On Pilgrimage with Sr Jeannine (3)

The day we spent travelling from Naples to Rome proved to be one of the highlights of the trip. We first called at Monte Cassino, a Benedictine Monastery founded by St Benedict himself. It is set high in the mountains and was badly damaged during fighting towards the end of World War II. Happily it has been almost completely and very beautifully restored. We arrived to find the place shrouded in mist, which produced great atmosphere. We had our prayer service in the chapel of St Benedict and St Scholastica, which is decorated with stunning mosaics. I sang the Salve Regina to the solemn Benedictine chant. I was pleased to note that the High Altar in the main basilica is arranged for the celebration of Mass ad orientem, complete with big six and crucifix.

We then moved on to Subiaco and the "Sacra Speco" where St Benedict first tested his vocation to the monastic life. Here the notable art is the frescoes, many dating back to the 12th-15th centuries but some even earlier including one said to be 'from the life' of St Francis of Assisi. Again we were surrounded by misty and stormy weather but just as we were returning to the coach shafts of sunlight pierced through the clouds, as if heaven were opening up before us.

After a little talk from me about Allegri's Miserere, Palestrina and Puccini's "Tosca", we arrived in Rome and came down to earth with a bump. The hotel was terrible! It was stuck way out in the suburbs (near to the penultimate stop on the metro line) the bar opened and closed at random times, the food was never better than poor and the rooms were tiny. I was very close to decamping back to the Hassler. I stuck it out however and we were soon all laughing at our spartan conditions.

Our first full day in Rome included a public audience with the Pope. This took place in the Paul VI Hall. The build up is impressive and, however much one tries to resist it, the Pope's entrance as all the lights come on, is a thrilling moment. The rest of the audience was rather tedious as the Pope reads the same speech in six different languages and long lists of pilgrimage groups are read out. Georg was in close attention to His Holiness, sitting on his right and handing him his scripts. But who was the man on the Pope's left? I think we should be told.

After the audience a whistle-stop tour of St Peter's was disappointing, partly because it was so fast but also because the basilica was being prepared for Holy Week so large parts of it were inaccessible or filled with chairs.

The highlight of the day for me was a Mass for our group at St John Lateran. A friend of Sr Jeannine's Fr Bruce Williams OP celebrated (ad orientem) in a chapel to the north east of the High Altar with beautiful wood carvings of saints. It was wonderful to have our own Mass in this great basilica, the Pope's cathedral. During communion I sang the antiphon Tu es Petrus, which I chose considering the venue, considering that we had seen the Pope that morning and that it was the feast of St Gregory the Great.

In the evening I went to the Teatro dell'Opera for ballet. "Raymonda" is not in the forefront of the classical repertoire but it was well danced and I enjoyed it. I particularly enjoyed visiting the theatre which is beautifully maintained. Another classical European opera house they dim the house lights by first of all turning off the main chandeliers, then the side lights but still leaving the boxes all lit - a wonderful effect. I was again let down by Rome's night time transport as the Metro was closed by 10.30 so again I had to hunt for a taxi.

The official itinerary for our final day was a visit to the catacombs but I have visited them twice before and wanted to see something I had not seen before. So I devised my own "Tosca Pilgrimage" for the day. I started at the Church of St Andrea della Valle. This includes the Barberini Chapel, which in the opera becomes the Attavanti Chapel around which much of the action of Act I takes place. A very special moment occurred as I was looking round the church and the midday Angelus rang - just as happens in the first act of Tosca! Apart from the opera connection, the church is notable for its brilliant frescoes of the crucifixion of St Andrew.

After a leisurely lunch (what a luxury that was!) of pasta carbonara and a couple of glasses of wine, I went to the Castel de St Angelo. There is much to see as you progress through the castle but the true glory is the stunning view from the top - a complete panorama of Rome. The visit also confirmed what I have long suspected, that productions of Tosca that set the last act right up beside the angel are not accurate. If Tosca had thrown herself from there she would have fallen only about twenty feet and, rather than meeting Scarpia before God, could well have ended up with nothing worse than a broken ankle.

I ended my afternoon with a visit to the extraordinary Pantheon, noting not only the altar set up ad orientem with big six but also with altar cards. What is going on in Rome? After a large chocolate ice cream (a tartuffo?) I returned to the metro via St Maria del Popolo with its two brilliant Caravaggios of the crucifixion of St Peter and the conversion of St Paul.

For our final evening there was a break with tradition. Rather than the customary 'awards' we had an ad hoc cabaret with all invited to perform their party piece. These ranged from singing ("We're a Couple of Swells" and "Che Serra Serra") via a one act play ("The Viper is Coming") to prayers, anecdotes, jokes and poems. One lady recited the alphabet backwards! I had composed a few limericks based around characters and events on the pilgrimage.

A barrister Brit Alnwickian

Sang the chant called Gregorian.

He drank gin in the bar

And talked opera

Till Americans shout 'shut up Ian!'

In the ear of Dionysus sang Jeannine

In Latin the Hail Holy Queen.

Mass facing east in addition;

Has Jeannine found tradition?

In a wimple very soon she'll be seen!

Final reflections? I found this pilgrimage really tough and felt we visited too many places and tried to do too much. Also the hotel in Rome was well below the standard I have come to enjoy on these trips. Having said that we did much that was remarkable and the highs very much out-weighed the lows. My fellow pilgrims kept their good humour through all adversities and were a model of Christian fellowship. It was a great privilege for me to be able to sing in places as special as Monte Cassino and St John Lateran. And it is always special to spend time in the company of the extraordinary spiritual force that is Jeannine Gramick. I leave the last word to someone who had been in the novitiate with Sr Jeannine: 'when I first got to know Sr Jeannine in the convent I thought her one of the most intelligent and most holy people I had ever met. I have known her now for forty years and nothing has changed that opinion.'