Rome. Day 5. The end.

Well… all vacations must come to an end, and today is the end of this one. We’ve had an absolutely fabulous time and are so thankful to the Lord in giving us this opportunity. Today’s excursions were fewer than previous days, but wonderful all the same. 

Our day began, as usual, with breakfast on the terrace of our hotel. We each had a cappuccino doppio in order to start the day off with a strong dose of wake-me-up. After breakfast we returned to our room to listen to a sermon online and spend some time in prayer before walking to Rome Baptist Church, about a 5 min. walk away.

I accidentally left my map at the hotel and found ourselves unable to locate the church. I had written down the basic turns but the street for which we were looking wasn’t labeled where I could see it. So we flagged a taxi and asked him for directions. He directed us to the right street, but in the wrong direction. Wandering far enough in the wrong direction we decided to turn around and wander in the opposite direction. Suddenly, after saying, “We should be getting close” I looked up, and there it was. The singing had already begun. We entered, found a pew, grabbed a hymnal, and chimed in.

People continued to file in during the first half of the service until it was nearly full (probably 100 people). The pastor was on sabbatical and the man filling in was a Baptist preacher from Nashville, Rev. Roger Freeman. He preached from Rom 1 on “The Centrality of the Gospel.” Although the substance of the sermon drifted pretty quickly from the title, it was an encouraging message on being a witness for Christ (similar to what we’d heard in Amstelveen last week).

After the service, but before the benediction, he invited all the guests to stand up and introduce themselves. After I introduced us, he said, “I was just in Cape Cod helping plant a Baptist Church.” “I bet it was Harbor Church (who bought Cape Maid Farms in Centerville),” I replied. “Yes it was!” What a small world; maybe all roads do lead to Rome:) After church, we walked down the street and shared a quattro formaggi pizza and then began our walk back to the hotel. We changed into some cooler clothes and headed out towards the colosseum to the office from which we’d booked a tour of the catacombs. The tour involved a walk along the Appian Way and a look at the catacombs of St. Callisto.

We arrived at the office early only to find out that the tour we booked was cancelled. So she offered us another tour, a little later, and to a different section, the Catacombs of Domitilla. I was disappointed at first, because I was looking forward to walking on the Appian Way and because I’d heard so many wonderful things about St. Callisto. But, trusting ourselves to the hand of Providence, we agreed to the change.

We had an hour to spare. What to do? I looked at our tour book to see what what near us that we could see. Providentially, I saw that we were near the Scala Santa(!!). All embarrassment aside, all forgetfulness owned, once I read the caption regarding the Scala Santa, I remembered that these were the steps that Martin Luther (and innumerable others) ascended on their knees hoping for forgiveness (and by the way, there are only 28 of them). So not only was I incorrect in my post of Day 2, but I was also mistaken in my post of Day 4. But I’m happy to report that I stand corrected and that the information I now share is correct.

It was believed by the monk Martin Luther (and nearly everyone else) that the Scala Santa (the holy staircase) were the very steps that Christ ascended in Pontius Pilate’s house during His trial. They were supposed to have been brought from Jerusalem by St. Helena, mother of the Emperor Constantine. The steps were moved to their present location in the Piazza of San Giovanni in Laterno by Pope Sixtus V. No foot may touch the holy steps themselves, so they are covered by wooden boards and may be climbed by the faithful on their knees, as a penance performed to God. We found St. Lawrence in which the steps are located, and we found a sign indicating as much, but we were unable to get in and see them… At least I was able to solve the mystery before leaving Rome 🙂

Our tour of the Catacombs of Domitilla made a remarkable impression upon us. In the Lord’s providence, Domitilla is the largest catacomb opened to the public and the only one with a basilica, a actual church. We descended the steps and were brought into the ancient sanctuary. It was awesome to be standing in the sanctuary where Christians worshiped before us as many as 1700 years ago. Pictures not allowed, so we kept our eyes opened and took it all in. Our excellent tour guide told us about the catacombs and then led us on a long walk through the 2d of 4 levels of tombs. Once the tour was finished, and none was left speaking with our guide but I and Schylie, I asked her if I could take a picture of the sanctuary or whether that too was excluded. She replied that it was allowed and agreed to take a picture for us. Some of the facts she explained:

