Cardinal Stickler to be commemorated

Instead of the usual half-hour of quiet prayer at 6.30 this morning, followed by Morning Prayers and Mass (Lauds and Eucharist), we had simply a half-hour of quiet prayer together. The community mass with take place this evening, with a special liturgy shared by all seven religious communities at the UPS. The occasion is the first anniversary of the death of Cardinal Alfons Maria Stickler. Cardinal Raffaele Farina will preside at that liturgy.

It is not clear to me why there will be this commemoration at the UPS, except that Cardinal Stickler was once Rector Magnificus, as was Raffaele Farina (back during my student days). It seems like the appropriate place and occasion, then, for a commemoration.

Don Stickler was rector at the time of the great organization of the several Salesian faculties and oversaw the move of the pontifical atheneum to the present site in Rome in 1966. He organized the faculty of classical languages here as well, before being called in 1971 to serve as librarian and archivist for the Vatican. His scholarly contributions are many (and he is said to have been a character and a half). John Paul II made him cardinal in the consistory of 25 May 1985, when he was already 74 years old. He died last 12 December, 2007; Pope Benedict XVI himself presided at the funeral, and I remember that a few members of our community went to that mass. Already then it was decided to do something to commemorate his contributions at the UPS; it has taken a year to organize it.

Besides all this, I am personally excited to be able to again see Don Raffaele. Okay, he is now Archbishop and Cardinal of Santa Romana Chiesa, but I still think of him as don Farina. Afterall, this is how I have known him for many years. Don Farina was rector when I received my Bachelor degree in 1979 and my doctorate in 1996. I had the joy of welcoming him to Bellflower when he came for a visit in 1983, and someone took some photos on that day, but who knows what happened to them. During my licentiate and doctoral studies, we had many long and friendly conversations. I have always found him warm, gentle and absolutely brilliant.

Raffaele Farina, Salesian, Cardinal, Scholar and Vatican Librarian

As for the nature of tonight’s commemoration, I am sure that things will become more clear to me once we have had the celebration.

At any rate, I have already eaten breakfast and shared the morning ritual of storytelling. It is still very dark right now, at 7.30 - but the sky is illuminated by lightning and the count from the lightening strike to the crash of the thunder is not very long. It is quite close: within 5 km.

This has been the story of the whole night past. Rome has been the scene of heavy rains, strong winds, lightening and thunder and more thunder crashing, booming or rolling in, depending of the distance. It was not easy to sleep and I unplugged everything in my bedroom during the night to be safe. Yet, even without being able to sleep, it was wondrous to stay under the warm blankets in the well heated room as I heard the world crashing around me.

But it is time to get on with the day!

Rome crowded for anniversary of John Paul II

Tomorrow will mark one year since the death of Pope John Paul II. Twice this week I have had to go down to the Vatican, including this morning. There are tens of thousands of pilgrims; the area is completely crowded, and the line-up to get into the basilica of St Peter's, or rather, to the grotto to visit the tombs of the popes is very long. In fact, I have not gone into St Peter's yet this year, because I haven't had the time to wait in line for two hours.

Of the statistics that I have heard: the normal amount of visitors to the tombs of the popes has been between 150 and 300 persons a day. Since the burial of John Paul II, the number on weekdays has averaged 15,000 people, while on weekends it has gone up to as many as 20,000 people. In fact, today there were many Italians in the lines. It seems that Italians are also making St Peter's the goal of pilgrimage again: to remember the "papa polacco", who won their affection, and to see "Papa Ratzinger", who speaks simply and seems to have won their respect as well. And that is a more interesting feat, since many Italians have still not gotten over the sufferings of the Second World War at the hands of the German Nazis after the fall of Mussolini's Fascist government.

So, it will be an interesting week ahead for the amount of pilgrims and visitors. To all appearances, the flood of pilgrims will continue through the Spring. In short, there have been as many visitors to St Peter's during this year since John Paul's death and Benedict's election as during the Great Jubilee of 2000.