukraine and the number of deaths continues to climb - so many children. The sin of killing children will be a blight on Russia; she must stop and get out of Ukraine; back to the boundaries set up at the fall of the Soviet Union. Let the Ukrainians live; stop killing then. The Russians are psychopathic Nazis killing children, women, men all over Ukraine in their Nazi thirst for land and riches. It is disgusting and this murderous rampage has been going on for nearly 100 years. We must continue to supply Ukraine with the ability to throw out the Russians and then help them rebuild - the blood of the children of Ukraine is on the hands of every Russian that supports this war; that does nothing to stop it. Glory to Ukraine.

This week I shall work on the Kipp Newsletter and the Siderfin book. The day is a dull one; likely freezing rain as winter in Canada continues apace on its way to spring. The frozen rain are God's and Mother Nature's tears for the children (and adults) of Ukraine being murdered by the Russians. No tears for the Russian dead; they are murderous Nazis - serfs (cannon fodder) to Nazi Putin and his enablers. Rise up O Russia and cast them off; bring your sons home to live not die on the battlefields in Ukraine which Russia has created.