April 2023 Italy, Wed 4/26 Rome St. Paul, Vespa Ride

Wednesday morning started with an early breakfast in our room. We ordered from a menu that we hung on the outside of our door the night before. It was brought by two smiling ladies who each rolled a table into our room, set them up, and removed the food covers with a flourish. When we gasped at the amount of food they laughed and told us to take our time eating because we were on vacation. They must have thought we were planning to stay a long time! We ate, made lunch, and put some leftovers in the minibar for later.

Leaving the hotel, we walked past the American Embassy down a winding, shaded street to the Metro stop at Piazza Barberini. The Barberini family started as low-level merchants in the 1500’s who became quite wealthy and reportedly bought several positions in the Catholic Church, including that of Pope Urban VIII in 1623.

Pope Urban was a major patron of sculptor and architect Gian Lorenzo Bernini who developed the Baroque style of sculpture and created the “Fontana del Tritone” that sits in the center of Piazza Barberini as well as many other great works of art. Bernini also created sculptures and columns for St. Peter’s Basilica as well as becoming chief architect at one point in the project.

We had seen mixed reviews about the cleanliness and working order of Rome’s Metro system and were particularly aware of the need for diligence to prevent pick-pocketing. We always carry cross-body purses or travel bags and keep them to the front in order to make it as difficult as possible for any potential thievery. Any large city, especially those with tourists, is a place to be careful and Rome is absolutely no exception.

There was a Metro worker and a policeman standing along the edge of the steps to the station who told us that the lifts were not working and agreed with our plan to go to the Termini station and start there instead. The policeman made it a point to warn us to guard our bags. That said a lot.

We took a cab to Termini station which houses the Metro, bus stops, and trains. It is the largest in Rome and one of the largest in Europe. You could get your steps in for the day just walking around it especially if you shop in the high end mall directly attached.

We bought our Metro tickets and had an uneventful ride to the last stop on the Blue B1 line, Laurentina. We then used an app called “FreeNow” that works like Uber but brings an official taxi. A few minutes later we arrived at the archway entrance of the Abbazia delle Tre Fontane (Abbey of the Three Fountains).

The abbey complex includes three churches, the oldest of which was built in 626, and a Monastery of Trappist monks. One of the churches is named, Church of the Martyrdom of St. Paul. Like so many other churches and buildings in this centuries old land, the current church was built in the late 1500’s on top of the ruins of an ancient building.

Inside the church are two high reliefs sculpted of Peter and Paul who were believed to have been martyred in the same time period. Also there, behind a metal screen, is the truncated column to which tradition says Paul was tied.

Catholic Church tradition says that when the Apostle Paul was martyred on June 29, 67 AD, his neck was placed on the top of the column and his head was severed from his body with an axe. When his head fell to the ground it was said to have bounced three times, and in each of the places where it touched, a fountain sprang forth from the ground.

The source of the three fountains was closed in 1950 (I don’t know why) but there are three “tabernacles” at each of the places where the fountains were alleged to have sprung up. Each had a relief representing the head of Paul but they were stolen. Reproductions remain.

We returned by way of a tree lined lane to the front of the complex and bought some chocolate from the gift shop run by the monks, who are well known for their chocolate, honey, jams, wines, and olive oils. If I were looking for a place to live based solely on chocolate, my house would already be up for sale.

We sat outside in the shade of the tall stone pines and eucalyptus trees and had our lunch of small ham rolls and tomatoes left over from breakfast, and talked about the portrayed events. I was not present when Paul lived or died. I believe that “modern day miracles” both occur and are faked. Scripture tells us much about Paul, but nothing about how he died. It is certainly not a stretch to believe that he would have been martyred, under Nero’s persecutions, and in this manner. There is apparently later written documentation to at least some of the facts. The rest I must leave to history and tradition.

What I do believe as a certainty, is that Paul would have firmly and repeatedly reminded us to trust in nothing other than faith in Jesus and the gift of God’s grace for forgiveness of sin and eternal salvation.

Finishing lunch, we took a taxi two miles away to our next stop, the Basilica Papale San Paolo fuori le Mura, the “Church of Paul Outside the Walls”.

This large Basilica is the traditional burial place of Paul. He was buried in a sepulchral area owned by a Christian woman named Lucina. The place became one to which many would come to worship and pray during the periods of persecution. After the Emperor Constantine had a vision and declared freedom of religion, he ordered the excavation of the area around Paul’s tomb and built the Basilica, consecrated in 324. It was enhanced and enlarged for centuries but in 1823 was nearly completely destroyed by fire, and was rebuilt identically as it had been before.

About four feet below the altar is a marble tombstone that has a Latin inscription that reads, “PAULO APOSTOLO MART (Apostle Paul, martyr). Below that is a sarcophagus from which some of the surrounding brickwork has been cut away for a small portion of it to be seen. Above that is a glass box with what are believed to be the chains Paul wore while a prisoner in Rome.

Again, I cannot know the accuracy of any of the information presented or the presence of relics or any other claims. I do believe that Paul became a Believer in Jesus in a dramatic fashion, that he performed miracles through the supernatural power of God, that he traveled far and wide preaching the gospel of Christ, challenging and encouraging Believers to step up and live what their Saviour modeled, and that he suffered terribly through persecutions of every kind and counted it all as joy for what he would gain.

Upon leaving the church we walked to the not too far away Metro stop and rode back north to Termini Station where we returned to our hotel room for a bit of rest, more breakfast leftovers for a quick supper, and layers of shirts and jackets for our event of the trip…a nighttime Vespa ride through Rome!

We were picked up at our hotel at six where we were given hairnets and strapped into helmets, and placed one on the back and one in the sidecar of a shiny, black, vintage Vespa. We were taken to the Piazza Venezia where we met up with the rest of our Vespa group, were given a talk by our tour guide Stefano, were shuffled around a bit on various bikes and ended up riding in a newer Vespa with our new driver Enrico.

We spent the next three hours being driven around and throughout the city of Rome in the crazy rush hour traffic, down narrow streets lined with outdoor restaurants and tourists taking our pictures as we passed, to the top of a hill overlooking the city, a stop for gelato, and a final view of the colosseum at night. It – was – so – cool!!!

To all who are following along, we hope you are enjoying the trip. We have not forgotten those who would love to be traveling and are fighting other battles right now, and are praying for you – for God to gift the miracle of healing, for Him to gift the miracle of grace that is always sufficient for our every need. In Paul’s words, may you know Jesus and the very power that resurrected Him from death to life. You can trust Him.