Rome Study Tour 2010-11
Student Michael Thomas (BA Religious Studies) describes the School's Study Tour to Rome.
"Rem tene; verba sequentur", (Grasp the subject; the words will follow). When Cato the Elder (234-149 BCE) uttered these words he could never have realized just how well they could be used to describe the objectives and ambitions of a mixed group of travellers who would visit Rome some 2000 years later. I think it fair to say we all hoped that some of the eloquence demonstrated by orators such as Cato etc would in some way manage to guide us during our forthcoming assignment tasks and certainly did hope that the 'words would follow' when it came to their completion.
Being part of an International study tour is not just a fantastic opportunity to be able to explore somewhere new. It is far more than this; it involves experiencing, possibly being part of a new culture with new customs; accompanied by a group of colleagues with whom you have already created a shared classroom experience of study.
Yes, we were certainly intent on discovering Rome, from its majestic Imperial splendour, to its conversion to Christianity, Christianity within the medieval period and finally Christianity as it seen today. To help with the logistics of this each day had a particular theme, thus allowing maximum exposure to the given theme, etc.
Day 1...Monday 18th April: Imperial Rome (The Coliseum and Roman Forum) and Medieval Christianity (The Basilian Monastery of St. Mary at Grottaferrata).
As the coach had dropped us off at the rear of the Coliseum, it was not until we had walked a short distance through narrow lanes that we were able to experience the full splendour of this truly magnificent building, almost a predecessor if you like for the modern world's sports stadia. One could emphasise with the words of Byron when he said, “While stands the Coliseum, Rome shall stand; when falls the Coliseum, Rome shall fall and when Rome falls, the World.”
The Forum, the birthplace for ancient Rome dated from the 8th century BCE, central for all aspects of Roman Life, it controlled Religion, Commerce and the judicial system. The site where Julius Caesar was cremated is preserved and even today, people regularly lay flowers in an act of remembrance.
The Basilian Monastery of St. Mary (Grottaferrata), situated in the Tuscolo hills was initially founded by St. Nilus in 1004 CE, who had been instructed to do so in a vision by the Virgin Mary, it was completed by St. Bartholomew in 1024. Beautifully decorated with marble and paintings, enriched with sacred vestments etc it seems to spread a net of serenity around the entire area. We all took some time to sit quietly in the Church to contemplate the beauty of the surroundings. It is the last survivor of the once many Byzantine-Greek monasteries and uniquely it has preserved the Byzantine rite while remaining in communion with the Church of Rome.
Day 2...Tuesday 19th April: Early Christianity (Tre Fontane, Catacombs andSt. Paul beyond the Walls)
The Catacombs were something very different, beyond what the majority of us had experienced before. A sort of inverted cemetery, with no symbology above ground to signify its existence, rather everything hidden deep underground. The depth and overall size of the complex was incredible, trying to imagine the pure physical work that had been undertaken here was staggering.
St. Paul Beyond the Walls, as it name suggests is located outside the city walls. Constantine commissioned the work to commemorate the site where traditionally the Apostle Paul was buried. A stunningly beautiful basilica, it has been restored following a fire in 1823 and is renowned for the mosaic apse, created by Venetian artisans and obviously for the tomb of Paul. The interior is truly immense and as you walked through the doors, the farthest wall seemed to stretch far into the distance. Pope Benedict XVI announced in 2009 that the bone fragments from the sarcophagus dated to the 1st or 2nd century and stated "This seems to confirm the unanimous and uncontested tradition that they are the mortal remains of the Apostle Paul".
Tre Fontane consists of three churches with the Church of St. Paul of the Three Fountains commemorating the site where Paul was beheaded. Legend has it that his head bounced three times after being beheaded and on each spot, a fountain sprang up. A feeling of serenity overshadowed the site and it was strange to think that we could be standing on the actual ground where the Apostle Paul had been killed.
Day 3...Wednesday 20th April: Free Morning, afternoon walkabout featuring the Pantheon.
It was nice to have some free time to be able to explore the narrow streets of Rome and ultimately spend time partaking of the 'cafe culture' or as the Italians would say 'cultura del caffè'. Almost everything you see in Rome has some sort of Historical or Cultural significance and it wasn't long before I and a few colleagues ending up at 'San Pietro in Vincoli' to view one of Michelangelo's masterpieces 'the tomb of Pope Julius 11 and in particularly the statue of 'Moses'. The workmanship was just astounding. How Michelangelo created this from a block of Marble is almost a miracle in its own right. Truly, he must have been the greatest sculptor that the world has ever seen!
