Healthy again Post-COVID

Dear Friends and Family,

Blessed First Sunday of Advent! I don't have any photos to post today since I've been in quarantine in my room for the past 2 weeks, but I do have some good news: I'm once again healthy and allowed to stop outside and breath the fresh air!

I had symptoms in many ways identical to a strong flu virus, except that for about 4 days I lost my sense of taste and smell, which has never happened to me before, and I felt more drained than usual, at one point sleeping for almost 36 hours straight. But as of a few days ago, the illness seemed to leave me, Deo Gratias et Mariae.

Perhaps due to the many demands on the health care system in Rome at the moment, it took quite a while for the nurses to come by the monastery to test all of us (per government regulations) for COVID. The test was done Friday morning, and Friday evening they said all of the test results came back negative, except that no one called myself and one other cleric to give us our test results. We're expecting someone will call us tomorrow morning to say that our results were negative, because if they had been positive (anyone's results in the monastery) they were supposed to inform the superior that everyone had to be in quarantine for another 21 days. So we can't imagine the results not being negative since no one has called.

Thanks be to God that we have dodged the bullet of another 21 days in quarantine. Which leads me to my next piece of news. Due to some government regulations and a decision by a local authority here, I am now required to head back to the US in order to renew my study visa for the coming year. While the decision does not seem logical, it is a blessing in disguise because it will permit me to spend some weeks with my parents and family, whom I have not been able to see for 18 months. Really looking forward to the time with my family. Due to the requirements of the apostolate or of religious life, and the fact I have had assignments the past 24 years far from Ohio, I have not been home for Christmas in 24 years. So, really looking forward to a white Christmas in Ohio!

And, I'll have the wonderful blessing while there of baptizing a new nephew: little John Patrick. God willing I will be writing you next Sunday from Ohio.

Until then, may you have a blessed beginning of Advent! And for those who join me for the daily rosary, I was just informed that there was a technical difficulty with today's rosary but that it should be live in a few minutes. Thank you for your patience.

In Cordibus Iesu et Mariae,

Fr. Pillari 

Diving into Doctoral Research

 

Empty street in the heart of Rome, during what would normally be a busy day.

The street "Fori Imperiali" in the very heart of ancient Rome, empty...

Looking out over the Roman Forum, about 5 minutes ago.

Dear Friends and Family,

Greetings from a very quiet Rome! This week was full of blessings, including the joy of serving again this morning as subdeacon for a solemn high Mass at Santissima Trinita. But to pick just one item to share with you:

Statue of Our Lord in the heart of the Gregorian University, where I am studying canon law. Though the text below Him may be hard to read, it says, in Latin, "Go and teach all nations, I am with you."

This statue in the heart of the Gregorian is a reminder of the great missionary spirit of St. Ignatius of Loyola, who desired so ardently the conversion and salvation of souls. This week I spent extended time in the Gregorian's library, diving into some initial research for the doctorate. It is a big ocean of research into which I have just placed the tip of my pinky finger. Rather daunting I must say! But also interesting.

This week my reading was quite slow, reading recent scholarly articles and often stopping to go very slowly over certain paragraphs and to look up the different laws the referred to. But at the end of those hours I had the reward of beginning to understand the arguments of why such-and-such a law does not seem very clear, what may be its drawbacks, etc. The next six months will be much of the same, with the aim of having by June a fleshed out doctoral topic and basic proposal to present for approval. We shall see... but regardless it is a joy to begin understanding some of the complexities and why such things have significant "real-world consequences" for people's lives today. An ambiguous law, and its subsequent ambiguous application, can be a disaster that can lead to real injustices.

You all are much in my prayers, particularly those in the UK, for whom all public Masses are currently illegal, something that hasn't occurred since penal times (well, since last spring), and those in the US dealing with all that surrounds the vote counting for the election.

May Our Lady be your good mother and guide, and draw you ever closer to Our Lord.

In Cordibus Iesu et Mariae,

Fr. Pillari

Subdeacon at Santissima Trinita

 

Morning view out the window that I walk by each morning coming out of my room--window overlooks the Roman Forum. The view still strikes me every time.

In the main corridor, the Superior has set up a kneeler and a shrine to the infant Mary.

Here you see a better view of the child Mary.

Dear Family and Friends,

The above gives you a little glimpse of the devotion in the monastery. The new superior here has been busy installing relics, images, and shrines. Above, located in the central corridor of the cloister, is the shrine to the child Mary. She is, as a child, the patroness of the Olivetan order, to which this monastery belongs. I find it to be a beautiful devotion, which encourages humility, trust, and abandonment to God's plans. It is a joy to be living in a monastery where this devotion holds pride of place.

