Lateran day two

This morning was spent at the Lateran, which is the Cathedral of the Pope and heart of the Christian world.  It was my favorite site yet, and there is a really complicated history of the place.  We had mass in the chapter house, which was very cool and full of 22 inch high wood statues that I really want copies of.  Sadly the Romans have yet to learn to merchandize well (seriously, no models of these or the 12 apostles found in the nave at the Lateran or the founders of religious orders found in St. Peter).

The Latin outside the main doors.

"The sacred Lateran church of all the churches

 in the city and world mother and head."

One side of the choir in the chapter house

For example, if they had a replica of this St. Paul he would be coming home.

After mass, we explored the rest of the complex, including the baptistery, which was the only baptistery in Rome for over half a millennium.  It is decorated with very nice but wildly inaccurate frescos depicting the conversion and baptism of Constantine.  In them, the pope baptized him and in gratitude Constantine donates Italy to the Pope before going east (Constantine was baptized by Eusebius of Nicomedia on his deathbed and the donation document is a famous medieval forgery).  Still was very cool, and elements of it were found and are found in just about every baptismal to this day because it's that iconic.

The heads of Peter and Paul over the Pope's altar

The fount in the baptistery 

Before lunch we had an African missionary priest speak about missions in Africa, which really drove home how broad the Church really is. After lunch, I started working on the final reflection paper for our class and then I visited the Church of the Apostles, which is a very unassuming church down a random side street in Rome that houses the bodies of the Apostles Philip and James (the Lesser, James the brother of John is in Spain).  As I was ordained a deacon on their feast day, I spent quite a while praying there.  I then made my way back, stopping in the Oratorian church where St. Philip Neri is.  Then I and a couple guys made our way back to the NAC and spent the evening hanging out with guys who went to SPS for pre-theology.  

St Peter's on our way to the NAC

Tomorrow, I am bending the rules to head to Monte Cassino alone, but no one else wants to go (Florence and Naples top the agenda list for day trips) and I must see Benedict and Scholastica and this is my last chance.  So if there is no blog update by Monday, sound the alarm!