Thursday, April 07, 2005

FRIENDS IN ROME...

[BARB Notes - A friend of mine happens to be in Rome in these days. She is sending us some lovely reports of the action on the ground. Here's one of her messages...]

Hello from Rome, in this, indeed, historical moment!

Yesterday was a 12 hour wait in a line winding down the Via della Consolazione, across the Tevere, down Via Vittorio Emmanuale, and on and on....all was calm, with a spirit of reciprocal concern and solidarity.

A small gesture, but significant - a teen's brand new parka lost and carefully tied to an umbrella held high in the hopes that the young owner could find it again; and as the early morning hours drew near, a "race" in who could be first to offer a square of ground space to the older pilgrims and to the very young - small "acts of love" along the way, that describe the climate here. Often without words to communicate (one is surrounded by the lively chatter of 100's of languages), gestures make all the difference: they are ones of kindness, of people striving, in many cases, to be the first to love. We feel, in a certain sense, "at home", "with family" - a beautiful family, where differences of country, race, religion, age or culture only accennuate the beauty of its universality. The fatigued endured of 12 - 15 hours standing, dissipates....

Then, the entrance into St Peter's Square: illuminated as the "Eternal Day" unfolding in the midst of a very dark night. It's spectacular and only the constant flow of people surrounding you, gives you courage to move on. At once we are all together, rooted firmly in present, with an unexpressable desire not to be moved, spiritually, from this immersion into a world of light.

And then we entered through that ancient door - everything was suddenly calm and silent. We continued our walk forward, conscious of the sacredness of the moment. We passed close to JPII and, suddenly, it was harder than ever not to imagine him lifting his arm to us, with that smile, that twinkle in eyes, encompassing us in one final blessing. However it seemed to us to be his silence, after leaving us an enormous volume of words and images, that cried out hope in the unity of the human family!

His immobility in death speaks more strongly than ever to his openness to suffering and to the pain of others. Reflecting on this,I am reminded of his words following the attempt on his life and after repeated surgeries. He entitled his letter "Salvifici doloris" (1984) - (my own rough translation)

"How can we speak of a suffering that saves us? Is not suffering an obstacle to happiness and a motive for abbandoning God? Without a doubt there exists tribulations, from a human point of view, that seem to be deprived of any meaning. In reality, if Jesus, the Word incarnate, proclamed: "Blessed are the afflicted", it is because there exists a higher point of view, that of God, who calls everyone to life and, although through suffering and death, to His Kingdom of love and peace. Happy is the person who can shine forth the light of God while immersed in the poverty of a life that has suffered and has been diminished!"...

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

I am hoping you will share your story.
acts of kindness

Anonymous said...

Still Struggling To Get Your Affiliate Checks?

Don't Be A Loser - Click Here:

hurricane survivor list

Anonymous said...

Hey, you have a great blog here! I'm definitely going to bookmark you!

I have a pacific eyes and teesholden t-shirt site called Holden Tees. We're a small company and we sell shirts and stuff.

Come and check it out if you get time

-Holden Tees

Anonymous said...

if u want an ipod, you can go to www.getipodsforfree.com and do an offer. follow the instructions and they'll actually send you a freeipod, no joke, there's reviews all over the internet

Anonymous said...

Hi ##NAME##, while looking for info on , I saw your blog ##TITLE## and congrats. It's exciting stuff, like the new Sports Arbitrage Software with its five way to make guaranteed winnings. Sports arbitrage, as some may not know, is simply betting on both sides of a sports event - and with this software you should double a same amount bet every 20 days. So, In 12 months a $100 bet wins $1825, and $1,000 wins $18,250. That's a 152% return a month! You don't have to buy our software program for arbitrage unless you think you want the most successful system, and like it's done in only 15 minutes a day. And, unlike a HYIP offer - YOU CAN'T LOSE! Better check this money making ##LINK## for 2006 and be ready start the new year happy and profitable. Get a special deal for affiliates. And good blogging in 2006!

Anonymous said...

Hi!I will definitely be a regular visitor on this blog as I love it so much and don?t want to miss the next updates!! Thanks,work at home make money

Anonymous said...

What if I could give you a great learning books for your home library collection. Great books on learning books and home repairs ...

Anonymous said...

Hello,

I was blogging until I finally made a very good and wise decision!!

lol This desicion was to read this entire blog. It is organized well and a bit unique than the rest I met. Keep up this good work...!

I soon go and look onto other posts!

Regards,
earn money online

Anonymous said...

Hi,The current time here is 2.am in the morning, and I am still not fed upreading through the content in here... I hope that soon I decide to get up and go to bed... :)All the best,make money fast online

Anonymous said...

Hey just to let you know that yes I am promoting this but if you dont want to save at the pump then dont go to the site but I believe no matter who you are gas is just to expensive.

The goverment is using it and many other huge company's. This is not just some fly by night company or product. This is the real deal.