Paul KeenanEmer McCarthy reports from Rome
On Monday evening the Irish who had travelled to Rome for the double canonisations gathered on the Caelian Hill for a Mass of Thanksgiving celebrated by Cardinal Seán Brady. He was joined by by Bishop Kieran O’Reilly of Killaloe, Monsignor Ciaran O’Carroll, Rector of the Pontifical Irish College, college staff as well as many Irish priests travelling with pilgrimage groups.
The small Seventh century Basilica of Santa Maria in Domnica, which overlooks the ancient Coliseum, was packed for the occasion, with a tired but enthusiastic congregation. Many were still feeling the effects of their early start Sunday morning. Most had decided to make their way to St Peter’s as early as 3am to secure a vantage point for the canonisation among the estimated 1million pilgrims who swamped the Vatican for the biggest ecclesial event of the year. But it didn’t show in their voices as they sang the great Irish hymns of O’Rioda, stopping many passing Romans in their tracks.
Fifty-two of the nearly two hundred men and women who packed the small church came from the Diocese of Killaloe. The vast majority of those present had made their way to Rome on their own initiative, in small groups – like one couple who had made the pilgrimage to mark their 25th wedding anniversary. Ordinary men and women from Kerry, Monaghan, Tyrone, Sligo, Cashel and a few from Dublin. They may have been a drop in the ocean of faithful gathered from across the globe in St Peter’s on Sunday, but they were visibly still animated by the event, despite their fatigue and effort.
Challenges
In fact, the demands and challenges involved in following Christ, were the centre of the cardinal’s homily. He urged those present to look to the new Saints John XXIII and John Paul II as men who were attentive to the Holy Spirit at work in their lives. This – he said –helped them face the challenges of their times.
The cardinal observed that both of the new saints were great travellers albeit in different ways. It is estimated that St John Paul II was “one of the most travelled individuals in the history of mankind” and “was seen personally by more than 500 million people in his lifetime”. While St John XXIII metaphorically travelled into new territory as “he tried to persuade world leaders…to choose peace” and of course convoked the Second Vatican Council.
Both, however, “were excellent communicators, chiefly because they had something precious to communicate” concluded the cardinal, adding that this “was the fruit of another journey – the journey inward”.
And as the Irish pilgrims emerged into the unseasonably inclement Rome evening surrounded by the Churches of the Apostles and Martyrs, there was laughter and shared stories of the past, unforgettable, 48 hours and even some enthusiasm as they looked towards the next stage of their pilgrimage – bringing those stories home.