Miracle in Bolsena, Napoli’s Trash
Since Day 1 of our 17-day tour of Europe to retrace the foot trails of St. Thomas Aquinas, which, incidentally, is part of this year’s quadricentennial celebration of the University of Santo Thomas (UST), we have seen cathedrals and churches and chapels of all shapes and sizes that when we finally reached Bolsena, our interest was way below the critical level.
All we wanted to do was to go back to the hotel and sleep. When we arrived at the Basilica di Santa Cristina, we found out that it was closed and would only open at 4 p.m., which meant waiting for three hours. Half of the group shouted: “Abort!” Dragging our feet but looking forward to an afternoon nap, we were heading for the bus when the miracle happened.
It was siesta time in Bolsena and almost all the shops were closed – except for one. When we entered, we saw a treasure trove of souvenir items that before we knew it, the Basilica’s doors had opened to receive us. Fr. Tony and Fr. Winston said: “St. Thomas worked another miracle on us. He made us stop from retreating.”
Humbled, we entered the Basilica and gasped at what we saw, and felt that if we had missed it, it would have been unforgivable.
Bolsena is in Central Italy. It is situated on the northeast bank of Lake Bolsena, southwest of Orvieto. In the Middle Ages, Bolsena was known for its eels and wine.
In 1263 a German priest, Peter of Prague, stopped at Bolsena while on a pilgrimage to Rome. He found it difficult to believe that Christ was actually present in the consecrated Host. While celebrating Holy Mass above the tomb of St. Christina (located inside the Basilica di Santa Cristina), he had barely spoken the words of Consecration when blood started to seep from the consecrated Host and trickle over his hands onto the altar and the corporal.
To this day, the linen corporal bearing the spots of blood is still reverently enshrined and exhibited in the Cathedral of Orvieto. Many pilgrims and tourists journey to St. Christina’s Church in Bolsena to see for themselves the place where the miracle occurred. From the north aisle of the church one can enter the Chapel of the Miracle, where the stains on the paved floor are said to have been made by the blood from the miraculous Host. The altar of the miracle, which is surmounted by a 9th Century canopy, is now situated in the grotto of St. Christina.
Garbage, garbage everywhere in Napoli
We were so looking forward to our visit to Napoli, home of the original pizza, and the smell that greeted us upon entering Naples was not of pizza being baked in ovens but of garbage! Mounds of garbage were practically in every street corner of Naples and the stink is driving tourists away.
Landfills are overflowing but residents are against the opening of new ones. Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi even vowed to deploy soldiers to clean up the mess. For many Italians, the garbage crisis has become a symbol of the many problems facing the center-right government of Berlusconi.
St. Thomas was a teenager when he went to Naples in 1239 to study. As a student, Thomas’ handwriting was difficult to understand, a problem called littera inintelligibilis. It was also in Naples that he took on the Dominican habit without permission from his parents.
If there was one city that Thomas frequented, it was Napoli. It was also here that he continued writing “Summa contra Gentiles” and became Regent Master in the Studium Generale he established. So significant was Naples in the life of Thomas that his first canonization process began here in the summer of 1319, 45 years after his death in Fossanova. It was also in Naples where Thomas stopped writing completely after celebrating Mass on the feast day of St. Nicholas in 1273. When asked why, Thomas replied: “Everything I have written appears to me as so much straw ready to be burnt after the things that have been revealed to me.” – Article courtesy of Manila Bulletin
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