Today I served as subdeacon for the solemn high Mass at Santissima Trinita in the heart of Rome. It was a real joy to once again sing Gregorian Chant during a Sunday Mass--and the acoustics of the church are amazing! It was a particular blessing to assist the pastor of the church as he offered the Holy Sacrifice because you could sense his prayerfulness, devotion, and recollection. It was also a joy to see the altar boys gearing up for the liturgy, bantering with each other, etc. The Holy Mass is such a good training ground for young men.

You all are in my daily prayers during this month dedicated to the Holy Souls. I have always found November to be a month of particular blessings and graces, perhaps due to the intercession of the Holy Souls for us, as we pray more for them during this time.

During this coming week, may Our Lady watch over and guide each of your families closer to Her Son.

In Cordibus Iesu et Mariae,

Fr. Pillari

A Quiet Rome

 

The Pantheon, usually crowded, deserted.

Still one of my favorite views. Looking out the window a few steps from my room.

Dear Friends and Family,

Greetings from a very quiet Rome! As I type this, it is 8PM Wednesday evening, and I am still very much praying for the final results of the US election. May God's will be done...

My apologies for not posting the past two Sundays. I had planned to but two things happened:

1) On Sunday Oct. 25th I was invited to spend the day with a Monsignor who works in the Vatican, and a fellow cleric studying, visiting a contemplative monastery of nuns. The Monsignor kindly picked us up at 8AM and began the two-hour drive to their monastery. It was a great two hours discussing with him--a knowledgable canon lawyer who has worked in the Vatican for almost 20 years. He offered to let me celebrate the Mass for the cloistered nuns while he himself celebrated a private Mass. It was a joy to offer the Holy Sacrifice for them in their ancient monastery.

After some prayer of thanksgiving, we were able to speak at some length with the mother superior--who was full of joy and vigor!--and then were offered lunch by the nuns (who of course did not eat with us). Thus followed still further conversation with the good Monsignor and fellow cleric. The mother superior then again granted us extended time for discussion with her, until a little after 4PM I think. And then I was blessed with another two hours of discussion with the Monsignor in the car on the way back! So a very full day, but one that left me rather drained and in need of prayer at the end.

2) Last Sunday I headed back to Florence for an appointment Monday morning as part of Italy's complicated visa process. It was a joy to see the children who helped host me last semester, and to pray once again in their chapel.

Today we learned that all classes are switching to online because of the new Italian government ordinance, at least for the next 4 weeks. So it is rather strange being in Rome but doing all classes online. 

For those of you in the US, I am very much praying for the country in this time of election. For those in the UK, I am praying for the terrible situation that public Masses will be banned for the next four weeks. May God grant speedily access once again to the most essential nourishment for body and soul: the Holy Eucharist.

You are in my daily prayers here.

In Cordibus Iesu et Mariae,

Fr. Pillari

Our Lady of the Rosary Family Catechism Launches

 

Dear Friends and Family,

I had a beautiful weekend here in Rome. The three children whom I helped prepare for Confirmation this September made a "post-Confirmation pilgrimage" to Rome to ask for the intercession of the saints, that they might become better soldiers for Christ.

Yesterday we were able to visit the rooms where St. Philip Neri lived and prayed, with an excellent tour guide, as well as the church he built--Chiesa Nuova. The afternoon was then spent visiting the Colosseum, and then the chapel on the site where St. Sebastian was martyred, spending time in Adoration.

This morning, after Mass at the tomb of Santa Francesca Romana, we visited the Mamertine Prison, an ancient prison in the heart of ancient Rome, right next to the Roman Senate building. More importantly, Sts. Peter and Paul were prisoners there. It was a real grace to pray at the site where these heroic martyrs prayed and suffered.

As most of you are likely aware, Our Lady of the Rosary Family Catechism launched this week at olrfamilycatechism.com . It is a real joy to be able to offer families throughout the world, for free, access to the teachings of Our Lady at Fatima and to a whole program for teaching their children the Baltimore Catechism. May it bear fruit!

Meanwhile, some other filming was going on here in Rome:

One of the main streets in Rome was blocked off for... the filming of Mission Impossible 7. If you look carefully in the center of the picture you will see them filming some sort of crash scene, with the large microphone visible against the white background.

You all are in my prayers here in Rome. I hope that this catechism program will be of use for you and your children. Much work and love was put into creating it, and will still be put into the post-production phase. So please keep in your prayers all the work of video and audio editing.

Wishing you a very blessed Sunday.

In Cordibus Iesu et Mariae,

Fr. Pillari

Classes have begun!

Dear Friends and Family,

Classes have begun! After almost a year of preparation, it is a real joy to now dive into studies. The atmosphere is rather unusual--a year like no other--in the sense that masks are now obligatory everywhere indoors, including in classrooms, along with social distancing, pulse and temperature checks, etc. But none of that should affect significantly my doctoral studies.

