Day 3/4 Reflection from Mr. Siemann

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By now, you surely have an awareness of what we’ve done these last few days, so I just wanted to add a few sporadic theological insights from our journey thus far.

Chair of St. Peter, the Papal Tiara, and the Keys: On day 3, we had Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica at the main altar, with the glorious artwork depicting the Holy Spirit and the chair of St. Peter. Look at the picture of our view for a moment.
See how the gold adornments seem to overflow out of the the glory of the Holy Spirit. Caught in this flow is the chair of St. Peter, with angels holding the keys and the Papal tiara, ready to bestow it upon the appointed pontiff. In nearly every Basilica we have visited, we have seen gratuitous depictions of the keys and the Papal tiara. Through this art alone, we get such a pure sense of the role of the papacy within the Church and our faith. The chair of St. Peter is distinctly a gift—a result of the overflowing love of God, gifting his authority to his human creation, successfully perpetuating his mission and ministry. The Church is not a democracy, with human beings electing a Pope by popular consensus. The angels—messengers and servants of God—are the ones with the Papal tiara in hand, waiting for God’s appointed one to take his seat. To those in Rome, the keys and the tiara are the sign of Christianity. This divinely bestowed position of service—the chief shepherd of our Church—holds such a place of reverence and significance. And how lucky we are that we get to see our current Pope twice this pilgrimage!

Angels: These beloved creatures of God seem to be so infrequently mentioned by the Body of Christ in our every-day lives (myself included), yet one cannot avoid their presence in these glorious churches. The walls and ceilings we visit are so frequently adorned—even clustered—with angels. These serve as an inescapable reminder of their perpetual, divine, spiritual presence. I am moved to understand that whenever I praise God or do anything in His name, there are countless numbers of angels surrounding me and joining me in doing the Good! May we all continue to include the angels in all of our thoughts and activities!

“I believe in the...apostolic Church”: There is no way to go through Rome without running into the Apostles. Just in these two days, St. Peter’s, St. Paul’s, and St. John Lateran have had large statues or works of art depicting the Apostles front and center—just below Christ. These churches proclaim the truth that the Church is truly apostolic—founded on the Apostles, springing forth from their evangelization efforts. We owe them a great debt and the art in these churches seems to back that up. 



Eucharistic fullness: Over the last few days, we have encountered the blessed Sacrament quite a few times, with adoration chapels galore. In fact on Days 3 and 4, we had access to 2 adoration chapels each day. During my 3rd or 4th adoration trip in those two days, I began contemplating the Mystery that is Christ’s presence in the Eucharist. For one, Christ is truly, really, actually, fully present in the consecrated host. Furthermore, Christ can be and is truly, really, actually, fully present in every consecrated host around the city and around the world. No matter what chapel, city, or country I am in, I am talking and praying to the fullness of the same Jesus Christ. What a beautiful, ineffable Mystery. It has altered the perspective of this pilgrimage for me. My first thought is that as I make my journey through all of these churches, Jesus is walking beside and with me. However, with this Eucharistic image, I feel that Jesus is not only walking beside me, but also is walking in front of me, allowing me to follow His footsteps and preparing a place for me once I arrive. Jesus is already settled—waiting for me. The fullness of Jesus Christ is paving the way forward for us, welcoming us home at each stop along the way.

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