Dear Ancestors....

Your tombstone stands among the rest;
neglected and alone
The name and date are chiseled out
on polished, marbled stone
It reaches out to all who care
It is too late to mourn
You did not know that I'd exist
You died and I was born.
Yet each of us are cells of you
in flesh, in blood, in bone.
Our blood contracts and beats a pulse
entirely not our own.
Dear Ancestor, the place you filled
one hundred years ago
Spreads out among the ones you left
who would have loved you so.
I wonder if you lived and loved,
I wonder if you knew
That someday I would find this spot,
and come to visit you." 

 -- Dear Ancestor by Walter Butler Palmer

Today we walked among ancient ruins.  The city existed long before the birth of Christ and was one of the most important cities for the early Romans.  To be able to walk through the ancient cemetery, see how cults and early Christians co-existed in harmony as well as the construction of aqua ducts to funnel water through the city was a phenomenal experience.  The wonder of realizing just how long ago people walked in this exact same spot, worked, built the structures and columns that are still in existence is pretty awesome.  It is far off the tourist map and a treasure that is approximately an hour away by train.  This area is well preserved, a place for students of archeology to come and study or for the odd tourist to make their way to.  We were quite taken with the thought of how many people had walked over the very same stone roads that we travelled on today and how many centuries had passed since the inception of Ostia Antica and its early inhabitants roamed these same paths.
It is a very peaceful place to wander through and with the exception of some workers and about six other people we had the place to ourselves to explore.

Ostia Antica is a large archeological site, close to the modern suburb of Ostia, that was the location of the harbour city of ancient Rome. At the mouth of the River Tiber, Ostia was Rome's seaport, but due to silting the site now lies 3 kilometres (2 miles) from the sea. The site is noted for the excellent preservation of its ancient buildings, magnificent frescoes and impressive mosaics.

Some of the antiquities in evidence

Niches of the ancient columbariums 

ruins in the graveyard

Remnants of  the statue

Wall marking a section of the ancient city

winged victory

the ancient road...how many feet have traveled this path?

Sample of the columns that remain

part of the walls

The view of the city outline

Some of the mosaics that have been unearthed

A good view of how the city was laid out

No description was given for this relic

Section of the wall believed to have been built by Hadrian

The Theatre floor

The Market square

A lovely shot of the theatre from the top stand

Anthony Payne flew in from Oxford University to spend a few days with us!

Here we are with the Theatre stands and market place in the background

The Curia -- where the town council met!

Remants of the Christian Cathedral this would have been one of the three chapels

Believed to be built by Constantine

A fountain near where a cult met

Gate to the city

The Baths

Mosaic which had tributes to athletes

A fountain

Perfect end to a lot of walking a local brew

Here comes the train for the return trip!

The Eternal City

Of all the books in the world, the best stories are found between the pages of a passport.  I want to make memories all over the world...by train, by boat, by plane.  Actually it doesn't matter as long as I can travel.  

  -- Kumar Sanu

The Eternal City, the Vatican,  is surrounded by columns, statues, ornamentation, barricades, vendors.  It is quite something to be able to walk in the square and wander around.  It is impressive and imposing.  Spiritually it was not working for me in that square.  It was too commercial and too busy to find any peace or tranquility.  It was, however, a fabulous place to people watch as vendors tried to sell their wares and others tried to sell tours by telling us we could skip the line ups (these are practically non existent as it is off season!) and selfie stick anyone?!?!?

We meandered through the streets enjoying the feel of the city, watching people rush by and getting a little off track but generally going in the right direction.  A brief pause for gelato, a walk across the bridge of angels and a ride on the public transit were all put into the events of the day.

As we walked the streets the Dome of the Vatican Cathedral could be seen in the distance

Some of the Arches that we saw on the way (plus the crazy traffic!)

Part of the wall that surrounds the Vatican 

Directions to Vatican City

The tops of the buildings are lined with statues

The ornateness of the work is breathtaking

The front of the Cathedral

Fountain in Vatican Square

The Christmas tree is still up and beautifully decorated

Note the detailing of the statues

Part of the Nativity -- we thought is was the Good Samaritan

The manger Scene

Wisemen

another section of the nativity

More statue images from the tops of the buildings

Here is a lovely view of the Square and Cahtedral

Vatican Square Scenery

Street leading out of the square

Catherine of Seinna Statue

Bridge of the Angels with the Castle in the background

river and city scene

Another Journey

“It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to.”

― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings

For the inquiring minds that want to know YES Edmund and I are on another adventure and after 28 hours on the road, long layovers in Toronto and Munich, we finally arrived in Rome today at about 5 p.m. local time.  We were too late and tired to go out in the city today but its many pleasures that need discovering await tomorrow.  Yes I have googled the top 10 things to do in Rome and at least two of them are not cumbersome at all -- eat the local pizza and gelato.  Sounds easy enough!

Jokes aside however there is a serious element to our trip and it is not all holiday and fun, though I am sure that it might appear that way!  We are continuing on with our sabbatical studies, for Edmund the Sacred and the Profane in constant tension and my studies of Spirituality, as we visit the holy sites of Rome where so many pilgrims journey every year.  Our hosts in Rome are the Benedictine Sisters with whom we will live in community and worship and there will be a five day road trip to Florence, Venice, Assisi and Naples.  The tour of Italy will be jammed packed.  We are looking forward to this new adventure, the study time, the exploration and experience of spirituality as pilgrims to this city and country.