1. There are 11 miles of catacombs in Rome, on four levels, with each level being a distinct labyrinth to keep one floor from collapsing onto another. The entire network has been accurately mapped by GPS etc. but very little of it is open to the public.
2. There are 150,000 tombs. Of those, only 2000 tombs are still sealed. Nearly all of them have been opened by grave robbers looking for jewels (of course they found none), by relic hunters looking for the bones of martyrs (believing them to have magical powers), and by various popes, who would move the bodies of famous martyrs to be reinterred in a church (e.g. St. Cecilia who was moved to Trastevere).
3. The basilica of Domitilla was built on the tomb of two well known martyrs, Nereus and Achilleus, Roman soldiers who converted to Christianity and were martyred for their faith in Christ. Their bones were moved as relics in the 9th century to (I believe) the Pantheon.

What was really amazing about our tour is that not only did we see at least 50 of the 2000 tombs that remain sealed, but we saw an amazing painting on the arch of one of the tombs. The painting dated from 380 AD and included a painting of Peter, of Paul, a lady praying with the sign of Christ over her (XP), two doves, and of Jesus teaching His disciples (He in the center and 6 on either side). Dating from 380 AD, the painting is the oldest Christian art in all of Rome. It was truly touching to behold and to think of the faith of those who painted it.

As we walked along the very narrow passageways, the walls were riddled with nothing but man- or child- or infant-shaped holes in the wall. I ran my hand along the floors of the open holes and along the face of the marble and terra cotta blocks which still faced the sealed tombs. I smiled, heart filled with joy, and said to the lady behind me, “One day we will meet them.” It was truly the best part of our trip and a wonderful way to finish off our time in Rome. Indeed, those catacombs were worth the entire trip. We were surrounded by a cloud of thousands of witnesses and it was truly glorious to be in the heart of such a cemetery.

Back from the tour, we grabbed an amazing cappuccino from La Tazza d-Oro and walked to the Pantheon for one final tour inside and a few more pictures of the outside–as the afternoon lighting was especially accommodating.

Tonight we’ll head out for our final meal–and gelato!–in Rome. We leave early tomorrow morning and, Lord willing, should be back home before 6PM. Thank you for all your prayers for our safety, our rest, and our enjoyment. This entire trip with Schylie (and Christie) has been truly wonderful.

I’ll attach a few final pictures, but before I do, some of you may be interested in a few statistics. As you know, besides the car we rented in Berlin (for traveling to the Netherlands and back), and besides our regular use of public transport in Berlin (both bus and train), we’ve spent much of this 10 day vacation on our feet, walking to and fro. Thanks to our wonderful iPhones, all our steps have been recorded, all our staircases have been recorded, and all our steps have been converted into total miles traveled each day.

So… here’s the stats (taken from my phone)–and for what it’s worth, coming from the ones who actually took all those steps, climbed all those staircases, and walked all those miles, we believe they are entirely accurate:

Aug 2 Berlin: 11,905 steps. 7 floors. 4.8 miles.

Aug 3 Berlin: 21,373 steps. 22 floors. 9.2 miles.

Aug 4 Berlin-Amsterdam: 3,924 steps. 8 floors. 1.5 miles.

Aug 5 (Sunday) Netherlands: 12,721 steps. 11 floors. 5.3 miles.

Aug 6 Amsterdam-Berlin: 6,936 steps. 20 floors. 3 miles.

Aug 7 Berlin: 17,523 steps. 12 floors. 8.3 miles.

Aug 8 Berlin-Rome: 15,794 steps. 4 floors. 6.4 miles.

Aug 9 Rome: 20,554 steps. 35 floors. 8.4 miles.

Aug 10 Rome: 21,529 steps. 12 floors. 10.8 miles.

Aug 11 Rome: 20,767 steps. 26 floors. 9.6 miles.

Aug 12 (Sunday) Rome: 18,493 steps. 12 floors. 8.9 miles.

GRAND TOTAL: We took 171,519 steps. We climbed 169 floors. And we walked 76.2 miles!