Next stop, rendezvous with the rest of the group at the 'Piazza Navona' and then to the 'Pantheon'. The street acts throughout Rome, like many major cities are awe-inspiring, nowhere more so than at the Piazza Navona, such variety, they even included a version of Captain Jack Sparrow, incredible. The Pantheon (all the Gods) is the only building of ancient Rome that remains intact and still has the largest un-reinforced dome in the world, even after two thousand years, remarkable! They certainly knew how to build a roof those ancient Romans as one of our party remarked!
Day 4...Thursday 21st April: Modern Christianity (The Vatican and the Castel Sant' Angelo)
The penultimate day unfortunately. Still so much more to see, if only we had more time, but as always good things must end. Today though could prove to be incredible. Entering the Vatican City, observing as many artefacts as possible proved to be a mammoth task. It would be fair to say that one could really spend the best part of a week doing just this. What we did see however was breathtaking, culminating in the Sistine Chapel and its much-praised ceiling. Simply put, it definitely still has the wow factor! Michelangelo proved without doubt that he was not just a master sculptor.
Castel Sant' Angelo was well worth visit even stimulating memories of secret passageways between the Vatican and the Castle brought to us of the book by Dan Brown, subsequently turned into the film 'Angels and Demons'. The views of the City from the top of the Castel were truly magnificent, well worth the long climb. Well maybe not all would agree as it was towards the end of what had been quite a long day, but those that did were well rewarded.
Day 5...Friday 22nd April: Free Time and Return Home.
Just enough time to pay a last visit to the Trevi Fountain (Fontana dei Trev), stunning and one last coffee at one of the numerous cafes that surrounded the area, before heading back to the hotel, the coach and finally the airport and home.
One nice final thought to have of Rome is this. The Italians illuminate the coliseum in a golden light every time someone's death sentence is commuted anywhere in the world, thus making a symbol which represents a place of death for so many countless victims, etc, into one of a new hope and of symbolising life!!!... Arrivedercci Roma.
Student Kiran Lotay (BA Theology) describes the School's Study Tour to Rome.
Having experienced Rome once before as a tourist, the dynamic of a Study Tour allowed me to see Rome in rather a different light. Though it was good to see the tourist landmarks of Rome again, and enjoying lunch on a sunny day on the edge of the Piazza Navona ages extremely well (Italian olive oil is the best I've ever tasted), I actually spent the majority of my time in Rome looking at it through the lens of my assignments. I had been asked to examine how the visit would affect my reading of the book of Revelation; and to write a book review of Christianity in Ancient Rome: The First Three Centuries by Bernard Green, which was recommended as preparatory reading for the tour. Very little that we saw as part of our itinerary did not aid me in these two assignments, and the process of reflecting on our experience of Rome through this is something uniquely beneficial about these kinds of trips. However, it must be said that viewing Rome through the lens of Revelation was not a particularly comfortable experience. The parts that are though to refer at least in part to Rome (chapters 13, 17 and 18) reveal and judge the imperialistic greed, military brutality and arrogant pride of the Roman Empire in the latter half of the 1st century. Visiting the Colloseum with the knowledge that it was a monument to the imperial wealth built on bloodshed that God judges so harshly in Revelation made for a somewhat harrowing “tourist” experience.
Thankfully, however, it was not all so gloomy. One of the most profound experiences I've ever had was visiting the Catacomb of St. Sebastian. Again, I was experiencing it with one eye on my book review assignment, which had an entire chapter on the Catacombs. It was like entering the underworld, but really peaceful rather than eerie. In keeping with their being an expression of the Christian hope of the resurrection of the dead, it simply felt like a place of rest: somewhere that brothers and sisters could “fall asleep” in Christ. Though the tour was achingly short (I could have spent at least a couple of hours there), I was also able to appreciate how the catacombs represented the solidarity of the early Christian community, with richer converts providing burial space and communal ceremony areas for those of lesser means. For a place full of dead people, it was really quite special, and I was only able to understand that because of the assignment I was given.
These are only two excerpts from a trip that provided a unique study experience for me – the sensory experience of actually being somewhere is a rare and valuable resource for reflection and study. Though there was a great deal of fun to be had, my experience was that valuable scholarly insight can be gained from engaging in the process of being in a place, rather than just reading about it.