So for those who will follow and are on holiday/sabbatical with us I hope that you enjoy the next part of the journey your comments and your insights are, as always, very welcome.

Change....is ALWAYS possible!

A priest and pastor from the local parishes were standing by the side of the road holding up a sign that reads, "The End is Near! Turn yourself around now before it's too late!"   

They planned to hold the sign up to each passing car.  "Leave us alone you religious nuts!" yelled the first driver as he sped by.  From around the curve they heard screeching tires and a big splash.   

“Do you think,” said one clergy to the other, “we should just put up a sign that says ‘Bridge out’ instead?”

Sometimes a little humour goes a long way!  Sometimes a little humor has a serious message! Sometimes a little humour hammers home a point in a way that nothing else can!  Most of us love a good joke or story and if there is a something to be learned from it then so much the better.

I am sure that the clergy in the above joke had the best intentions even if the message was not as clear as it could have been for the immediacy of the situation.  However, when we think about it we realize that we can sometimes be like the driver of the car, rushing along not giving thought to the deeper aspect of the message and thinking those who are trying to slow us down, warn us about the follies of our actions are nuts.  After all we know what we are doing.....right?

“What things get tossed our way in life that we are often not prepared for?” The answer is unique to every person who attempts to answer it.  The trials and tribulations of life are generally not planned and prepared for, impossible to brace yourself to absorb the impact.  Even when you know difficult times are ahead it is impossible to truly know how you will respond until it happens.   Joys and celebrations are often more easily planned and even when they are not are more willingly received and embraced.  It would be great if we were able to turn ourselves around before it is too late but generally speaking how easy is it to convince someone that a particular route is bad, a life altering decision is the wrong one?  We are more likely to be like the driver and scoff at the warning and zoom along our merry way thinking that we know what we are doing.  The warnings of those with good intentions will likely not deter us from the path that we intend to travel.  The message can be clear or ambiguous but most of us will believe that we know what we are doing!  The second aspect of the warning is clear there is still time to make a change in our decision, to become more informed. 

Now what about hindsight...it is always perfect vision!  In light of what we have rushed through, the warnings that we may have ignored, the voices of caution that have been tossed aside we look back and realize that maybe we should have been more cautious, certainly listened more to the voices of reason and experience.  Yet there is something to be learned by the experience.  No experience sticks with us as a reminder quite like those where we make mistakes and hopefully learned from them as opposed to constantly repeating them.

So while the message, the end is near, turn yourself around before it is too late was not clear for a bridge out situation it is an important message for us as we zoom through life.  Turn yourself around ...slow down before it is too late to enjoy life and the beauty that surrounds us, before we wander so far down a dark path that we think there is no hope of return, before we close ourselves off to all that is good, before we lose sight of the good that still exists in the world and in us, it is perhaps an inexhaustible list of things that we can do to change, to improve on the self.  Turn yourself around...is something that we can all benefit from at various times in our lives.  Change is always possible.

Questions to ponder

In my last three sermons; Christmas Eve, the Sunday after Christmas, and Epiphany, I have asked those gathered to consider a question.  On Christmas Eve we considered the question are you ready?  In light of all of the preparations that we undertake, gift buying, decorating, cleaning, baking,and on and on the list goes with what we hope to accomplish, it is easy for us to forget what we are really getting ready for.  So on Christmas Eve, perhaps a little late, an important question to consider was asked Are we ready?  Not for the merry go round of tasks but have we taken time to get ourselves ready to receive God's gift of love in the world and in our lives.  Were we able to make some use of the advent time to prepare ourselves as well as the multitude of other tasks that needed to be accomplished?

Then a few days later, for the Sunday after Christmas, we read about a twelve year old boy that was accidentally left behind in Jerusalem and parents who hastily returned and frantically searched for three days.  So when we are looking or seeking or desperately searching in our relationship with Jesus what are we looking for?  Tie that to the question " Are you ready?", and we are forced to consider the preparation of ourself so that we can comprehend what it is or who it is that we are looking for.

This past Sunday we celebrated the arrival of the Magi, a few days early according to the calendar, but a significant arrival for the Holy Family.  They came to honour and worship him as well as to bring gifts.  What gift will we bring? rounded out my questions for consideration.  Each person gathered was encouraged to give thought to what their gift is and how it could be offered and utilized by God for the building of the kingdom that we, as disciples, continue to actively participate in building.  The gift that we bring, no matter how insignificant we may think the offering is, has an important role in the continual building and growing.

So for those who gathered it was not merely a message of hope, glad tidings and gifts but a careful examination of self, what we seek and the gifts that we each have to offer for the building up of ministry.

"We ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean.  

But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop."  

Mother Teresa

As you consider the questions for yourself

     Are you ready?

     What are you looking for?

     What gift will you bring?

remember as well that you are an important and significant part of the ongoing ministry that we are called to build together and your offering is significant and an important contribution .... for the ministry like the ocean will be less with even one drop missing!