Rather than try to recount everything that happened this week, I'll tell you about Wednesday, which was spent getting to know the library, which you can see here:

It is a beautiful, old library--and I was told by a professor at a different university, the best one in Rome! What you see above is just a few of the rooms. It has multiple levels and, as you can see, within rooms different levels of bookshelves. There is something neat about the smell and feel of old books.

My morning orientation began with a walking tour of the different parts of the library especially pertinent to canon law--among them is a room full of doctoral dissertations from the past 100 years or so from multiple Roman universities. Other rooms have canonical journals, other historic commentaries, others general books, etc. etc. Then we went to see the collection desk. 

No one is allowed to take books out of the library (well, no one except for the professors and some of the Jesuit community in residence, I believe). This reminds me of something recounted in the life of St. John of the Cross. When he was studying theology at Salamanca, several hundred years ago, books were chained to the wall to prevent any student from carrying them away.... which gives an idea of how seriously books and libraries are taken here. So, the system is that you locate, in the online catalogue or on the shelf, the book(s) you wish to consult. You then submit an online request to the collection desk. Within 30 minutes, sometimes less, they produce the books for you, you pick them up at the collection desk, study them there in the library, and return them before you leave.

Because the books you see in the above photos, and the others in the rooms we could walk around into, are only a small part of the collection. Most of the books are in a reserved area that only the librarians have access to. The books in the rooms pictured above are ones that we are allowed to pull off the shelves and then put back ourselves, by the key parts of the library only the librarians go to. 

So research will involve a good deal of scanning pages so as to be able to consult them later on, and use them for eventually composing the doctoral thesis. On this day I requested and collected a number of books, after I figured out how to operate the online system, which took a while, and will now be reading from home, thanks to scanning, a book that has a collection of articles on Sacramentorum Sanctitatis Tutela, a key document for the Church's discipline in violations of the 6th Commandment by clerics (probably doesn't sound very exciting to you, but in terms of Church law it's a really important domain that is now being developed and much commented on).

There were many other events and blessings this week, but to keep this short I will stop here and tell you more about classes or other things next week. And for any of you who only follow the online rosary occasionally, I would encourage you to make sure to tune in this Tuesday, Oct. 13th, for a special announcement.

May Jesus be your strength and protection, and may Our Lady guide you.

In Cordibus Iesu et Mariae,

Fr. Pillari

Beginning Classes Tomorrow

 

St. John Lateran visible in the distance, looking through the Colosseum.

Dear Friends and Family,

Blessed Feast of St. Francis of Assisi! As one of the patron saints of Italy, his feast is liturgically a "first-class feast," which means that it takes precedence here even over the Sunday Mass. Thus, I had the blessing this morning of celebrating the Mass of St. Francis. He is such a wonderful saint. And the gospel for his feast day is one of my favorites. Even though you know it, I'll write it here again:

At that time Jesus declared, “I thank thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes; ²⁶ yea, Father, for such was thy gracious will. ²⁷ All things have been delivered to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and any one to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. ²⁸ Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

Wonderful words to meditate on.

Tomorrow classes begin. I will spend the morning at the Gregorian going through introductory classes in how to do research and writing according to their methodology. Given the presence of COVID, it will be interesting to see how we will be given access to the library. It will also be interesting to meet the other doctoral candidates. Apparently, we are 17 this year beginning the doctorate in canon law.

Then the afternoon will be spent at the Angelicum, hopefully getting to know their library system and also attending a class on the historical development of the doctrine of the Trinity. The class should be interesting because much of this semester we will be reading the original texts of authors such as Athanasius, Basil, and Gregory--Fathers of the Church who were key in the articulation of the great mystery of the Trinity.

After much preparation, it is a joy to be able to finally begin classes and research! Please say a prayer for me tomorrow, and this week, as I begin this next chapter of God's will for my life. 

This week had many other blessings. Rather than give you a long list I will simply describe one of them. I was pleased to discover that one of the neighboring ancient churches here along the ancient Roman Forum--namely, the Church of St. Sabastian--has daily Eucharistic adoration from 5PM to 6PM. I went there yesterday and it was very quiet and conducive to prayer, which is not always the case in the churches frequented by tourists in this area! The church is built on the site of St. Sabastian's martyrdom. Saint Sabastian was a Roman soldier renowned for his courage, who became a captain of the Praetorian Guard. Eventually, his faith was discovered, after he had helped a number of others to convert, and he was martyred and went to his eternal reward. 

I will be returning to the church in a little bit to make a Holy Hour, and will pray for you all there, for the virtue of courage in today's world.

May St. Sebastian intercede for you, and may Our Lady be your counsel and guide.

In Cordibus Iesu et Mariae,

Fr. Pillari