Some visiting friends recently snagged us, and themselves, tickets to mass at the Vatican. And not just an ordinary mass: we went to Easter Sunday mass, presided over by the pope. Big stuff, even for heathens like us. And it was particularly exciting as the news in Rome has been full of the pope’s illness. So we betook ourselves to St Peter’s – the last of the four papal basilicas of Rome, and the granddaddy of them all – on Easter Sunday. The fact that our tickets had numbers on them made us think we might possibly have assigned seats and/or be in the basilica. But we were wrong on both counts.
Easter mass started at 10, and we arrived shortly before 8. We saw some seats, which we might have gotten to sit in if we’d arrived several hours earlier than we did. Or we might not have. We went through a very long security line and then stood in St Peter’s Square. Later arrivals had to stand further back. The guards separated out a number of areas, so there was not too much crowding. And we were very pleased to be able to see the pope, although it was at a distance. We found a column to lean on, and the event itself was spectacular. The weather could not have been better: sunshine, cool temperatures, and a lovely space in which to contemplate spring and the beginning of new life.
Some lovely singing and the saying of the rosary, in Latin, preceded the mass. The pontiff arrived shortly before 10, to a cheering crowd, put on his vestments, and got things going. Even from a distance, he seemed frail, and he sat for most of the service, leaving the readings and most of the prayers to the other priests celebrating the mass. The mass and the accompanying booklet were in a variety of languages, which we loved. We especially liked that the priests chanted the gospel in both Latin and Greek.
(photo credit: Jack Zullo)
The largest man in the world stood directly in front of us. But we were able to jump up around him to see. And the reward for our patience and long-standingness was a close-up view of the pope in his pope-mobile, when he drove out into the square (see the picture at the top). One of our friends was even able to receive communion. Finally, the pope delivered his urbi et orbi (‘to the city and the world’) speech and blessed everyone. And then we were off to lunch at a local trattoria. A very memorable day: we still can’t believe we got to attend a mass at the Vatican!
